Judith Sudilovsky

The Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, expressed his happiness at the late-night hostage-exchange agreement reached between Israel and Hamas Nov. 21, and said he hoped it would lead to end to the war which broke out after an Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack on 22 southern Israeli agricultural communities along the border with Gaza.

As the world prayed for peace in the Holy Land Oct. 27, Pope Francis called for the war to halt and prayers to continue during the Angelus Oct. 29, as death toll in Gaza passed 8,000 and Israeli troops gradually increased their ground activity in the Gaza Strip, without calling it an “invasion.”

The Sister of Charity of the Incarnate Word from Peru, who is serving in the Catholic parish in Gaza, recalled the pain of watching the funeral of Christians killed in an Oct. 19 blast at a Greek Orthodox church.

While Christian faithful across the globe prayed and fasted for peace in the Holy Land, a rocket struck the Christian hospital in Gaza City where hundreds of people were being treated, but also where hundreds were taking shelter. U.S. President Joe Biden is on his way to Israel to make a quick visit Oct. 18.

Bodies still remain strewn along roads and in communities as authorities go through the arduous and gruesome process of identifying so many bodies, some of which first responders have said were mutilated and burned beyond recognition.

Patriarchs and Heads of the Churches in Jerusalem united in a call for peace and justice amid unfolding violence, following a surprise attack by Hamas in southern Israel, which has left around 600 Israelis dead, among them civilians and dozens of soldiers and police who were killed battling the Hamas fighters.

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem called Oct. 7 for secular and religious leaders around the world to help de-escalate the violence between Hamas and Israel following an unprecedented surprise dawn attack by Hamas militants on a major Jewish holiday.