Iraq during the past decades has not experienced easy times: from the authoritarian regime of Saddam Hussein and the bloody war with neighboring Iran, to the more recent period when the Islamic State dominated large parts of Iraqi territory from 2014 to 2017, perpetrating crimes against humanity and destroying the rich cultural heritage present, Iraqis have had no peace....
Abuna Ibrahim Faltas, you are a Franciscan, you have been a key player in the life of Bethlehem and Jerusalem for more than twenty years, you know better than anyone else the whole Middle East, its history and problems, as well as potentials. What is the situation in Palestine after more than a year of Covid?...
Often, especially upon returning from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, one gets the impression that the ecumenical journey, which has given Christians so many and so many fruits, sometimes not always all known and shared, is struggling to establish itself there where Jesus lived and the Christian experience was born. This impression, often corroborated by personal encounters in some places of worship, is reinforced by the images of clashes between Christians that certain media and social media bounce around the world to feed the idea that Christians cannot overcome the time of confrontations and divisions....
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL) has for years been committed to promoting Christian unity in the Middle East, with a focus on peace-building through the contribution of Christians, who are called to witness together to God's merciful love that helps reconciliation of memories....
The "Effetà Paul VI" Institute in Bethlehem, a specialized school for the phonetic reeducation of hearing-impaired children in Palestine, was inaugurated on June 30, 1971. Its origin, however, is rooted in a historical moment, that of St. Paul VI's trip to the Holy Land in 1964. It was a truly unforgettable event, since he was the first pope to return to where everything for Christians had begun. During the trip, Paul VI had the opportunity to note the presence of a large number of deaf children who were not receiving adequate assistance and expressed the desire that a work intended for their rehabilitation be born....
It was January 4, 1964, when Pope Paul VI arrived in Jerusalem, entering through the Damascus Gate on his way to the Holy Sepulcher. Paul VI's was a historic and unforgettable trip to the Holy Land: it was in fact the first time that a successor of Peter returned to the places where Jesus was born and lived, where the Church was born, where "we are all born," as the psalm goes. Those were the years of the Second Vatican Council, and Pope Paul VI strongly wanted that trip....
A relationship of great affection and collaboration has been built over time between the John Paul II Foundation and the Effetà Institute. When it comes to concrete works, in the specific case hundreds of Palestinian hearing-impaired children and youth in urgent, and sometimes desperate, need of care and assistance, certain loyalties can also be weighed and measured....
The situation in the Palestinian Territories continues to be particularly fragile socially, politically and economically. The socio-economic fabric of Palestine, made up of 90 percent small or even micro businesses, has seen heavy closures imposed by the pandemic over the past year....
Every day 30 kilometers to reach the Effetà Institute. Marwan loves his class and would never give it up. There he found help to overcome his difficulties, communicate with others and hope for a better future....
On a day in May, about ten years ago, I met with Effeta and the John Paul II Foundation. They had asked me for an availability for Bethlehem, a child neuropsychiatrist was needed....