At Christmas, children all over the world welcome Jesus with joy, laughter, hope, and gifts. The Christian children in the Holy Land are not able to welcome Christmas with this same anticipation.
Let the Children come to me: for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs. Matthew 19:14
At Christmas, children all over the world welcome Jesus with joy, laughter, hope, and gifts. The Christian children in the Holy Land are not able to welcome Christmas with this same anticipation. Because of the devastated Palestinian economy (60-70% unemployment), many children have no hope of receiving a gift at all. Every year HCEF seeks to provide modest Christmas gifts for these children and to bring about 1,000 children from different Christian towns to Bethlehem to celebrate Christmas through the Jesus Loves the Children Program (Christmas Gifts and Journey to Bethlehem). Children of every Christian denomination participate in this journey and receive gifts in celebration of their unity in Christ. For children who do not participate in the Journey to Bethlehem, gifts are distributed at parties and holiday events held in Christian parishes, schools and community organizations.
* Many of the children living in the Holy Land have never been able to pray at the Church of the Nativity even though they live only a few miles away.
* Our goal for this Christmas is to bring about 1,000 children on January 15, 2006 to participate in this celebration of the peace and joy that our Savior Jesus Christ brought through his birth.
* Jesus Loves the Children/Journey to Bethlehem is an ideal project for church groups, schools, and individuals. Each $10 donation will ensure that a Christian child in the Holy Land will receive a gift at Christmas or participate in the Journey to Bethlehem or both.
* All gifts are purchased locally from Christian artisans and merchants, thus helping to create jobs for Holy Land Christians.
* Children of every Christian denomination receive gifts in celebration of their unity in Christ.
* Church school classes and parish groups can celebrate Christmas all year by designating their offerings or sponsoring a fundraising activity for the Jesus Loves the Children program.
The purest joy comes from the heart of a child. Likewise, the most poignant sorrow comes from a child who suffers without hope for a better future. Help these Christian celebrate the birth of Jesus! Your gift renews their faith that Christians around the world support them and pray for them as the witnesses of Christ’s light in the very land where He was born!
Please donate generously: To donate online
Or by mail HCEF, 6935 Wisconsin Avenue, Suit 214, Bethesda, MD 20815.
Make checks payable to HCEF.
To learn how you can bring Christmas joy to a child in the Holy Land,
Contact Janet Jacewicz at jlc@hcef.org or visit Jesus Loves the Children Webpage
