1 day to Christmas

Sufgoniot at a
local bakery

The weekend is upon us .... it's holiday mood throughout Israel and Palestine: Israel because it's the feast of Hanukkah (the re-dedication of the Jewish Temple after it was defiled by the Seleucid kings), Palestine because it's Christmas and tens of thousands of people are flocking into Bethlehem. Most shops in the Israeli side of Jerusalem are closed ... except pastry shops and bakeries selling sufgoniot. That's the traditional jam-filled doughnut eaten during Hanukkah. Shops on the Palestinian side on the other hand are opened 24 hours, making the most of the tourists' visits.

The weather is still very cold. Tomorrow's Midnight Mass will be quite trying for those celebrating in Shepherds' Field. It's all open-air and the night wind blowing from the desert will be biting cold. If you're planning to go there for Mass, you'd better bundle up. Forecast is rain on Christmas Day. I'll be far away in another city near the north to celebrate Mass for the catholic community there because they have no priest. I hope I won't catch a cold.

We're just receiving news that the Berlin Christmas Market attacker has just been shot dead. And that a Christmas plot in Australia has been foiled. So far it's good news ... but goodness knows what's lurking in the dark of people's minds and souls. We must be very vigilant especially here in our land during this festive weekend. Anything can happen.