Arab Christian children from Jordan, Palestine and Israel can celebrate Christmas in Bethlehem this year – some for the first time ever.
Arab Christian children from Jordan, Palestine and Israel can celebrate Christmas in Bethlehem this year – some for the first time ever. Christmas is drawing near, but the children of the Holy Land Christians are facing a long winter of uncertainty, restrictions, and hardship. Many have been unable to move from their village or even get to school for months, and there is no relief in sight. As we all celebrate the nativity in Bethlehem, we continue to remember our family still living in the Holy Land as they endure a hard winter.
The Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation (HCEF) aims to replace despair with hope, fear with security, and humiliation with human dignity for all Holy Land Christians. Most of our aid programs have practical goals, like education, jobs, cultural preservation, partnerships, pilgrimages, elder care, and home rehabilitation.
HCEF’s Jesus Loves the Children Program: Children’s Journey to Bethlehem has a different kind of goal: joy. Many Arab Christian children have never seen the sacred sites of their spiritual heritage, yet they are entrusted to continue an ancient tradition of protection and worship in these places. The Children’s Journey to Bethlehem will bring them together to praise, celebrate, and commune in the City of the King. Bethlehem can ring again with the words of the angels – the message the city under siege needs to hear:
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace to people of goodwill.”
Life is hard for the Arab Christians of the Holy Land, but you can help bring joy to the land during the advent of Christmas. Like all HCEF programs, the Children’s Journey to Bethlehem is entirely donor-funded. Many of our donors’ gifts support practical ends; and donations to these funds are always needed. If you would like your Christmas gift to show extravagant love this year – for the sake of their joy – donate to the Children’s Journey to Bethlehem.
 | With every $300 donation we will be able to tell forty Palestinian or Israeli Christian children that they will get to take a Christmas ride to Bethlehem. You can donate a bus here. |
 | With every $250 donation we will be able to tell one Jordanian Christian child that he or she will be able to make the trip. You can make one Jordanian child very excited by donating Here. |
 | With every $10, we will tell one Palestinian or Isreali Christian child that he or she will get to visit Bethlehem for Christmas. To help the children get to Bethlehem, donate here. |
 | With every donation of $10 we will be able to give an Arab Christian child a modest Christmas gift. Gifts are purchased locally to help benefit local shopkeepers, who are suffering under harsh economic restrictions. To donate one or more gifts, Click Here. |
To learn more, support HCEF’s other programs, or to give an unrestricted donation so we can continue this important work, visit: www.hcef.org.
Thank you for your support and Merry Christmas from the staff of the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation. Please don’t forget to pray for your spiritual family in the Holy Land, and for the peace of God on Earth.
For more information about the Children’s Journey to Bethlehem, Click Here.
For more information about the Jesus Loves the Children Gifts Program, Click Here.
