“I’m excited to have come to pray in the actual place of the Ascension... I want to be closer to God and Jesus,” 14 year-old Joelle Sammour told CNA.
Though its authenticity is disputed, the “Holy Fire” refers to a flame of purported divine origin that ignites inside Jesus’ tomb.
The announcement of Professor Mouna Maroun’s appointment was made amid tensions with Iran and as anti-Israel protests were mounting around the world.
Several posters and pamphlets appeared in the streets of the Old City calling on the public to avoid harassment toward Christians and non-Jews.
The Jerusalem Development Authority is exploring the opportunity to use the piece of land in the cemetery to place a cable car support pylon.
Muslim cemeteries have opened to receive the bodies of Christians and give them a dignified burial.
According to a communique, on April 3 “an unlawful eviction was initiated by Israeli police on the grounds of the Cows’ Garden.”
In the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, the church of the Lord’s resurrection, the Easter Vigil is held on Saturday morning instead of at night.
On Holy Thursday, the doors of the Cenacle in Jerusalem were opened to welcome the Franciscans of the Custody of the Holy Land.
In Jerusalem, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerate the two stones that, according to Luke’s Gospel, were stained with Jesus’ blood during his passion.
As the Catholic Church in the Holy Land entered Holy Week by literally retracing the steps of Jesus’ passion, the Orthodox Churches took their first steps into Lent.
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, led the procession, which departed from Bethphage on the eastern side of the Mount of Olives.
A decree going back to 1852 governs the possession and rights of use for Catholic and Orthodox Christian communities at important sanctuaries in the Holy Land.
Suhail Shadi Abu Dawod was planning to join the Institute of the Incarnate Word (IVE) in Italy — then the Israel-Hamas war broke out.
Founded by Father Mario Cornioli, the shop called Rafedìn has been helping Iraqis rebuild their lives over the past eight years.
“The Way of the Cross… A Way of Peace” was organized by the Custody of the Holy Land and involved 12 institutions.
“By placing ourselves in the middle, we listen to the injustice faced by the Palestinians and also to the fears of Israeli families,” said Sister Anna Maria Sgaramella.
Harassment of Christians in the Holy Land is not new. “Education is key,” says an expert on Jewish-Christian relations.
On World Day for Consecrated Life, Father Peter Vasko and Sister Naomi Zimmermann — both Franciscans — are grateful for God’s call to the Holy Land.
For 50 years, the Benedictine Dormition Abbey, which stands on Mount Zion, has hosted German-speaking students for an ecumenical theology program.