Surprise

Our Patriarch with the 
children of our parish

Our Patriarch managed to enter Gaza yesterday. It was a nice surprise and a very happy event to cheer our Christians during this coming Christmas season. It's been very cold and the area has been battered by severe winter storms. This show of paternal care and concern is much appreciated by our parishioners there. Do pray for them this Christmas.

Meanwhile the unimaginable happened ... snow in the Arab peninsula. Saudi had snow and the other emirates are flooded by severe storms. The deserts have turned green like a meadow. They say it's the first time in 30 years that snow has fallen in the mountains and deserts.

Here it's equally cold. This morning was 9 degrees. But we have no rain. The sun is shining brightly. But everyone is wrapped up in thick clothing. The rains battering other countries ... we hope some of it reaches us. we can't bear another year of drought.

Almost Christmas

 The past week saw temperatures falling. It's 6 degrees now. Even during the day with the sun shining, it's barely 11 degrees. It's chilly. The rains have stopped but occasionally it drizzles. It feels like Christmas. Perhaps snow would be better!

Praying for you all at
the Grotto of the
Nativity

I wanted to go to the Grotto of the Nativity to pray for all of you. The students were kind enough to accompany there as I'm not able to go on my own. And there're too many stairs to navigate. I had to do it very slowly with people helping me. A worker of the Greek Orthodox Church recognised me and helped me up from kneeling at the Star of the Nativity. It was an arduous pilgrimage but I managed to do it.

After that I was exhausted and they drove me to the hospital for the doctor to check me up. I had met my cardiologist yesterday and he said it's too soon for me to have another open heart surgery. Instead he wanted to try new medicines to compensate for the prolapsed valve. Several medicine were increased in dosage; and 2 new medicines were introduced. They're quite expensive and not covered by insurance. Doc was looking for a pharmacy that can give me a discount. 

Storm

Storm clouds gathering over
the Mt. of Olives 

Storm Byron bashed into our shores on Monday after devastating Greece and Cyprus. It caused floods and landslides in both countries. On Monday many parts of our country were also flooded and the desert was inundated by streams that flowed from the cities above. Our deserts are low lying compared to the cities. There was thunder and lightening. It felt like winter 30 years back.

Now the storm is back. Thunder, lightening and rain. A man died from cold in the coastal city of Nahariya. It's about 10 degrees in Jerusalem now. We really want the rain ... we need it. And the thunder and lightning show is a bonus. But the poor people whose houses are flooded don't think so.  

La Salle College
Christmas tree
under the storm

Our parish

 December 6, 2025 our parish church in Gaza during recitation of the Rosary

Full moon

Full moon

 Yesterday was the feast of St. Barbara. It's a big feast here in the Middle East. Families cook beans, fried fruit into a mushy pulp then add sugary sweets and nuts. Children dress up in costumes and parade through the streets. They even go to school in costumes. Mums and grandmas will place grains on wet cotton in plates and wait for it to grow, then they're placed on the Christmas crib as grass and decoration.

So why all these popular traditions?

They're linked to legends of the life of St. Barbara. Dressing in costumes celebrate the escape of St. Barbara from persecutors when she disguised herself, And as she ran away through the fields, grass and plants sprouted to cover her footprints. Hence families plant seeds and grain which in a month, on Christmas Day, will be tall enough to decorate the crib. It's a festive day to commemorate St. Barbara ... but deep in our minds, it's a sign that the end of the year is near. winter is upon us, the cold is getting intense.

And the penultimate full moon of 2025 is shining brightly these few nights. The air is so clear and crisp that the moon appears with a full halo. It's beautiful but also sad ... it reminds that even this will pass away. Time marches forward and everything becomes only a memory.

To the youth

 

Papal visit