Christmas Message from Bethlehem – “Do not be afraid”
by Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb, Founder and President of Dar al-Kalima University
Bethlehem, Palestine
A few weeks ago, I was meeting with Christian leaders from the Middle East. Although each one of us came from a different context nevertheless it was clear that one single theme was common in all our deliberations: Fear. The Jewish settler attacks in the West Bank, the destruction that the Israeli airstrikes had left in Lebanon, and the regime change in Syria with an unknown future, are making Christians very fearful about their future. Fear seems to be the mark of our time.
Yet, the fears of our Palestinian people in Gaza are beyond comprehension. Half of the population in Gaza are children. Most of these children have been through five wars in addition to the current ongoing genocide in only 16 years. A child that was born in 2007 experienced the first Israeli assault when he was two years old, the second when he was five, the third when he was seven, the fourth and fifth when he was a teenager of fourteen/fifteen years old, and at age 16 the current genocide. Such a child saw his home bombed, his sibling murdered in airstrikes, his neighborhood in rubble. He has been displaced twelve times and can’t sleep from the constant sounds of drones, airstrikes, and shelling.
We had a university campus in Gaza. It was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike during Holy week this year. We have 36 staff, all of them displaced. They refuse to surrender to fear. They are determined to do something against the fear, the trauma, the depression. They volunteer daily reaching out to the thousands of displaced children around them with art therapy programs so that the children can heal, at least partially.
The experience of our volunteers in Gaza opened for me a new understanding of “Do not be afraid!” (Luke 2:10-11). Jesus came to save us from fears that paralyze us. Does this mean that we are saved from trouble and wars? Not at all. We will still pass through troubled water, but when we pass through troubled waters, he will be there with us and for us so that the powerful rivers will not overwhelm us. We will continue to experience fire, yet when we walk through fire the flame shall not consume us. God makes us resilient.
“Do not be afraid, I will make you resilient!” “Do not be afraid, a savior is born!” Savior stands for liberator. The angels promised liberation and freedom for a people under Roman occupation. Our people are asking for nothing more than freedom and liberation from occupation.
As Christians we need to challenge the necro politics of our time, all politics that keep creating death worlds, and the military industries that keep benefiting from wars. It is not enough to call for a ceasefire. We need to be God’s instrument of liberation, striving towards a world without wars so that the children in Gaza can live their childhood, and the Christians in the Middle East not only survive but thrive.
This was also the message of Pope Francis after inaugurating the nativity set that was designed by artists from Dar al-Kalima University and hand carved and made by artisans and children with disability from Bethlehem. “Finally, let us look at the Nativity displays of Bethlehem, built in the land where the Son of God was born…Before it, let us remember the brothers and sisters who, instead, right there and in other parts of the world, are suffering from the tragedy of war. With tears in our eyes, let us raise our prayer for peace. Brothers and sisters, enough war, enough violence! Do you know that one of the most profitable investments here is in arms production? Profit for killing… But how come? Enough wars! May there be peace in all the world and for all men, whom God loves (cf. Lk 2:14)!
Amid all these fears, Dar al-Kalima artists and artisans were able to show that fear can’t paralyze them, but through their artwork, they continue to demonstrate creativity and to spread beauty. To reach their full potential and flourish. A ceasefire is urgent and a just peace is needed.
From the little town of Bethlehem, we wish you a Merry Christmas and our world a peaceful 2025.
