Gaza's only Catholic church - housing 600 displaced people - was hit during military operations yesterday (Thursday) morning with three people killed and 10 more injured.



Father Gabriel Romanelli, Parish Priest of the Holy Family Church, Gaza City, was among those hurt amid reports that a tank shell struck the building, damaging the roof and smashing windows.



Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, was among those who entered Gaza this morning (Friday) as part of a Christian delegation aimed at expressing solidarity with the Churches of the Holy Land and concern for the community of Gaza.



The Church leaders called for an immediate ceasefire, echoing calls from Pope Leo XIV who sent a message to say to he was "deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life and injury caused by the military attack" on the Holy Family Church.



In a week which also saw attacks on Taybeh, described as the only entirely Christian town in the West Bank, ACN is renewing its appeal for prayers for the people of the Holy Land and an end to the violence.



Read the full report here>>

ACN PRAYER

PRAYER FOR PEACE

In light of the recent shelling as well as the on-going devastation in the Holy Land we ask that at some point this weekend, you take a moment to pray for peace. Together, let’s ask God to help those who are affected by this war and guide those in positions of power to ensure that this conflict comes to an end.

The group meets next on Wednesday 30th July at 5.30pm on Zoom.
Email Fr. Matthew for an invite.

The Right Way
Whether or not we’ve ever been scouts, we often feel like lost explorers in the forest of life: we know a path exists, but finding it isn’t always easy. That’s the message of The Pope’s Video for July: a girl walks through a forest, becomes lost, and needs to find her direction. She looks around, pauses, and begins walking again, this time guided by a compass and a map. She stops once more, opens the Gospel, and arrives at a cave with a statue of Our Lady. It is in prayer, in silence and attentive listening, that she discovers the right way forward.

In his prayer intention for this month, Pope Leo XIV invites us to pray for this very grace: “Let us pray that we may learn more and more to discern, to know how to choose the paths of life and to reject everything that distances us from Christ and the Gospel.” To discern is to recognize what to hold onto in our lives and what to release, what pulls us away from our journey toward Christ. Discernment means examining our thoughts and hearts, identifying what aligns with God’s plan and what stems from ourselves or the world. It calls for effort, self-awareness, and most of all, a relationship with the Lord through prayer, reflection, and openness to the Holy Spirit.

Today more than ever, we face endless options that can leave us feeling frozen, anxious, and stuck. Decisions seem daunting because choosing something means letting go of something else, and that can be stressful. Yet we must not fear making choices. It is precisely in deciding that we exercise the freedom God has given us, and it is only through that freedom that we move forward in life.

St. Augustine reminds us that the interior journey begins with self-knowledge, recognizing our weaknesses, and leads to knowing God and asking for His healing. St. Ignatius of Loyola also teaches that discernment involves noticing the inner movements of the heart: peace and joy when we are on the right path, confusion and sadness when we are not.

So let us go forward without fear. Let us ask the Holy Spirit for the grace to choose with freedom, trusting that every step toward Christ is a step toward true peace.

Andrea Sarubbi
Coordinator – The Pope’s Video

ST. VINCENT DE PAUL SOCIETY COLLECTION - We tackle poverty in all its forms by providing assistance to people in need. Our recent appeal collection realised in excess of £800. We would like to thank the parish for their continued generosity to help us in our mission.New members always welcome to join us. For further information on SVP visit: https://www.svp.org.uk
contact: presidentg050512@svp.org.uk, or Fr Matthew.

Struggling after Abortion, you are not alone, give ius a call- ARCH, Abortion Recovery Care and Helpline.
0345 603 8501.
info@archtrust.org.uk

Our planning application was finally submitted on 28 March and the formal process to obtain planning permission to renovate the building has begun.

If you'd like to delve a bit deeper, the planning application reference is DM2025/00418. You will be able to make a comment on the application by following the link and clicking on 'Make a comment' at the top right of the page.

Please also show your support! A strong and supportive response from the public will help ensure our application is treated positively. Follow the link and let the council know - public support can only help!

The application includes an application for Listed Building Consent which of course is crucial because of the Grade II* status of the building. Our architects, Purcell, have worked very closely with the local authority Conservation Officer so we are confident we won't meet any major challenges.

Plans include:

Ground Floor (click to see GF plan)

The existing exhibition space will remain and will be a visitor welcome area.
The cross passage will be reinstated and will run through the building from east to west into what will eventually be the garden.
The rest of the ground floor will be commercial space, ensuring regular income for the Trust.
At the rear, there will be a newly built extension providing a staircase to the first and second floors and lift to the first floor. It will also house a plant room for an Air Source Heat Pump and a WC.
First Floor (click to see FF plan)
Most of the first floor will be taken up with interpretation of the story of the building. It will also be used as an event space.
A flexible meeting room will be used for group activities or could be a lettable office if necessary.
The remaining space will be for commercial use.
In the new extension, there will be a room for our volunteers' use, as well as another WC.
Second floor (click to see SF plan)
There will be an office for the Trust and another lettable office.
The attic chapel will be accessed via a staircase from the new extension. The extension will stop at the first floor along with the lift. There has been much debate over whether a lift should reach the chapel, but the risk of destroying a lot of significant fabric is too great. For those not able to manage the stairs there will be digital interpretation of the chapel at the lower levels.
Wall paintings survey
McNeilage Conservation has undertaken an analysis of wall paintings in the attic chapel. Unfortunately, although there are fragments of several decorative schemes, it doesn't look like we will ever be able to see the paintings in detail. The value of the paintings is in the historical significance of what happened there.

During renovation, the modern paint covering most of the walls will be carefully removed and the paintings will be covered with a white limewash.

Thanks very much to the National Lottery Heritage Fund who has funded most of our work. The Trust is extremely grateful to them and the National Lottery players who have made it possible.

Last Thursday morning after ‘Giving Hope’ had gone to press, the Holy Family Church in Gaza was struck by the IDF, three of the parishioners were killed and 4 seriously wounded. The next day HB Cardinal Pizzaballa and HB Theophilos III made a pastoral visit to the communities in Gaza sheltering in the churches and brought with them three truckloads of aid, desperately needed as the last aid shipment had been 8th March. There has been much news around this incident and their visit which you can read here.



We remain steadfast in our commitment to the Christian community in Gaza, we ask you to pray for the safety of all and for an immediate halt to the barbarism of the war and for a peaceful resolution of the conflict.



I last visited Jerusalem and the West Bank in the first week of April. It was a deeply moving journey, witnessing not only the scale of suffering but also the quiet strength and resilience of the Christian communities we serve.



In my conversations with church leaders and our partner charities it was emphasised to me that the presence of Christians to moderate and help bring communities together is more important than ever, however, their institutions face great struggles as USAID and other international government funding is cut and multi-year projects cancelled.



Our mission is to secure a resilient and enduring Christian community in the Holy Land, a mission that is becoming increasingly more difficult. In the West Bank, economic devastation is now the norm.



But hope is not lost. Because of your great love and generosity we have been able to develop and expand our work over the last year to reach out directly to our brothers and sisters and help them through the challenges of daily life.



This issue of Giving Hope talks about some of our projects and the ways we are making a difference to the lives of individual Christians. Hear from some of the people we have helped and what Friends of the Holy Land support means to them.