Christmas Celebrations Cancelled in Bethlehem

 

Bethlehem's Lutheran Church decided its Christmas nativity scene would reflect the reality of children living and being born in Palestine today

Like so many, I feel no sense of anticipation about this Christmas. When someone asks if "I'm all set for Christmas ", I just shrug, amd struggle to see any joy thinking about the people of Palestine.where so many innocents are dead and the injured, the grieving and the traumatised, It's impossible to celebrate when there is a genocide taking place in Gaza

Christmas has been  canceled in Bethlehem  In solidarity with the suffering in Gaza due to the Israel-Hamas war, last week Christian leaders and municipal authorities in the West Bank city decided to cancel all public festivities. For the first time since modern celebrations began, the birthplace of Jesus will not decorate the Manger Square tree.where Jesus  was  born in solidarity with Palestinian suffering 

Jesus' birthplace has announced the usual decorations for the city will be taken down and the normal cheery celebrations wont go ahead, Not surprising given how many Christian Palestinians have died in present attacks on Gaza and West Bank, and the difficulty of worship without harassment from the IDF..There is no joy in genocide.

The move means there will be no huge tree put up or many decorative lights in Nativity Square - the exact spot Jesus was said to be born in. Father Francesco Patton of the Custody of the Holy Land church group said: "We will celebrate in sobriety. That means without the fanfare and without too many lights, in the most spiritual way and more (among) families than in the square."

Bethlehem is nextdoor to Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank that's seen devastating airstrikes and been battered in the Israeli-Hamas clashes in recent weeks just 30 miles away.

A spokesman for the Bethlehem municipality confirmed that the normal plans for Christmas have been completely scrapped ahead of December 25.  The spokesman said: “The reason is the general situation in Palestine; people are not really into any celebration, they are sad, angry and upset; our people in Gaza are being massacred and killed in cold blood." 

Due to the rich religious history, Christians from all around the world go on a pilgrimage to the  hallowed  town of  Bethlehem and the Church of the Nativity to celebrate the birth of Christ.Typically thronged by countless individuals from across the globe, the hallowed town of Bethlehem, revered as the birthplace of Jesus by Christians, will this year be veiled in sombreness. How can you celebrate Jesus while his birthplace Palestine, is under genocidal attacks?

The town of Bethlehem is significant to many people for different reasons.Today, approximately 60,000 people live in and around the broader Bethlehem area. The population is divided primarily between Muslims and Christians, the Christians being predominately Orthodox.

Under the control of the Palestinian National Authority since 1995, Bethlehem city has experienced chaotic growth and a constant flow of tourism.  th It is home to one of the most sacred Christian sites in the world. Built by Constantine the Great (circa 330 AD), the Church of the Nativity still stands over a cave believed to be the very spot where Jesus was born. The place of the manger is marked by a 14-pointed silver star, called the star of Bethlehem. 

The original Church of the Nativity structure was partially destroyed by the Samaritans in 529 A.D. and then rebuilt by the Byzantine Roman emperor Justinian. It is one of the oldest surviving Christian churches in existence today. It is also home to 25,000 Palestinians who live in the shadow of a massive concrete sep​a​ra​tion wall, that zig zags around Bethlehem, who cannot move freely, who struggle to maintain a livelihood, who cannot return to their ancestral villages.,

Israel began building the separation barrier. in parts concrete, with other stretches consisting of fencing,in 2002 during the Palestinian uprising, or intifada. Built mostly inside the West Bank, Israel says it is necessary to prevent attacks, but Palestinians label it an apartheid wall,  a symbol of their ongoing oppression, separating them from Jerusalem. The Palestinians consider the barrier illegal and call it an Israeli land grab, noting that it has engulfed large chunks of the West Bank onto the Israeli “side.”

It is 8 meters high - twice the height of the Berlin Wall - with armed watchtowers and a “buffer zone” 30-100 meters wide for electric fences, trenches, cameras, sensors, and military patrol. Aside from dominating the landscape, the barrier separates Bethlehem from much of the land owned by its people, and, crucially, it also severs it from  from its urban twin city Jerusalem (5 miles from city centre to city centre)  The structure, has been ruled illegal by the UN's International Court of Justice.

Since 7 October, Israeli bombings targeted three churches in Gaza, including the Orthodox Saint Porphyrius church in Gaza city, one of the oldest churches in the world. The bombing killed 18 Palestinians who were taking refuge in the church. Israeli forces have also bombed 31 mosques in the Gaza Strip. 

Amidst the tumultuous conflict, the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem has undertaken momentous transformations in its traditional holiday festivities. Pastor Munther Isaac courageously declared the cancellation of merry celebrations, opting instead for fervent prayers. "In light of the heart-wrenching genocide unfolding in Gaza, where innocent children are ruthlessly massacred, it is inconceivable to partake in merriment," he emphasised.  Uniting with unwavering solidarity, the West Bank church erected a poignant display. A heap of debris, symbolising the desolation in Gaza, stands adjacent to a humble sapling within the sacred walls. Swathed in a Palestinian kuffiyeh, the infant Jesus serenely rests upon the ruins, evoking profound imagery of children salvaged from utter devastation.  

Tis the season of Nativity scenes. But here’s a question to consider:Would Joseph and Mary even have been able to reach Bethlehem if they were making that same journey today?  How would that carpenter and his pregnant wife have circumnavigated the Kafka­esque network of Israeli settlements, roadblocks and closed military zones in the occupied West Bank? Would Mary have had to experience labor or childbirth at a checkpoint?

The ongoing Israeli assault on Gaza has killed over 16,200 Palestinians  in 65 days of genocide including including over 7000 children and has displaced more than three-quarters of the region's 2.3 million inhabitants, leaving them bereft of secure havens according to Gaza's ministry of health. An unknown number of Palestinians are still missing under the rubble as the israeli regime intensifies yet another atrocious assault on Khan Younisat, 

This comes as Israel intensifies its assault on Gaza's south, where the Israeli military has committed what is being called a massacre in Khan Younis, hitting a school sheltering displaced people and killing at least 30 people. 

Israeli tanks have also besieged the Kamal Adwan hospital, one of the last functioning hospitals in the north of the besieged Palestinian territory. The assault on Khan Younis, southern Gaza's main city, suggest a new and bloody phase of Israel's war. Israel had previously ordered civilians in the northern part of the Gaza Strip to flee to the south of the territory but is now committing large scale attacks on them there.

Christmas is the last thing on the minds of the nearly two million forcibly displaced Palestinians in their homeland, Homes reduced to rubble and entire families wiped-out in their sleep, at dinner or prayers, at United Nations (UN) shelters or major hospitals in north, central and southern Gaza, over 1.9 million have more to think about at the start of the traditional Advent of the Christmas season. 

Millions of Palestinian children left to mourn for martyred parents, relatives or friends are growing up in constant fear of not seeing tomorrow, or the next minute, and can’t even think of playing with toys in a land where they get shot and killed while playing football.  Palestinians lucky-enough to have had loved ones released from Israeli prisons cannot celebrate having them home for the holidays this year, lest they be rearrested and jailed again indefinitely.

Instead of planning for Christmas, Palestinians are praying for peace through a ceasefire that will allow them to count their losses and pay deserving tribute to their lost loved ones, before the year ends.

My heart and soul continues to ache for the people of Palestine. The impact of occupation daily bringing it's heavy burden.

All I want  for Christmas is a permanent ceasefire. But that’s only the beginning  Palestinians will never be safe while Apartheid Israel exists  The Occupation of Palestine must end and all peoples, regardless of ethnicity or religion, must have the same rights and responsibilities. There is nothing calm, nothing bright about  genocide  or  apartheid,History though  teaches us that injustice cannot last long especially when so many people join the struggle.Lets.draw inspiration from the people of Bethlehem, and of Palestine as  they  face ongoing  oppression who remain unified and steadfast in their struggle.Sending solidarity and love to the like minded, and may 2024 bring us closer to peace with justice.