Monday, May 26, 2014

My letter to USA Today RE Pope Francis Visits the Middle East photo gallery

"This land means the future of ourselves and our children. Our story is one of tens of thousands of stories of Palestinians who have been suffering from the separation wall and the settlements," Juliet Abu Muhr told Ma'an News. Bethlehem families to meet Pope Francis

Pope Francis in Bethlehem, Palestine
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USAToday photo gallery ... "Pope Francis touches the wall that divides Israel from the West Bank on his way to celebrate a Mass in Manger Square next to the Church of the Nativity, believed by many to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem.  Pool photo by Osservatore Romano"
 RE Pope Francis Visits the Middle East photo gallery
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/

Dear Editor,

I was deeply disappointed by your 5-26-2014 Pope Francis Visits the Middle East photo gallery.  I really liked the photos from Amman Jordan, and I can understand why you feel compelled to feature Israel... but in my eyes Palestine was the star of this historic trip, and you only had one photo of that.

Furthermore that one photo you did feature "Pope Francis touches the wall that divides Israel from the West Bank on his way to celebrate a Mass in Manger Square next to the Church of the Nativity, believed by many to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem.  Pool photo by Osservatore Romano" was okay, but certainly not as good as some taken at the same scene, with a little Palestinian girl holding a flag. Or the ones showing the words on that wall "Free Palestine".

Why weren't there more photos in Bethlehem?  There are numerous good ones to chose from- and many positive pictures of Palestinians. Why not feature those too....  Pope Francis in Bethlehem: How the day unfolded http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=699742      PNN News http://www.wafaimages.ps/e_album.aspx?id=12519    http://www.wafaimages.ps/e_album.aspx?id=12522

Why no photos showing how  Bethlehem walls transformed in the presence of the Holy See   http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=699704

Why no photos of the Pope's visit to Palestinian refugee camps and all those beautiful Palestinian children who presented His Holiness with a key symbolizing the desire to return of 750,000 Palestinian refugees and their descendants who were expelled from what became Israel in 1948 and were never allowed to go back to their homes..." 

"The children also presented Pope Francis with a large card made in the style of those given out by the UN's refugee agency UNRWA in the name of Jesus Christ, who the children referred to as "the first refugee."

Why no photos of the Palestinian families who meet with the Pope, presenting a wide variety of the concerns and issues facing Palestinian Christians today, including the occupation, land confiscation, and the siege on Gaza.

According to the New York Times Pope "Francis took the unexpected step in Bethlehem, where he became the first pontiff ever to fly directly into the West Bank and to refer to the Israeli-occupied territory as the “State of Palestine.”"

Surely you could have found and featured at least some photos honoring Palestinian beauty and dignity.

And why not a photo of the main reason for the Pope's trip, and the motto created for the pilgrimage “So that they may be one” http://www.news.va/en/sites/pilgrimage-holy-land   commemorating the historic rapprochement between both branches of the Christian church 50 years ago, when Pope Paul VI met and embraced Patriarch Athenagoras -- the first easing of tensions between the Churches since the Great Schism in the 11th century...

Pope, Orthodox patriarch in historic unity meet in Jerusalem
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=699939

Those are just a few of the many fascinating and highly relevant photos you really should have included in your photo essay on the Pope's visit to The Holy Land.

Sincerely,
Anne Selden Annab

NOTES

"We were trying to take the Christian message and teachings and juxtapose them with the current situation, to help us think through what has happened over the last 66 years," Museum director John Persekian

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