Ad Maoirem De Gloriam

Representing their episcopal conferences, nine bishops from the US, Canada, and Europe have called for peace in the Holy Land. “While the faith we see in the Christians of the Holy Land is an inspiration to all, we have heard repeatedly and have seen ourselves that occupation and insecurity, fear and frustration dominate the life of people across this land,” the bishops said in a statement. “Blaming the other is an abdication of responsibility and a failure of leadership, a leadership that the people so desperately need. We have heard and we make this conviction our own: to be pro-Israeli has to mean being pro-Palestinian. This means being pro-justice for all, whose certain fruit is lasting peace.” Welcoming the resumption of discussions between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, the bishops added that “dialogue is threatened and undermined by extremism and intolerance of the other, the signs of which are only too apparent in the attitudes, judgments and actions...

Annual Support Pilgrimage Under Way This Week\ JERUSALEM, JAN. 9, 2012 (Zenit.org).- A group of European and North American bishops began their annual visit to the Holy Land on Sunday, aware that this year's four-day trip holds a certain significance in lieu of the recent social and political changes that have taken place in the region. The group of prelates, known as the the Holy Land Coordination, began their tour in Gaza's Christian community on Sunday with a celebration of Mass. Greeted by a band of 40 scouts, the bishops brought messages of support from their dioceses and respective bishops' conferences. After Mass, there was an open meeting, during which the parishioners shared their experiences of living in Gaza, where the economic blockade and security situation make work and freedom of movement extremely difficult. The apostolic nuncio, Archbishop Antonio Franco, said in his homily that in celebrating the feast of the Baptism of Our Lord, there was...