FROM & for PALESTINE: Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer... Emmanuel, you who were born in a stable and made your home among the oppressed. May your light pierce the darkness of violence and despair. Strengthen us to be bearers of that light, standing in solidarity with all who yearn for liberation and hope.

This Christmas, as the world celebrates with trees and gifts, we in Palestine continue a second Christmas forgoing the usual celebrations, instead facing occupation and settler colonial violence. Furthermore, Gaza’s Christian community, one of the oldest Christian communities in the world dating back to the time of Pentecost, continue to face an existential threat as genocide continues. They face a Christmas amidst endless massacres and death. 

Emmanuel, you who were born in a stable and made your home among the oppressed. May your light pierce the darkness of violence and despair. Strengthen us to be bearers of that light, standing in solidarity with all who yearn for liberation and hope. Grant us the courage to proclaim, as Mary did, your promise to lift up the humble, to fill the hungry with good things, and to bring down rulers from their thrones. 

Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer 

Sabeel  is an ecumenical grassroots liberation theology movement among Palestinian Christians. Inspired by the life and teaching of Jesus Christ, this liberation theology seeks to deepen the faith of Palestinian Christians, to promote unity among them and lead them to act for justice and peace.

CHRISTMAS 2024: From DC to the Vatican, baby Jesus is wearing a keffiyeh (RNS) — The pro-Palestinian creche is intended to point out the disconnect between the idealized Bethlehem of most representations and the reality in present-day Gaza and the West Bank.

St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Washington’s Capitol Hill neighborhood is one of several churches across the country that have created crèches called “Christ in the Rubble.” The name comes from a book by Palestinian Christian pastor Munther Isaac. Featuring the baby Jesus wrapped in a black-and-white checkered keffiyeh, the creche is intended to remind Christians that if Jesus were born today, he would be born under the rubble. (Photo courtesy Lindsey Jones-Renaud)

 By Yonat Shimron  December 9, 2024 

(RNS) — The scene representing the birth of Jesus is a common December sight, artfully arranged on church lawns or entryways across the country.

But in some churches this year, the nativity crèche is looking a bit different.

The manger has been replaced with a pile of rocks, and the baby Jesus is swaddled not with a thin blanket but with a black-and-white keffiyeh, the Middle Eastern-style scarf that has become a symbol of Palestinians’ resistance to Israeli aggression.

This tableau, often called Christ in the Rubble, first appeared last year in the town of Bethlehem outside the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church, pastored by the prominent Palestinian minister and activist Munther Issac. All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, California, quickly copied it and constructed one on its lawn.

This Advent season, leading to Christmas, they are becoming more common. Even Pope Francis was presented a crèche Saturday (Dec. 7) by two Bethlehem-based artists, featuring a baby Jesus nestled in a keffiyeh.

The pontiff declared “Enough wars, enough violence!” while receiving the delegation of Palestinian groups that organized the project.

In Washington, D.C., less than half a mile from the U.S. Capitol, another church assembled a Christ in the Rubble crèche last week.

The nativity scene outside St. Mark’s Episcopal Church features a Black baby Jesus swaddled in a keffiyeh lying in a bed of broken bricks and clumps of concrete and wire.

It is intended to bring awareness to Israel’s ongoing war that has leveled the Gaza Strip and killed more than 44,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, as well as to the plight of Palestinians in Bethlehem, located in the occupied West Bank. While most Palestinians are Muslim, there is a thriving Palestinian Christian community in Bethlehem, the site of Jesus’ birth, according to the gospels of Matthew and Luke.

 “At Christmas, we sing about Bethlehem and we put up our manger scenes and talk about this story of Jesus being born in this town of Bethlehem with its themes of peace, love, joy and hope,” said Lindsey Jones-Renaud, a lay member of St. Mark’s who was part of the team that assembled the crèche last week. “But there’s such a disconnect between all that and what is actually happening in Bethlehem right now and in the surrounding lands.”  ... READ MORE  https://religionnews.com/2024/12/09/this-advent-christ-in-the-rubble-creches-feature-a-baby-jesus-in-a-keffiyeh/

 [AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES (or quotes or watch videos) IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine]

Pope: ‘Enough with wars and violence in the world, let there be peace in the whole world’ 2024-12-07

Pope: ‘Enough with wars and violence in the world, let there be peace in the whole world’   2024-12-07

From Palestine to the Vatican: A Nativity Scene Adorns Paul VI Hall, Crafted by Artisans from Bethlehem

As the Christmas season approaches, the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall unveiled a Nativity scene, meticulously crafted by Palestinian artisans from Bethlehem. Organized under the auspices of the Higher Presidential Committee for Church Affairs in Palestine and the Embassy of the State of Palestine to the Holy See, with the oversight by Dar al-Kalima University and the Piccirillo Center.

 

The ceremony was presided over by His Holiness Pope Francis, who was joined by Dr. Ramzi Khouri, PLO executive committee member and head of the Higher Presidential Committee for Church Affairs.

 

Dr. Khouri conveyed warm greetings from the Palestinian people, President Mahmoud Abbas and members of the Higher Presidential Committee. He expressed deep gratitude for the Pope’s unwavering support for the Palestinian cause and his tireless efforts to end the war on Gaza and promote justice.

 

In a symbolic gesture, two Palestinian children presented the Pope with the “Star of Bethlehem” plaque, reflecting the pain and resilience of Palestinian children suffering from the war, famine, and devastation in Gaza.

 

Pope Francis used the occasion to call attention to Bethlehem’s sacred Nativity sites, emphasizing their message of peace and love. “Despite their differences,” he remarked, “all Nativity scenes embody the universal message of hope and goodwill left to us by Jesus.”

 

His Holiness issued a heartfelt appeal:

 

“Enough with wars! Enough of violence! Do you know that one of the most profitable industries is the arms trade? Profit made for the purpose of killing—how can this be? Enough with wars!” He reiterated his strong condemnation of the arms industry that thrives on war and death.

 

The Pope also remembered all those suffering from the scourge of war worldwide, stating, “With tears in our eyes, we lift our prayers for peace. Let there be no more wars, no more violence. May peace reign across the world and touch every heart beloved by God.”

 

The 10-foot-tall Nativity Scene aims to draw global attention to the Holy Land, where conflict and sorrow persist. It features the Holy Family carved from olive wood, with the Christ Child laid upon a Palestinian keffiyeh. A mother-of-pearl Star of Bethlehem adorns the scene, inscribed in Arabic and Latin with the message: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men.”   

... READ MORE  https://www.hcc.ps/archives/57274?lang=en

 

 [AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES (or quotes or watch videos) IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine]

Christmas 2023 for Palestinians

English artist: Cheryl Roberts

Instagram: palestinian_solidarity_art

Today's Nativity scene inspired by Israeli Bombing Campaigns 2023 #Gaza #Bethlehem, #Palestine #Christmas #Christ

 

Photos: Lutheran Christ Church in #Bethlehem, #Palestine

#Christmas

#Gaza

 

This is the nativity scene at the Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem this year. It is based off pastor Munther Isaac’s sermon, “God is Under the Rubble.” Please read if you have not yet:

https://sojo.net/articles/god-under-rubble-gaza

 

 

GAZA UPDATE: More than 6,600 Palestinian children in Gaza have been killed by Israeli forces since October 7, according to the Governmental Media Office. 

 

Thousands more are still missing under the rubble.

The Western World will be putting up Nativity Scenes in their homes and churches which are about Middle Eastern people seeking refuge & look awful lot like those being bombed in Gaza

 

Olive wood carving from Bethlehem- Mary, baby Jesus, and Joseph

The #Western #World will be putting up Nativity Scenes in their homes and churches which are about Middle Eastern people seeking refuge & look awful lot like those being bombed in Gaza! 

Mike Hanini Odetalla

Christmas Is Palestine... where it all began

Christmas Card by Palestinian artist Taisir Masrieh

&
 

                                         This Week in Palestine The Treasures of the Nativity

                         Special Issue https://thisweekinpalestine.com/flip-260-5-special-issue/

Christmas night, watercolors, painted by Sliman Mansour for Palestine

Banksy unveils ‘Scar of Bethlehem’ nativity scene in the Walled Off Hotel, Palestine

A new Christmas-themed artwork dubbed the "Scar of Bethlehem" by secretive British artist Banksy is displayed at his Walled-Off Hotel in Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank Afp Published: 06:14 EST, 21 December 2019

A manger scene juxtaposed against concrete blocks seemingly pierced by a mortar shell: with Christmas looming, the latest Bethlehem offering by secretive artist Banksy appeared Saturday in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Dubbed the "Scar of Bethlehem", the baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph are backlit through damaged concrete, chiseled pockmarks exploding out from a gaping hole in four directions to approximate the Christmas Star.

The work is installed at Banksy's Walled-Off Hotel, where all rooms overlook a concrete section of the barrier built by Israel to cut off the occupied West Bank from Israeli territory.

"Love" and "peace" are respectively graffiti tagged in English and French on the artistic installation's concrete blocks, while three large wrapped presents are at the forefront of the scene.

"It is a nativity," the hotel's manager Wissam Salsaa told AFP after the piece was installed. "Banksy has his own contribution to Christmas."

"It is a great way to bring up the story of Bethlehem, the Christmas story, in a different way -- to make people think more" of how Palestinians live in Bethlehem.

Please always go to the original link to read the story in full. Each click on a link helps tell a newspaper what people are interested in reading.  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-7816629/Mysterious-artist-Banksy-unveils-dark-nativity-Bethlehem.html

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Banksy unveils ‘Scar of Bethlehem’ nativity mural

Banky’s latest piece — his take on a nativity scene — has been unveiled at his hotel in Bethlehem.

The “Scar of Bethlehem” artwork features a nativity scene with Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus – but instead of a star hanging over the crib, there is what appears to be a large bullet hole piercing an imposing grey wall.

The piece has appeared in the Walled Off Hotel, Banksy’s property which overlooks the border wall in the divided city.

The Walled Off Hotel (Dusan Vranic/AP)

Opened two years ago, the hotel is billed as having “the worst view of any hotel in the world” and is filled with original Banksy artwork.

The highlight is room number three, known as “Banksy’s Room”, where guests sleep in a king-size bed underneath Banksy’s artwork showing a Palestinian and an Israeli having a pillow fight.

The artist is known for making political statements with his graffiti, and has made previous forays into the Palestinian territories.

In one secret visit, he drew a girl being pulled upwards by balloons on the dividing wall, and he is believed to have sneaked into Gaza to draw four street murals, including one on a metal door that depicted the Greek goddess Niobe cowering against the rubble of a destroyed house.

 Please always go to the original link to read the story in full. Each click on a link helps tell a newspaper what people are interested in reading. https://gsy.bailiwickexpress.com/gsy/life/viral-news/banksy-unveils-lsquoscar-bethlehemrsquo-nativity-mural/