On the 22nd of October, the Environmental Education Center of the ELCJHL facilitated the 22nd Annual Olive Harvest Festival, in cooperation with the Bethlehem Governorate and the Ministry of Agriculture.
The olive harvest is very important for the Palestinian economy, and a significant cultural and historical occasion as well. Today, community members gathered for an open market with local food and handcraft artisans. This was also the opening of an art exhibition featuring student artists from local universities.
In the past, this festival has featured student performances of dabkeh, poetry, and song. This year, the harvest fell during a time that our community’s hearts are heavy with recent events happening around the country. With this in mind, these celebratory performances were postponed.
Nevertheless, today our community gathered in gratitude for the olives, the earth that grew them, and the hardworking farmers and families who harvest them. Thank God for a bountiful harvest year, and for the rich history and culture that has been built around olives in Palestine for centuries.
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