In a powerful demonstration of ecclesial unity and humanitarian commitment, Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem, and Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, led a high-ranking church delegation to the Gaza Strip today. The pastoral and humanitarian visit aims to offer direct support to their flocks living under catastrophic conditions for more than 21 months and to oversee the churches’ emergency relief work in the war-torn region.
The visit comes in the wake of repeated attacks on Christian holy sites in Gaza, including:
The October 17, 2023 bombing of the Baptist Hospital
The October 19, 2023 strike on Saint Porphyrius Orthodox Church
The shooting of worshippers at the Holy Family Church on December 16, 2023
And the latest bombing on July 16, 2025, which claimed the lives of three people, injured nine others—including one critically—and lightly wounded the parish priest, Fr. Gabriel Romanelli. Vital parts of the parish complex were also destroyed, and many people with disabilities lost access to life-saving medical equipment.
The patriarchal visit follows a separate event just two days earlier, when Patriarch Theophilos III, Cardinal Pizzaballa, and the Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Adolfo Tito Yllana visited the Christian village of Taybeh, east of Ramallah. That visit came after settler attacks, under Israeli army protection, on the historic church and cemetery in the town. They were accompanied by diplomats from over twenty nations, including Jordan, Russia, China, EU countries, Japan, and Canada.
In the face of the worsening humanitarian disaster in Gaza, Patriarch Theophilos III called for a comprehensive, immediate, and permanent ceasefire, urging the international community to shoulder its moral and humanitarian responsibility toward innocent civilians caught in the crossfire.
He emphasized that the Orthodox Church continues its mission, grounded in the unshakable belief that spiritual and humanitarian presence during war is a sacred religious and ethical duty that cannot be abandoned.
“Where suffering increases, so does our responsibility,” said the Patriarch. “We do not come from afar—we are part of this land, of its pain, of its people, and of their resilience. The Church is here to walk alongside, to heal, and to rekindle hope in hearts crushed under the weight of this devastating war.”
