- Feb 5, 2002
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The pastor of only one Catholic parish in the entire world has an unusual experience almost every day. He receives a telephone call from Pope Francis, even when the pope is hospitalized, to check on things and to offer encouragement.
The pastor serves Holy Family Parish in Gaza, where so much turmoil has occurred recently, and chronically for generations.
Before the war, about 800,000 people lived in Gaza, a narrow piece of land surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea on its west, Israel on its north and east, and Egypt on its south. Overwhelmingly the people are Muslim, of the Sunni tradition.
Less than 1,000 are Roman Catholics. A few more are Orthodox Christians. Protestants are rare. Holy Family serves the Roman Catholics. The parish used to have a school, run by religious sisters, enrolling about 500 children.
Continued below.
www.oursundayvisitor.com
The pastor serves Holy Family Parish in Gaza, where so much turmoil has occurred recently, and chronically for generations.
Before the war, about 800,000 people lived in Gaza, a narrow piece of land surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea on its west, Israel on its north and east, and Egypt on its south. Overwhelmingly the people are Muslim, of the Sunni tradition.
Less than 1,000 are Roman Catholics. A few more are Orthodox Christians. Protestants are rare. Holy Family serves the Roman Catholics. The parish used to have a school, run by religious sisters, enrolling about 500 children.
Centuries of turmoil in the Holy Land
Continued below.
The suffering of Gaza's Christians is nothing new
The pastor of Gaza's Holy Family Parish receives daily calls from Pope Francis, offering support to the region's Catholics and Christians.
www.oursundayvisitor.com