BETHLEHEM / JERUSALEM: The town, widely believed by Christians to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, usually throngs with pilgrims and tourists at this time of year.

But with a barbaric Israeli campaign raging in Gaza, a pall of gloom has descended over the city in the occupied West Bank, with the usual crowds of pilgrims staying away.

At the Vatican, the Pope Francis struck a somber note, lamenting the war in the Holy Land on Sun­day, where Christmas Eve brought only fresh bloodshed and an intensification of fighting across the length of the besieged strip.

“Tonight, our hearts are in Bethlehem, where the Prince of Peace is once more rejected by the futile logic of war, by the clash of arms that even today prevents him from finding room in the world,” Pope Francis said, presiding at Christmas Eve Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

Pope Francis, Latin patriarch of Jerusalem issue forceful call to end violence in Gaza

He added that Jesus “does not eliminate injustice from above by a show of force, but from below, by a show of love”.

This year, the biblical city of Bethlehem is almost deserted, with few worshippers around and no Christmas tree erected, after church leaders decided to forego “any unnecessarily festive” celebrations, in solidarity with Gazans, ostensibly for the first time in memory.

Many in the community were unable to come to terms with the death and displacement of hundreds of thousands of their fellow Palestinians.

“A lot of people are dying for this land,” said Nicole Najjar, an 18-year-old student. “It’s really hard to celebrate while our people are dying.”

“This year is different,” said Mervat Murra, 50, a fashion designer in Bethlehem. “It is marked by sadness, sorrow, destruction, deprivation and loss.”

Usually a huge Christmas tree is put up at Bethlehem’s Church of the Na­t­ivity, believed by Christians to be built on the spot where Christ was born.

This year there is an art installation expressing solidarity with Gazans: grey statues of Mary and Joseph placed in a pile of rubble.

On the building next door hung a large banner that read: “Stop the genocide, stop the displacement, lift the blockade” on Gaza.

A marching band, which usually comes with loud bagpipes and tambourines, was absent this year.

But a huge Palestinian flag was unfolded in the centre of town, along with a banner, which dec­lared: “The bells of Bethlehem ring for a ceasefire in Gaza”.

The Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, arrived on Sunday at the Church of the Nativity, clad in the traditional black and white keffiyeh, which has since become a global symbol of the Palestinian cause.

“Our heart goes to Gaza, to all people in Gaza but a special attention to our Christian community in Gaza who is suffering,” he said.

“We are here to pray and to ask not only for a ceasefire, a ceasefire is not enough, we have to stop these hostilities and to turn the page because violence generates only violence.”

“Our message every year for Christmas is a message of peace and love but this year it is message of sadness, grief and anger – a message as a response to what is happening in the Gaza Strip,” said Bethlehem’s Mayor Hanna Hanania, adding: “The deaf international community must hear our voice”.

The West Bank itself has also seen escalating violence since the start of the war, with more than 300 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces or settlers, local health officials say.

“We have no taste for celebrations” during the war, said Mitri Raheb, a pastor from the Gaza Strip.

He added that in the West Bank, too, every day “we cry for young people killed by the Israelis”.

“All we want for Christmas right now is a ceasefire, a sustainable ceasefire to stop this atrocity,” said Raheb.

“Bethlehem gave Jesus to the world and it’s high time for the world to give Bethlehem and Gaza peace.”

Separately, in southern Turkey, much of which was devastated by an earthquake in February, some faithful celebrated mass in front of the ruins of their church at Antakya.

Published in Dawn, December 25th, 2023