Franciscan friar’s ‘Way of the Cross’ resumes on the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem

Jerusalem, Oct 30, 2023 / 13:15 pm

As the Israel-Hamas conflict enters its third week, the Catholic Church in Jerusalem continues to raise its prayers to God for peace. 

On Friday, Oct. 27, in the context of the day of prayer, fasting, and penance for peace called for by Pope Francis, the Franciscan friars returned to celebrate the Way of the Cross on the Via Dolorosa after it had been held in a church for two weeks for security reasons. 

The procession was the only sign of life in a Jerusalem emptied of tourists and pilgrims and patrolled by security forces.

The event brought together people in the local Church to speak with one voice — one of peace, despite the diverse sensitivities within the local Christian community.

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, was present. A few days ago, he wrote a letter to his diocese urging every Christian to have “the courage of love and peace” despite “the evil ravaging the world.”

“We want to be victorious over the world,” the Patriarch wrote, “taking upon ourselves that same cross, which is also ours, made of pain and love, of truth and fear, of injustice and gift, of cries and forgiveness.” 

Against the constant backdrop of the roar of warplanes and the sweltering heat of the day, the Christians of Jerusalem walked together on the Via Dolorosa, physically tracing the path of peace.

On Friday evening, the Franciscans gathered for a moment of prayer in the Church of St. Savior in Jerusalem in front of the image “Ecce Homo” by Arcabas, placed before the altar. Participants read Bible passages, sang hymns, and prayed the words that Pope John Paul II wrote for the World Day of Peace in 2002 a few months after the 9/11 attacks. The famous passage of that message stood out: “No peace without justice, no justice without forgiveness.” 

One of the most evocative moments was when each person present placed grains of incense into a brazier so that the scent of prayer would rise to the sky instead of the smoke from the rockets and bombs that continue to batter the Holy Land.

After the proclamation of the beatitudes, the custos of the Holy Land, Father Francesco Patton, spoke briefly.

“Forgiveness is what qualifies us as Christians. John Paul II reminds us that it is necessary to speak of forgiveness even in contexts dominated by feelings of revenge and hatred. Let us ask the Lord to open our hearts to forgiveness, reconciliation, and peace and that, through our prayers, this seed may also be sown in the hearts of those living in this land, those who have the power to make decisions that affect the lives of others, and in the hearts of the entire world.”

Before the final blessing, a candle was lit from the paschal candle, and the light was passed from person to person as a symbol of the light of Christ and the fire of the Spirit that illuminates our path, which each person pledges to carry and spread in their daily lives.