‘The peace of God calls us to look beneath political rhetoric. It invites us to confront the human realities of suffering and dispossession. It calls us to resist confusion or complacency when the world declares ‘peace’ yet turns away from injustice.’

Saleem Anfous - Project Manager, Musalaha

Our Christian partners in the Middle East reflect on where they see Emmanuel this Christmas, revealing how God is at work in their communities and how the light of Christ continues to overcome the darkest of situations.

The consequences of not reaching out across the chasms that divide us have been starkly visible since the horrors of 7 October 2023 and their devastating aftermath. Here in the UK, we are many miles away from this awful war, and we may feel helpless in its shadow. But we cannot ignore that God calls each of us to be peacemakers and reconcilers.

Salim Munayer, Professor of Theology at Bethlehem Bible College, reflects on the hope he has found in the scriptures amid the 15 months of war in Gaza. He calls on us, as Christians, to act on that hope and bear testimony to it.

Light weaves its way through our Christian understanding of the world. “Let there be light” is recorded in Genesis as God’s first creative act. There are, however, times when the world feels very dark indeed and we may be wondering where the light has gone. Has God abandoned us?  

Against a backdrop of prolonged and escalating conflict in Gaza, the West Bank, Israel and Lebanon, it is hard not to feel overwhelmed by the violence and suffering. As the conflict and violence persists, how can we continue to trust in God? How can we be steadfast in prayer, even when circumstances appear hopeless? 

St Porphyrius, the first Bishop of Gaza, founded the church in Gaza City that still bears his name. The stories recorded of this life are strikingly similar to those of Christians in Gaza today.

As a Jewish-Israeli, I carry much pain in our violent reality, but perhaps my truer human pain is the fear of taking a public stance against the continuation of this war, against violence from both sides, and most of all the loss of human compassion. 

While the attention of the world media has been on the catastrophic situation in Gaza, life in the West Bank has also become intolerable. Embrace’s David McColl shares his experiences of meeting partners for the first time in the West Bank - and draws parallels between their compassion and the parable of the Good Samaritan.