Geneva, February 20, 2025
Photo: oikoumene.org
His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem visited the UN on Tuesday to speak about the dire situation for Palestinian Christians.
His remarks came at the showing of the film Via Dolorosa, “which narrates the path of sorrows from the place where Christianity was born and where its presence is now severely threatened,” reports the World Council of Churches.
The film tells about the Christian presence in the Holy Land through the narration of the Christians themselves, telling about the important moments that have shaped their identity and resilience.
It’s feared that the ancient Christian community in Gaza “has now dwindled to under 600 people,” the Patriarch said.
Further, the economic situation in the West Bank and Jerusalem is deteriorating due to the lack of pilgrims, the lack of jobs, and the harrowing security situation, His Beatitude said.
Fr. Ibrahim Faltas, representing the Catholic church in the Holy Land, described an unprecedented situation as Christians abandon their historic communities in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Nazareth, having lost both faith and hope amid mounting challenges and difficulties.
Before the documentary was shown, filmmaker Amira Hanania explained that this is the first to chronicle the history of Palestinian Christianity through the eyes of the Christians themselves.
“It tells their story as they have lived it—free from distortion, free from erasure. It is a living testament to the role of Palestinian Christians in the struggle for justice and a powerful rebuttal to those who seek to erase their identity from the national and international arena.”
She said, “In the face of attempts to erase our history and displace our people, we stand here to declare that this land is not just a relic of the past but a living identity that will never be silenced nor erased.”
Other speakers collectively emphasized several key points: the WCC's Jerry Pillay called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza while acknowledging both the October 7 attack on Israel and the subsequent devastation in Gaza, stressing the equal dignity of all people in the region regardless of faith.
Palestinian Ambassador to Switzerland Ibrahim Khraishi affirmed Palestine’s commitment to peace while asserting the Palestinian people's right to remain in their land.
Theologian Mitri Raheb warned about the existential threat to Gaza’s Christian community and criticized Christian Zionism for weaponizing Biblical interpretation for political purposes, emphasizing that Christianity originated in Palestine and calling for peace in the region where, as he put it, “peace was born.”
Watch Via Dolorosa: The Path of Sorrows:
Pat. Theophilos offered a short interview after the showing of the film:
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