By Kiegan Irish, Animator for Eastern and Northern Ontario
Throughout the month of May, across the country, we have been participating in the Gaza Pilgrimage movement in solidarity with a global movement walking and praying for peace in the Holy Land. These are ecumenical events primarily led by KAIROS Canada, of which Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada is a member. The idea was to symbolically and prayerfully map onto our neighbourhoods the wounded territory of Gaza by walking all or part of its 42-kilometre length.
On May 22, 2024, we hosted the culminating pilgrimage in Ottawa, leading to a prayer vigil outside of the Parliament buildings. We held images from the different pilgrimages that had taken place around the country to demonstrate the threads of solidarity extending coast to coast, along with other signs and symbols of peace. Many people travelled from around the country to participate.
The vigil itself involved church leaders from as many as eight Canadian denominations alongside Palestinian Christians. Over 200 people were present for this expression of Christian ecumenical solidarity with the suffering of Palestinians and Israelis. Our executive director, Carl Hétu, was among the leaders who addressed the gathering.
Gaza Pilgrimage: a moving experience
I was profoundly moved by the depth of the Christian witness to suffering, the lamentations and the prayerful hope for peace. These were expressed through song, storytelling, readings from the Scriptures, and collective prayer.
Some of the Church leaders present at the vigil had recently returned from Palestine. Others in the crowd were Palestinian Christians who had recently come from Gaza or were awaiting news of their families there. Hearing the stories of their journeys confronted us with the intolerable horror and humiliation faced daily by Palestinians.
Finally, we flew kites as a symbol of the spirit of the children of Gaza, so many of whom have had their lives unjustly cut short. Samia O’Day, herself a Palestinian Christian who works as a music director at a United Church in Brockville, played a song she had written. This song, entitled Kites, memorializes the pastime of Gazan children who some years ago won a world record for the most kites flown simultaneously. Now, by contrast, the sky in Gaza is filled with missiles and bombshells and the sounds of a people being indiscriminately destroyed.
It is rare that Christians across denominational lines come together to witness to that which we hold most dear—our God is a God of peace. Jesus, himself a Jew from the Holy Land, is the ultimate expression of God’s final identification with the people who suffer the violence of imperialism and occupation. People of faith are beginning to recognize that despite the prevailing political support for Israel’s war, we are called to act for peace, to witness that another world is possible.
After the vigil, the church leaders went on to hold a parliamentary press conference. Over that afternoon and the following day, they met with Members of Parliament to advocate for a stronger and more courageous government response to the ongoing mass murder of Palestinians by the Israeli occupation forces.
Gaza Pilgrimage: an old and enduring struggle
While the conflict in Palestine reached an unprecedented level of intensity with the deplorable October 7 attacks, the Palestinian people have been struggling ever since they endured expulsion and humiliation during the founding of the modern state of Israel 75 years ago. Christians are called to be a people of peace. I am glad to be part of a broader movement that recognizes that a durable and lasting peace is built on a foundation of justice. We are calling for a “Ceasefire Now;” but for that ceasefire to last, we must begin the hard work of dismantling the occupation the Palestinian Territories, which has been illegal since 1967.
We might consider our testimonies before the doors of Parliament one small step towards modelling the courage needed to follow the biblical injunction to love our enemies across ethnic and religious divides; and to make sacrifices for the sake of justice and peace. I am grateful to have been part of our collective prayer and pilgrimage, but the struggle for peace is far from over.
Please consider donating to help our partners continue providing lifesaving aid and support to families affected by the conflict in Gaza.
