Christians packed the Church of the Dormition on Thursday to pray for peace in the world, but especially for peace with justice in the Holy Land. Christian and Muslim Palestinians in Bethlehem – most of whom cannot go to Jerusalem – gathered for a service of their own. About 70 people gathered around Rachel’s Tomb, which is being walled into Jerusalem and becoming home to a new settlement. They walked toward the main checkpoint and the wall, and stopped at a nearby chapel for a prayer service there. The sponsoring organizations released a statement. (Click here to get statement)
This traditional UN day for prayer for peace comes at a time when relations between Christians and Muslims have been strained by the Pope’s recent comments in which he quoted a Byzantine Emperor who said that Muhammed and Islam had brought nothing but evil and inhumanity. In response, some churches were attacked in Nablus, Tubas and Gaza. Bishop Younan has been working with both the Heads of Churches and Muslim leaders here to calm the situation, condemn any form of violence and encourage dialogue as the route to solve conflicts. The Bishop released a statement about the situation this week. (Click here to download statement.)