INTERVIEW Gaza's Catholic Church's Pastor "These are very hard times, but they have great trust in God..."

In Gaza Strip, Palestine, there is one Catholic Church, named Holy Family Parish, which is currently sheltering over 600 people, including a priest: the associate pastor, 3 groups of nuns, women, children and men. Gaza’s death toll from Israeli attacks mounts to 16,248, including 7,112 children Victims include 7,112 children, 4,885 women, according to government media office. The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.   (Source) Many churches from various denominations and leaders worldwide, including Pope Francis, have called for a ceasefire.
Father Gabriel Romanelli, the main pastor provided an interview on November 30th on the state of the Christians in Gaza with the continuing bombardment of Gaza by Israel. Fr. Gabriel is in Jerusalem because he was unable to return to Gaza after a trip to Rome. Currently, the associate pastor, Fr. Iusef Asad, is in Gaza and presides at all liturgies at the Church for the hundreds sheltering there. Pope Francis calls the parishioners every day by phone and sends his blessing.
The Latin Patriarchate wrote:
An Interview with Fr. Gabriel Romanelli, IVE, Parish Priest of the Holy Family church in Gaza. Throughout the interview, he tells us about the life of the parish of Gaza and its various pastoral activities, then explains to us the role His Holiness Pope Francis and H.B Card. Pizzaballa played in promoting hope and strengthening Christians in Gaza during the war. Fr. Gabriel shares about how the parish in Gaza is preparing to welcome the feast of the Nativity of Jesus, despite the difficult circumstances, and ends his interview by addressing all Parishioners and the world.The interview was held by Fr. Ibrahim Nino, Director of the Media Office at the Latin Patriarchate, on November 30, 2023“It is truly a tough time,” said Father Gabriel Romanelli, an Argentinian priest who has served in the Holy Land for over 25 years, and who for the past six years has been pastor of the small Holy Family Catholic parish in Gaza.
Fr. Romanelli was in Rome to attend the Sept. 30 consistory in which Archbishop Pizzaballa became cardinal, and has been unable to return to Gaza since. He has been communicating with parishioners through the associate pastor. Our meeting today is with Fr. Gabriel Romanelli, IVE, who speaks Arabic fluently. He is currently the parish priest of the Holy Family Church in Gaza.  

INTERVIEW TEXT - Fr. Gabriel explains:

The parish of Gaza is one of the most important "Holy places"... It is part of the Holy Land because according to traditions, when the Holy Family: Baby Jesus, St. Joseph, and the Virgin Mary, fled from Bethlehem to Egypt, they took the sea route, which means they passed through Gaza, and the same upon their return to Nazareth. Hence, the Latin parish of the Patriarchate in Gaza has been named after the Holy Family. (VIDEO with English subtitles)

Since the Lord's presence in Gaza, there has always been a Christian community present there, the size varied throughout the years . 

Also Saints have been canonized from Gaza, there has been martyrs from Gaza during the Byzantine times and the early Christian years. To this day, Christians are living in the Gaza Strip. The Population of the Gaza Strip is around 2 Million 300 thousand, of whom 1,017 Christians were present in the Gaza Strip before the war. We usually do these statistics before Christmas. Of the 1,017 Christians, 135 were Latin rite, which includes the sisters and priests, a small number indeed, and the rest were Christian Orthodox. Despite the small number of the parish, its mission is very important whether for the Church or for the community as a whole. Talking about the Christian community as a whole without distinction of the denominations as everyone participates in the prayers and meetings. We hold two masses daily and the Recitation of the Rosary, just like other parishes. We have 10 pastoral groups that are thankfully very active, which include a group for children in different ages, There is three different groups for young adults, a group for the men of the parish and a group for the women, the scouts, the boys who serve at the altar and church. 

Thank God, this shows that despite the various things we lack in Gaza, yet these groups make an effort to meet weekly. Each group has its own activity, sometimes they gather to pray and adore Jesus in the Eucharist. Even the young ones attend adoration, just for a few minutes, between 10 - 15 mins, to show them how to talk to Jesus and form them into the faith. Other times they pray the Rosary or the Way of the Cross.
After praying we offer a spiritual formation for the groups then a free play time or fun activities. Daily there is at least one of these groups present in the parish building. In addition to this, there are three Catholic schools out of five Christian schools in the Gaza Strip. One of them is the Rosary school, and one for the Patriarchate school of the Holy Family parish, in addition to the oldest Private Patriarchate school, which is located in the Zaytoun area. Most of the students are Muslims as we all know that most of the population of the Gaza Strip are Muslims, and they love to participate and be part of our schools. And of course the children of our parish study in those schools. We have more than 2000 students. There is also the Caritas center which serves in all areas of the strip. We also have three merciful acts which are: Two House for the sisters of Mother Teresa, where they serve infants, teenagers, those with disabilities, as well as elderlies in need of care. They have 54 individuals in total living with the sisters. Another merciful acts project we have is called the " Butterflies Children", which consists of 66 children, who live with their families across all Gaza, but struggle with an incurable disease. Their whole body is covered with wounds, and is afflicted with pain. Usually, they don’t live for a long time but in rare cases they live up to age 30. With the assistance of the laity we help them in their houses, to truly help the ones in need. We also have a Charitable Box of St. Anthony, to offer help to hundreds of poor families. 

All of this charity work is given without distinction to both Christians and Muslims, right?

 Yes, Of course, it is. We know that there is a law in acts of love. We care for our loved ones and those around us but without any partiality. The Church has always been doing this kind of service in the example of Jesus Christ who gave bread to all, and healed all without distinction, anyone who was in need. So we have the Rosary sisters, Sisters of Mother Teresa, and the Incarnate Word sisters - the Order I was ordained from - who mostly serve at the parish. Therefore, in regards to the spiritual life, despite all the things we lack, it is still a beautiful rich and important life in the parish. We try to be one, not only assisting the Christians but also the Muslims. To anyone who comes to Gaza, allow them to experience the special presence of the Lord. In addition, as we mentioned the church serves those outside of it, through Caritas, and the different Patriarchate projects and initiatives. Through these different Christian organizations, we have been serving thousands upon thousands of people in need. In my opinion, it is a very important mission and it is by the grace of God that the Patriarchate is still present in Gaza, and hopefully that it preserves its presence there. I think there are three important goals of this mission in the Gaza Strip: First, to foster and preserve the presence of Jesus Christ in that area. Indeed The Lord passed from there twice but He is still present there, through His Presence in the Eucharist. Hence, as long as there is Priest present there, which is Fr. Yousef currently, Jesus remains on the altar of Gaza. Second, to care for the spiritual life of the people, through the different sacraments of the Church, such as the sacrament of reconciliation, ministering to the sick, and so on. Finally, to testify to the love of Jesus to everyone, we are just like any other human but carrying a specific vocation, which is to show the Love of God, and the person of Jesus through our words, actions, and love for all. 

Of course Father, and through our social networks everyone sees how active the parish of Gaza was before the war and even after the war. Especially, pictures from Mass and daily prayers, where we see everyone gathered under the roof of the church, and are deeply connected to the church by their regular attendance to church. Thanks to your care and attention to the faithful and the spiritual services you provide there. We knew that during the aggression, Card. Pierbattista and H.H. Pope Francis were in constant contact with you and the parishioners. How did this impact the Christian community present there? 

To be honest, the nearness of H.B. and H.H. was very important because in the dark hour, in the hour where one expereinces the Golgotha, nearness is important. Despite H.B.'s big responsibilities to care for the region and pastor the whole diocese, of Palestine, Israel, Jordan, and Cyprus. He still made so much efforts, and worked hard to help us and be beside us and in prayer for us. This gave strength and courage to the parish. The Pope called us daily, to check on us, despite his also big responsibilities and duties for the Church. And through a simple phone call, he gave us his blessing, to the Christian community first. Offcurse after the war began, Christians gathered in the Church to take shelter in both the Latin and Orthodox church. Especially after the Israeli bombing that happened to the Orthodox church where 18 died, many came to take refuge at the Latin parish. There are still those who take refuge in both of the churches. 

There is around 700 individual now in the Latin church? 

A little less as some were able to flee Gaza, those who had a Foreign passport. But there is definitely more than 600 individual taking shelter in the Latin church. I do not know the exact number in the Orthodox church and statistics, especially since a whole building was demolished. But in general, all of the Christians took shelter in both of the churches. So when the Pope calls daily and blesses them of course this encouraged them. Times of war are hard, and not a blessing, that is why we need to pray and work for peace. Even though some love to inflict wars, for various reasons. But we are the Children of God, and as Jesus said Blessed are the peacemakers. so we truly want to be called children of God by living this out and seeking after accomplishing peace on earth. It was great for the parishioners to hear the sound of the Patriarch and the Pope, which was comforting to many as they were undersatnding of their decisions to stay. Especially when they had to decide whether to move from the North to the South. Parents had to make a decision, but people said where shall we go. To better understand, the small Gaza Strip, has many cities, the Main city is Gaza, which is in the North, and where most of the Catholic buildings are. 

So people did not know where to flee to, to a place where there is no water, food or electricity? 

It was dangerous as bombings were taking place both north and south. They chose to remain where they were, trusting in Jesus, so they truly felt the presence of God. The phone calls expressed to the Christians, the love, compassion, and involvement of everyone around the globe, the efforts of many to bring about a ceasefire, end the war, and bring a just peace. Shortly the Christmas Advent begins, and Christmas celebrations are approaching, and as we know a statement has been issued by the Patriarchs and Heads of the Churches to limit the celebrations only to liturgical, prayers, inside the churches without any outside celebrations. 

How will the parish in Gaza welcome this season this year, especially since you are in constant contact with Fr. Joseph and the parish there? 

It is truly a tough time. The negotiation times are important and hopefully, they continue on a positive note. Some of the parishioners have returned to the area of their residence, only those who were able to do so. But there is great shock and sadness, even if they have strong faith they remain humans and sadness is normal to be experienced, even our Lord Jesus Christ, God incarnate, wept. These are very hard times, but they have great trust in God’s divine protection. It is of course important not to have big celebrations, it is a sign of solidarity and respect to those that have lost loved ones, to those who are wounded, as some of the dead bodies remain under rubles. The big yearly activities as we are used to hold in our parish an schools will not take place this year. But we started to think spiritually, at the end the Birth of Jesus is the center of our celebrations. To hold different spiritual activities for the parishioners. To help prepare spiritually for Jesus to be born in our hearts and lives, by cleansing the Grotto of our hearts, and experience the simplicity of a Grotto. Also, by the help of our Lady who carried Jesus, to allow her to birth Jesus in us and take an example of the virtues of St. Joseph. We are trying to find an opportunity to renew our spiritual life. Amen Amen.

 Father our final question for today is considering that you are the parish priest of Gaza what is your message to our parishes and the world as a whole? 

On the same line I just spoke of. Here in the Holy Land, we usually begin Christmas celebrations with the first Advent of Sunday and continue until the end of the Armenian Church, the last one to celebrate the birth of Jesus. But, unfortunately, the past few years, people have forgotten that Christmas is not only a feast but also that Advent is a season of preparation and repentance, maybe not as big as Easter but it is still an opportunity to examine our hearts and repent. That’s why the Liturgical Readings chosen by the Church focus on the Second coming of Christ, where he will Judge the World. He is the great Judge who knows what's in each person’s heart. That’s why we need to return to the pillars of our faith, to read and Meditate on the Word of God, attend Adorations, and go to confession. During the big feasts, we tend to forget that the Sacrament of Confession is a Holy Sacrament. We focus on Baptism, which is definetly the main Sacrament needed to become a Christian, and we focus on the sacrament of the Eucharist, which as important where we receive Jesus. Yet we tend to forget that we need a spiritual healing, we forget that we can die spiritually, but there is a solution for everything, and its through confession and repentance. This is the main goal. Another thing is to show love towards others. A lot of people in different places in this season like to hold Charitable works during the Advent, to give to those in need. I hope that people do such to the people of the Holy Land, including Gaza as everyone is affected both in Gaza and the West Bank, where many have lost their jobs. Also, to do spiritual acts of mercy. In the beginning of the war, Fr. Yousef accompanied by the sisters went to the elderlies houses and brought them to the monastery, to be with them and show them mercy and love. The rest were with their families. But sometimes we are living in a town and we forget to check up on our neighbors who are living by themselves, these acts of mercy are important, even when visiting the sick. In sum, we should renew our spiritual life whether through confession, penance, and repentance. 

Thank you for sharing with us your knowledge of the parish in Gaza and your spiritual understanding. We join our voice with yours and call for Advent season to be lived in penance and repentance to prepare our hearts for the Birth of Jesus, and hope to bring about peace and justice to all.