The four presidents of Churches Together in the United Kingdom came to the Holy Land on pilgrimage especially to visit the Palestinian Christians during Advent and Christmas. The Presidents of CTE are the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor; the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd Dr Rowan Williams; Primate of the Armenian Church of Great Britain Bishop Nathan Hovhannisian; Free Churches Moderator, the Reverend David Coffey.
The four leaders are visiting their Christian sisters and brothers to learn about their life and faith. On Thursday, Dec. 21, the group walked through the main gate of the 30 ft. security wall between Bethlehem and Jerusalem, sang at the historic Star Gate in the Old City of Bethlehem and then continued to Manger Square. At the Bethlehem Peace Center, they were welcomed by Bethlehem Mayor Victor Batarsi and Archbishop Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor thanked the gathered group for making them feel welcome and said they were there because they believed the coming of Christ meant that all people should be free and not in a prison of poverty and oppression or fear and anxiety. For more, see http://www.rcdow.org.uk/holyland/