Christians from the Holy Land will be our Guests

On Sunday, June 21, during both worship services, we will hear from Christians of the Holy Land.  They will have a nice display of handmade olivewood religious articles from Bethlehem available for purchase throughout the morning. These carvings include olivewood Nativity sets, crosses, Christmas ornaments, candle holders, angels, and many other religious crafts that could make nice gifts. The carvings are handmade by Christian families from Bethlehem who rely on it for their daily bread.

More than 70% of the Christian Community in the Holy Land depends upon tourism as their only source of income.  For decades these Christians have been enduring many hardships as tourism in Bethlehem has plummeted and access to other sources of income has been sharply restricted due to ongoing conflicts, the 12-yard wall built around Bethlehem, the COVID-19 pandemic, and recently the catastrophic war in Gaza.  All of which has contributed to tourists being afraid and/or unable to visit the Holy Land making it very difficult for Christian families to find their daily food and forcing them to immigrate and flee their homeland. The Christian population of the Holy Land was 30% in the last century, today it is less than 1%.  If it continues like this, in a few years there will be no Christians in the land of Christ, which could have tragic consequences for our faith and holy sites.

Please help support Christian brothers and sisters from the town of Bethlehem by listening to their stories and considering purchasing their carvings.