Restoring Holy Family Church: A Bridge of Faith Amid War - First Things

Restoring Holy Family Church: A Bridge of Faith Amid War - First Things

Six months after Hamas brutally attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,195 people and taking 250 hostages, I traveled to the Holy Land. During my visit there—cut short when hostilities between Israel and Iran escalated dramatically—I encountered a scared, divided land bound together in its grief and heartbreak, in its losses, tears, and fears.  These tears of grief were shed by both Israelis and Palestinians, and the stories of loss were …