by PAT McCARTHY
On the Via Dolorosa, the street in Jerusalem’s Old City where Christian pilgrims for centuries have commemorated the Way of the Cross, a New Zealand religious sister is engaged in a ministry to give witness to God’s faithful love for the Jewish people.
Sr Cecelia Martin, who comes from Canterbury, is in the Congregation of Our Lady of Sion (a biblical name used as a synonym for Jerusalem and for the whole land of Israel).
The congregation was founded in the mid-1800s by two French Jewish brothers who became Catholics. On the Via Dolorosa, the sisters run the Ecce Homo guest house for pilgrims, in association with another French-founded community, Chemin Neuf.
But there are no pilgrims in Jerusalem now. Since the war between Hamas and Israel began on October 7, the city is semi-deserted, most businesses are closed, and patriotic blue-and-white bunting and banners abound.
According to a local report, “Jerusalem’s eerie silence is interrupted only by the roar of fighter jets, the clang of incoming rocket alerts on mobile phones, and the boom of distant explosions as the Iron Dome continues to intercept projectiles launched from Gaza”.
While Christians have been asked to “pray and fast for peace”, Israel is on a war footing. Social media is monitored, and websites have been created to blacklist people who speak against the war, or in support of Palestinians.
Arriving back from a visit to New York — she is president of UNANIMA International, a coalition of congregations of women religious that advocates for women and children at the United Nations — Sr Cecelia did not respond to questions about the war.
However, in an email interview she explained that she first encountered her congregation in the 1970s when she was working in England.
“I found the sisters to be deeply committed women for whom Breaking Open the Word (Scriptures) was important. They were very open and aware of our global reality, and welcoming of ‘the other’.
“They also helped me to understand about the Holocaust during WWII, and how silent people were, including many Christians, about what happened to Jews, Romas and others.”
She has been in Israel since 2017, working with novices at Ein Karem before coming to Ecce Homo.
Using the respectful Jewish way of spelling the name of God, she said: “The charism of our congregation calls us to give witness in the Church and in the world, to G-d’s faithful love for the Jewish people.
“The events of our world and of our lives urge us to hear the cry of the poor, and respond anew to the call of G-d to do justice. Central to this ministry is the study of the Word of G-d, and a focus on reconciliation/bridge-building between peoples.
“For us here in the Holy Land, our work involves being a welcoming presence to those who come, offering hospitality, and walking beside Jews, Muslims, Christians and all we meet — helping to build awareness, respect and tolerance of all.
“It also means helping Christians and others we encounter, to understand that Christianity is grafted from the roots of Judaism (Nostra Aetatate 4); that the G-d of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:15) is the same one G-d of Judaism, Islam and Christianity; that Jesus and his family lived and died as faithful Jews, and that today the Church recognises that there are many valid paths to life in G-d, so it is important to have connectedness and friendships with those of other faiths and diversity.”
Sr Cecelia said that her congregation feels it is important to be open to both Jewish and Palestinian viewpoints — “to carry both peoples in our hearts, and to try to maintain a balance. Both sides have to find a way to exist side by side together.”
Asked about the increasing occurrence of Orthodox Jews spitting at Christians in Jerusalem, she said: “We Christians need to understand the social and religious reasons why incidents such as being spat upon happen — it began as a Jewish act of defence, and was then internalised in the Christian narrative as in the Passion.
“Over many centuries, Jews, as a minority, were not treated equally. They were often humiliated and despised by Christians and others. Here in Israel, as in other parts of the Middle East, there is the memory of the Crusades where Jews, Muslims and others suffered, and also the hostility towards Jews in Europe.”
But she added: “We try to learn more about Islam and grow in understanding and appreciation of Islam, especially at this time of growing discrimination of Islam and Muslims in our world — the xenophobia of today.”
Sr Cecelia said that her congregation usually celebrates Christmas Mass in Bethlehem or at nearby Shepherds’ Field — “and hope to do so again this year, depending on where things are at then, in this current reality”.
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