Give a Boost to Palestinian Christians

New Delhi, May 11, 2011, 12:00 Hrs (George Plathottam):

When Bernard Kilroy spoke to me on telephone from England, I knew little about the subject of his conversation. He was trying to tell me about the plight of the Palestinian people and the discriminatory way they were being treated. Bernard and his wife Janine have visited the Holy Land several times and have promoted and financed a bursary at the Bethlehem’s Catholic University. I could recognise the concern in his voice, and decided to study the issue further. Realising that many of the readers of this column may not also have much idea about the difficulties faced by the people of Palestine, particularly the Christian community there, I thought of devoting this article to highlight the issue.

Perhaps the only time in the year most of us remember the people of Palestine is during the prayers of the Holy Week, or during the Good Friday annual collection which is taken out for the Holy Land/ Jerusalem. But the Christians of Palestine and their plight figured more prominently in the Synod of Bishops for the Middle East held from 10 to 24 October 2010 at the Vatican on the theme: "The Catholic Church in the Middle East: Communion and Testimony. 'The multitude of believers were of one heart and of one soul' (Acts 4, 32)."

Another event which recently drew attention to the plight of the Christians in Palestine was a Candlelight Vigil and a prayer held on Palm Sunday, 17 April, at the Sacred Heart Cathedral premises in New Delhi. The event was to express solidarity with Palestinian Christians who face restrictions to enter the places of worship in and around Jerusalem, especially during the Holy Week. It was organised by a newly formed ecumenical forum called Indian Solidarity Ecumenical Network – Kairos Palestine (ISEN-KP), initiated by the National Council of Churches in India, the Office of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India for Justice, Peace and Development, the YWCA of India, the National Council of YMCAs India, and the Palestine-Israel Ecumenical Forum.

Archbishop Vincent Concessao of Delhi led the candle light procession and prayer, which was attended by the Palestinian Ambassador to India, leaders and representatives of churches and representatives of a few NGOs.

Speaking at the service, Palestinian Ambassador Mr Adli Sidiq described Palestine as a land of peace that has witnessed the peaceful coexistence of people belonging to different religions. He also recounted the valiant participation of Christians in the Palestinian national movement and in the current resistance to Israeli occupation. He appreciated the content of the Christian ecumenical document, The Moment of Truth, which declared unequivocally ‘that the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land is a sin against God and humanity because it deprives the Palestinians of their basic human rights, bestowed by God.’