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With no Christmas tree or decorations adorning the Church of the Nativity, revered as the birthplace of Jesus Christ, the festive mood was absent Tuesday in the Israeli-occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem.
In downtown Bethlehem, the Terra Sancta scout troop, wearing red scarves, marched down the main shopping street, where vendors sold nougat and shawarma.
The sweet sound of children singing Christmas carols filled the air, a stark contrast to the somber messages of the banners that held: “We want life, not death” and “Stop the genocide in Gaza now!”
For the second year in a row, the Christmas holidays in Bethlehem are overshadowed by the war.
A large Christmas tree usually stands in Manger Square, opposite the Church of the Nativity, which is built on top of a cave where Christians believe Jesus was born more than 2,000 years ago.
But like last year, the municipality of Bethlehem decided to choose modest celebrations out of respect for the Palestinians suffering in Gaza.
For Christians in the Holy Land, who number about 185,000 in Israel and 47,000 in the Palestinian Territory, prayer can offer comfort and hope for a better future.
“We will pray and ask God to end our suffering, to give this part of the world the peace that we expect, the peace that Jesus brought to the world,” said Anton Salman, mayor of Bethlehem.
Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem who presided over Sunday's mass in Gaza, shared a similar message of hope as he prepared to lead the midnight mass in Bethlehem.
“I just arrived yesterday from Gaza. I saw everything destroyed, poverty, disaster,” he said.
“But I also saw life – they don't give up. So you shouldn't give up either. Never,” Pizzabala added in a speech to the Bethlehem Peace Center, a cultural site.
“We are stronger, we belong to the light, not the darkness,” he said, standing next to a Palestinian flag. “Next year we want to see the biggest Christmas tree ever.”