Category: Bethlehem

Abuna Mario has been celebrating Eucharistic liturgies and praying the Stations of the Cross, as well as rosaries, among the olive groves in Cremisan Valley since October, 2011. This time, the Mass has an important objective: the Court of Appeal in Tel Aviv is expected to rule on the appeal presented against building work commencing on the land in question. The appeal was presented by the owners of this land, including the local Salesian House. In his appeal, Fr. Cornioli wrote: “Join us in prayer and may God enlighten Israeli judges. According to the priest, only an “insane mind could have planned the trail for this shameful wall of division” which has “nothing whatsoever to do with keeping the area safe but, it is simply aimed at robbing our families of our land and stifling the life of our communities.” The wall would ruin “one of the Holy Land’s most magnificent areas of natural beauty” and dispossess over 50 Christian families of their land.  

Recently, Abuna Mario Cornioli, a priest who ministers in the Beit Jala area of Bethlehem, celebrated a Holy Mass in Cremisan Valley, the city’s “green lung,” which is located along a piece of land, where Israeli authorities intend to erect a separation wall. The Mass was a way to cry out to heaven that “the time has come for justice to be made in this land and only justice can bring peace and security,” Cornioli said.