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Attallah Terazi recently received Christmas The gifts included socks and a scarf to save her Gaza winter, and he was joined by some fellow Palestinians Christians In the era of bhajans.
The group sang in Arabic, “Christ is born.” “Hallelujah.”
Gifts and hymns gave the 76-year-old a taste of the holidays in devastated Gaza, where a fragile ceasefire has provided some relief but Israel’s losses—Hamas War and ongoing conflicts of displaced people are overshadowing many traditional celebrations.
Tarazi and the rest of Gaza’s small Palestinian Christian community are trying to capture some spirit of the season despite the destruction and uncertainty surrounding them. He clings to hope and faith, which he said has seen him through the war.
He said, “I think our joy at the birth of Jesus Christ should outweigh all the bitterness we have gone through.” He said he has been sheltering for more than two years in Gaza’s Holy Family Church compound, where a church group, including members of the choir, visited among displaced people this Christmas season.
“At such a glorious moment, it is our right to forget all that is war, all that danger, all that bombing.”
But for some, the toll is unavoidable.
The wedding will be Abo Daoud’s first Christmas since the death of his mother, who was one of those killed in July. Israel The attack took place on the same Catholic church compound where Tarazi lives and where displaced people live. Israel issued statements of regret and said it was an accident.
Abo Daoud said his son was injured in the attack and the parish priest was also hurt.
Before Christmas, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, visited Holy Family Parish. A statement from the patriarchate said the visit “marks the beginning of Christmas celebrations in a community that is experiencing and living through dark and challenging times.”
Suffering and the situation of ‘neither peace nor war’
Abo Daoud, an Orthodox Christian who celebrates Christmas on January 7, said he does not plan to celebrate beyond religious rituals and prayers. “There is no feast,” he said.
“Things are hard. The wound is still there,” he said. “The grief and pain are still there.”
He further said, “We are still living in a situation of neither peace nor war.”
Israeli attacks have decreased since the ceasefire agreement took effect in October, but deadly attacks have not ended completely. Israel and Hamas have accused each other of breaking the ceasefire and a more challenging second phase has yet to be implemented.
The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages.
Israel’s ensuing offensive has killed about 71,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants but says about half of the dead were women and children.
The ministry, which operates under the Hamas-run government, is staffed by medical professionals and keeps detailed records generally considered reliable by the international community.
Israel’s offensive in Gaza has also caused widespread destruction and displaced most of the territory’s approximately 2 million residents. Highlighting the many struggles and needs of the enclave and its people were the torrential rains that recently flooded displacement camps and caused already badly damaged buildings to collapse.
“I always tell my children, ‘God only gives the toughest battles to His strongest soldiers,'” Abo Daoud said. “We stand by our Christian faith and our country, and we love our country.”
He and others know of many Christians who fled Gaza during the war and who hope to leave if they get the chance. He is concerned about the Christian presence and its impact on Gaza’s social fabric. “This is a tragedy,” he said.
Their children would like to study abroad. “They’re young. What will they stop to do? There’s no future.”
A Christmas without many familiar faces
The loss of many relatives and friends means Christmas doesn’t look the same for 23-year-old Wafa Imad Alsayegh.
He and family members gathered with others at Gaza’s Greek Orthodox Church compound to put up decorations. But the absence of friends who had fled Gaza heightened his nostalgia.
“We used to be together in everything,” said Elsayegh, who is now living with her family at the home of her aunt, who left Gaza during the war.
His favorite part of Christmas was the togetherness – the family gatherings, the celebratory events, which, he said, attracted Christians and some Muslims, and the excitement of children receiving gifts.
“There will be celebrations, songs and an indescribable happiness that we, unfortunately, have not felt for a long time,” he said. And with many relatives away, he said the typical Christmas atmosphere can’t be recreated.
joy amidst pain
Elinor Amash, 35, is “trying to bring some joy to her children through decorating the tree and lighting it so they can realize that happiness is possible despite all the pain.”
“My children feel a little joy, like breathing out after being suffocated for a long time,” he said in a written response to The Associated Press. “They are happy that they are celebrating without the fear of a nearby explosion and because some chocolate and sweets are back in their lives, in addition to the foods they were deprived of for a long time.”
She is grateful that her house is still standing, but the sight of displaced people in tents that cannot protect them from the cold and rain often brings tears to her eyes.
He doesn’t think the war is really over.
“The sounds of explosions and gunfire can still be heard, and fear has not gone from hearts. There is constant concern that the ceasefire will not last.” She sees the toll in her youngest child, who trembles when he hears loud noises.
“It’s as if the war lives inside him,” she said. “As a mother, that pain is indescribable.”
They also worry that Christians may someday disappear from Gaza. But, for now, “our presence, no matter how small, is a testament to the love, perseverance and faith in this land,” she said.
Tarazi is determined to hold on.
At the beginning of the war, he lost a sister, who was among those killed in an Israeli airstrike on an Orthodox church compound housing displaced people. The Israeli military said it had targeted a nearby Hamas command center. Tarazi said a brother also died due to the war and lack of access to necessary medical care.
He prays for peace and freedom for the Palestinian people. He said, “Our faith and our joy at the birth of Jesus Christ is stronger than all circumstances.”
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Associated Press religion coverage is supported by the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from the Lilly Endowment Inc. AP is solely responsible for this content.