The Holy Land needs to restart the economy, and local Christians are in trouble due to the economic crisis, lack of work and lack of tourism activities. Father Patton, guardian of the Holy Land, explained the above situation to Vatican News. He also talked about two hopes.
(Vatican News Network) Father Francesco Patton, the guardian of the Holy Land, recently introduced the situation of the Holy Land to this news network and raised two hopes. He first hopes that Christians from all over the world will return to the Holy Land for pilgrimage to help local Christians; second, he hopes that after the appointment of the new government of Naftali Bennet and the contact between Israel and the Palestinian National Authority on Pfizer vaccines, both sides Can resume constructive dialogue.
Father Patton first talked about the future of Palestinians and Israelis living in harmony, pointing out that “there is always hope”, and this time added another factor, namely that Israeli Prime Minister Bennett and members of the coalition government made it clear from the beginning “Willing to use words that are different from those not long ago”, so I am willing to keep my voice down to avoid arousing conflict and hatred between Israel and Palestine, and within Israel.
Father Patton believes that this attitude also shows the willingness to resume dialogue and discuss the peace process in which Jews and Palestinians live together on the same land. He said: “There is hope, and I wish this hope will be encouraged by both sides in some way. In other words, I am happy to see that Israel and the Palestinian Authority are willing to turn the statement of intent into concrete steps.”
Israel is the first country to implement universal vaccinations, but the epidemic has also caused a very serious social and economic situation in this country, which has severely hit some sections of the society. The situation of Christians living in Palestine is particularly serious. Father Patton said, “From a health perspective, the current situation in this country is quite good, with the vaccination process being fast, effective and orderly.”
“What needs to be restarted today is work. During the epidemic, the vast majority of the people are in a situation of layoffs and subsidies. In Palestine, the vast majority of people have no jobs or income. Therefore, restarting the economy is an absolute need. As for Christians The situation, especially in Palestine, including Bethlehem, is vital to restarting pilgrimage activities and tourism. We hope that Christians from all over the world will come to the Holy Land for pilgrimage. This is of greater significance than before the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The urgent needs faced by the guardians of the Holy Land are also economic issues. Since the beginning of the epidemic, the pilgrimage sites no longer have income. Father Patton said: “The urgent economic needs are very important to us. We have schools, especially in Palestine. Schools such as Bethlehem and Jericho obviously need financial assistance, as do social activities. In the past year, we have applied for food, medical assistance and similar. The number of people in the situation is increasing. We also need to continue to repair the pilgrimage site, which is to create employment opportunities for local people.”
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