By Luke Stocking, Interim Executive Director
O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie…
Bethlehem is still indeed this Christmas. There are no pilgrims. “Avoid all travel,” reads the advisory from the Government of Canada. Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada wishes to offer different advice. Come to Bethlehem. Come to Bethlehem and see what we are seeing here.
We are about 15 Caritas members from around the world gathered at the Casa Nova Hotel, which adjoins the Church of the Nativity, the site where Jesus was born. Caritas is the second largest humanitarian aid network in the world, present in virtually every nation, including Palestine. There is most definitely room at the inn this Christmas. The only guests at the Casa Nova are us.
We are here for a two-day meeting at the invitation of His Eminence Pierbattista Cardinal Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. He is the president of Caritas Jerusalem. Our partnership with Caritas Jerusalem has allowed the generosity and solidarity of Canadians to make a difference in the lives of so many suffering people, especially in Gaza and the West Bank. “The mission of Caritas is the Mission of the Church,” says the Cardinal in his address to us. “It is the expression of the love of the Church for the suffering and the poor.” He points out that the activities of Caritas Jerusalem are not focused only on Christians, but the wider Palestinian community. “The heart of the Church is in a way, outside of the Church, in the human beings, community and society that she serves.”
Anton Asfar is the secretary general of Caritas Jerusalem and is the true architect of our visit. The cost of the war since October 7, 2023, has been heavy on his staff, especially those living and working in Gaza. They have been displaced and injured, and two of them have been murdered. It is important for us to be here in person instead of on Zoom to express our closeness and support for them. At our morning meeting, we hold a moment of silence and prayer for Viola Al ‘Amash and Issam Abedrabbo and their family members who were murdered with them. “Gaza is not a country, it is a destroyed reality,” says Cardinal Pizzaballa. The courage of Caritas Jerusalem staff who continue to provide life-saving assistance despite their destroyed reality is truly inspiring.
An early dose of reality
Late in the night, we receive a message from Anton in the WhatsApp group for the trip, “SECURITY ALERT – Bethlehem Vicinity: A Palestinian opened gunfire at Israeli settlers’ vehicle in the vicinity of the tunnels checkpoint…. We’ll be evaluating the situation early morning. In the meanwhile, stay inside Casa Nova until further communication.”
Later that morning, Anton informs us that the planned field visit to a women’s handicraft cooperative in Ramallah (an economic empowerment project that we support) has to be cancelled due to the security situation. Instead, we will spend the day visiting projects within the Bethlehem Governorate that will not require us to pass any Israeli Checkpoints or “movement obstacles” that impede the movement of all Palestinians. According to the United Nations, there are 793 of these obstacles in the West Bank, 89 of which are checkpoints that are staffed by the army 24×7.
Bethlehem: Eloquent, arresting images
The projects we visit are each worthy of an entire story in themselves. But there are three images that stand out in particular from our day. Come and see….
A giant hose that I had to step over several times as we toured a women’s empowerment centre that housed a commercial kitchen, a kindergarten and a vocational program for youths with disabilities. The hose was connected to a water truck outside and was filling the water tank of the centre. The water was being purchased privately as their supply had run out. We were told the water supply is only turned on once a month there. The state of Israel controls over 80 per cent of the water reserves in the West Bank, where the disparity between Israeli settlements and Palestinian communities is evident. When I ask Caritas staff about how difficult it is for Palestinians to get permits to dig wells, they simply laugh.
A tissue that Rana Al-Arj’s disabled daughter runs to get for her as she tears up while sharing her story. Rana is one of the women we visited in the Aida refugee camp who were given a grant by Caritas to develop a business idea. She would engage her daughter by creating little wooden puzzles. This inspired her to share her puzzle crafts with others and further develop her crafting skills to include decorations, bookmarks and other items. Through the business project, she has been able to increase her income by 500 shekels a month (a sum equivalent to just under $200, that represents about five days’ wages at the Palestinian average rate).
The war has only exacerbated the economic hardships of Palestinians in the West Bank. Over 150,000 Palestinians who had permits to work inside of Israel had them revoked immediately after October 7.
A 225-metre gap in the infamous giant wall that we pass through to visit the convent school of the Salesian sisters in the Cremisan valley. Our hosts call it the annexation wall (as 85 per cent of it runs within West Bank territory). The gap is the result of a protracted legal battle that Caritas supported to prevent the annexation wall from cutting off the school from the nearby Salesian monastery and the community they both serve. For me, the gap symbolizes both the hopes and the fears of Palestinians. It is a sign that resistance is possible, but also fragile. We are told the gap could be closed at any time and if it were, it would spell the end of the school and worse for the community.
These are but three images. There are thousands more for you to discover, if you come to Bethlehem. It is the only way to know what is happening―to see it yourself, free from the filters of media echo chambers. Bethlehem needs pilgrims of hope. It needs people willing to take the risk of encountering others in this land and of helping create hope.
To talk about hope…
Cardinal Pizzaballa says, “It is not simple to talk about hope here. First of all, we must not confuse hope with solutions―political solutions or social or economic solutions. We know very well that the solution is not close. We have to be realistic. But hope is not a solution. Christian hope is something else. It is the desire to change reality. The desire in Caritas is still there. We don’t give up. We will never give up. Our love is not just a word, it is an action.”
What a gift it is to be a witness to this love in action here in Bethlehem this Christmas season. As the carol goes:
Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light;
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.
