Jerusalem – On Thursday 11 September a group of 18 Catholic Bishops from the United States of America will begin a pilgrimage to visit the places where Jesus lived his earthly life with the specific intention to pray for peace in the Holy Land. “Our pilgrimage – said the Bishop of Des Moines, Bishop Richard E. Pates, chairman of the USCBC Committee on International Justice and Peace and promoter of the initiative – could not fall at a more critical time.
The fighting between Israel and Hamas, the latest in too many cycles of violence, has seriously undermined hopes for peace in the Holy Land. Today more than ever we need to pray”. The 18 Bishops making the pilgrimage will visit Jerusalem, Nazareth and Bethlehem. The seven day stay in the Holy Land – local sources tell Fides – will include a meeting with the Catholic parish priest of Gaza, Fr Jorge Hernandez, a member of the Institute of the Incarnate Word, received last month in audience by Pope F rancis on 29 August in Rome.
By: Agenzia Fides
