wfn.org | Jerusalem Patriarch: "One Peace for Israel and Palestine"

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Contact:  Fr. Raed Awad Abussahlin
The Latin (Catholic) Patriarchate of Jerusalem
(972-2) 628-2323
Email: latinpat@actcom.co.il

Jerusalem, October 29--  Following is the text of a homily delivered by His
Beatitude Patriarch Michel Sabbah, of the Latin (Catholic) Patriarchate on
the Feast of our Lady Queen of Palestine, 29 October 2000

Dear brothers and sisters,

We celebrate today the feast of our Lady Queen of Palestine, a feast which
began in early thirties which where difficult days like the ones we are
living now. This feast began to ask the protection from God through the
intercession of our Lady daughter of this Holy Land, and who was chosen to
become the mother of his eternal word incarnated, who took a body like ours
in order to redeem us, and become man like us in everything not in sin.

I greet you all dear brothers and sisters with the greeting of peace, which
was founded and consolidated in our hearts by our Lord Jesus Christ. He died
and was risen again defeating death all the power of evil. In him we put our
trust and hope in these days and in every day.

We meditate today in the hymn of our Lady known as the Magnificat that we 
find in
the gospel of St Luke. This hymn began deep in her heart and soul. A hymn
that we used to sing often, but it is a hymn for our difficult days, because
it began in a very difficult days that Mary faced very decisive for the whole
world. It is concerning the destiny of the whole humanity and the love of God
to his creatures and the mystery of the incarnation and redemption.  Mary
accepted the call of God through his messenger the angel Gabriel. He asked
her to become a mother not by the strength of the spirit not that humans, and
in this way, to enter in the unconceivable mystery of God, she didn't
understand this mystery, but she accepted and said "let what you have said be
done to me". She accepted and the mystery of God was fulfilled in the
humanity, the mystery of salvation, which began with the incarnation, through
the cross and the death, and ended by the resurrection, after which all men
were capable to be free, with the freedom given to him by God, and each human
obtained a double dignity: Fist because he is created at God's image and
likeness, second because he is saved through the priceless blood of his Son
our Lord Jesus Christ.

The hymn of the Magnificat was in the spirit of Mary and itself like a battle,
which ended with the victory of the grace of God in her, and the grace of God
is the fullness of every good. Humanity obtained through the victory of Mary
the fullness of every good also, and this good was reveled through the
salvation and the resurrection with all its joy and hope.  Every battle
begins within the self of the humanity, before the battles in the streets,
it's the battle between good and evil, between justice and injustice, between
our selfishness and the sacrifice of other' lives.  Each battle which
doesn't end by the victory over man's self, the victory of Justice, dignity
and love, goes out to the streets to saw destruction and death as we see in
these days. The death caused by weapon indicates the death of the human
spirit and the death of those who decide to use it.

Mary said:  "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,  for the Almighty
has done great things for me",  and she said also: "He had pulled down
princes from their thrones."  The hungry he has filled with good things.."  We
came in this feast to pray, to say in front of God : peace. From him only we
ask for peace, founded over justice and love, which are factors for justice
and a fruit from it.

You are listening to us now, the Palestinians are listening and the Israelis
are listening also: The word of God is one for all of us. God created man for
peace and justice, in order to have the fullness of freedom. There is no
freedom and no justice when it is on the account of others, and on the
account of what is just for others. In these difficult days, in the midst of
the actual conflict, we say that the Palestinian people should regain his
freedom and justice, which are part of his legitimate rights. The Israeli
people should have also his justice and security. Both of them are linked
together, the peace of one of them is the peace of the other, and the
deprivation of peace or justice to one of them is a deprivation of peace and
justice for the other.

The psalmist said: " Some boast of chariots, some of horses, but we boast
about the name of Yahweh our God." (20:8). Weapons destroy and don't build
peace. In from of God we pray through the intercession of our Lady Mary we
ask God to have justice in us, then to have peace in our days and for ever,
in this Holy Land and every where in the world. These days require more than
any day else, peace in the spirits, prayer in the hearts of the faithful,
courage without fear in spite all difficulties. All of us, each one of us, in
any other people, we are exposed to such difficulties. Every faithful people
is called to remain steadfast in his house and land, in spite of the
destruction even death which might face. Justice and peace in our days
require a sacrifice from our leaders: the martyrdom of the leaders more that
of the people, because the people is more important than the chairs where our
leaders sit.

The Virgin Mary said:  "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord - for the
Almighty has done great things for me.",  and these great things are the love
of God to mankind, and each human being. It is the reconciliation between God
and human beings, between men with each others. In this we believe, and we
have a firm hope that this what will be. Mary also said:  "He had pulled down
princes from their thrones - The hungry he has filled with good things."
Those hungry for goodness, stability and peace, those hungry to the vision of
God, in spite of all the difficulty, battle, destruction or any decision of
men to spread terror and death.

We meditate today the glory of our Lady Queen of Palestine and we ask for her
intercession, because she is the example of our faith, she is the example of
the strength which should fill our spirits, that strength which comes from
God to strengthen us in all the circumstances of life. We ask her to support
us and to enlighten all of us, especially the leaders of our two peoples who
are fighting each other, so that we can know what is justice, truth and peace
in this Holy Land.

Amen.