Father Gabriel Romanelli and members of the Holy Family parish will celebrate the season with few comforts. (Photo: Aid to the Church in Need)
For Christians sheltering in the Holy Family parish in Gaza, there will be few comforts this Christmas.
Electricity in the area has been down for two years, leaving the parish dependent on what it can squeeze out of generators and solar panels.
It is extremely challenging to collect clean water, with people queuing three hours for a few pints.
“We lack everything,” the parish’s leader, Fr Gabriel Romanelli, told Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).
He says things are actually better now than when the ceasefire began a month and a half ago, but “this does not mean that things are well”.
“They remain very serious, very delicate,” he said.
Despite the ceasefire, some violence in the region has continued. Fr Romanelli says its hard for Gazans to believe in real peace any time soon.
“Many people are saying that the war is going to end, but it has not ended yet. And therefore, peace has not yet arrived,” he said.
“The greatest concern at the moment is the fact that Gazans cannot yet see the light at the end of the tunnel – they cannot see any clear sign that peace is arriving.”
Adding to the challenges, the weather has turned cold and wet, making the ground muddy and causing unhealthy waste-contaminated pools of water to form. At a time when people are most vulnerable to getting sick, medicine is in short supply.
“The electrical grid, the water system and the health system are all insufficient, according to the World Health Organisation,” he told ACN.
“Medication for chronic illness, such as diabetes or high blood pressure, are scarce and the population desperately needs winter clothing for the cold weather, because most people have lost their homes, and are seeking shelter.”
The hardship has made it challenging for the parish to support others in need within the community. The parish tries its best, despite lacking considerably itself, and has helped “tens of thousands of families” since the war began. Still, Fr Romanelli feels “it is not enough”.
Quoting Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the priest added: “It is like a drop in the ocean. It seems insignificant, but without us, the ocean would have one less drop.”
Over 400 people are sheltering in the parish compound, most of them Christians. Fr Romanelli is doing what he can to keep their hope strong.
“We constantly try to light a flame of hope,” he said.
