Jordan to hold sombre Christmas in solidarity with Gaza

Figure of Baby Jesus in the rubble in Lutheran church crib, Bethlehem. Screenshot

Source: Vatican Media

Christians in Jordan will hold muted Christmas festivities as a gesture of solidarity with the Palestinian people.

Christmas will be different this year in the Kingdom of Jordan. No lights will shine as Christians celebrate the coming of the Lord.

The usually cheerful festivities will be muted, at the request of Christian leaders in the country, in a gesture of solidarity with the suffering Palestinian people just across the border.

Pope Francis has repeatedly called for a ceasefire in Gaza, where more than 18,000 people have died since Israel began military operations on 8 October.

The decision to cancel festivities, including bazaars, musical celebrations and the distribution of gifts, came from the Jordanian Council of Churches, which asked that its communities restrict their Christmas celebrations to prayer and religious ceremonies, as well as on donating to funds in support of children in Gaza. Over 10,000 children have died so far in the strip.

Almost two million people have been displaced. With nowhere to go, and with neither food nor water, observers are describing the situation as desperate, a humanitarian catastrophe.

Bethlehem, too, will be dim over the Christmas period. There will be no Christmas tree at the traditional site of Jesus' birth. "We will celebrate in sobriety," said Father Francesco Patton of the Custody of the Holy Land.

The Lutheran Church in Bethlehem has made a dfferent Christmas nativity scene this year, which reflects the reality of families living in Gaza today. The figure of Baby Jesus has been placed in a manger of rubble and destruction.

Bethlehem's Lutheran pastor, Rev Munther Isaac said that the Holy Family lived at a time of occupation. "If Christ were to be born today, he would be born under the rubble and Israeli shelling. This is a powerful message we send to the world celebrating the holidays."