Greetings from Jerusalem

By Fr. David Steffy, L.C.,

Chargé of the Holy See for the Pontifical Institute Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center

December 8th, 2025

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Dear Friends of the Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center,

I wish each of you a very blessed Advent Season. As I write this message, we have just begun the second week.

With less than twenty days left until Christmas morning, most of the decorations are already up; Nativity scenes and Christmas trees in major institutions are being blessed; and a spirit of hope has been reignited. For the last two Christmases, all public displays of Christmas were absent. There was an underlying sense that to celebrate externally was to make light of the war and of those who were suffering its consequences most direly.

The last two years were the first times that I experienced Christmas devoid of any external manifestations. It was hard for me to accept, since I find sacred external symbols—even when they may play into consumerism—a reminder that life should be celebrated and that true hope cannot be dimmed by human evil and inhumanity. Perhaps, in a way, I might have depended too much on those external signs to cope with life’s “normality” or injustices by getting caught up in festivity, and often forgetting the sacred meaning of life and the gift of salvation. I reflect now on the times when I may have focused too much on the lights and glitter instead of the Light that truly brings joy and meaning to life.

One thing that has struck me these last days, while admiring the efforts of so many who decorate their homes, shops, and towns as a way of uplifting the human spirit, is that here in the Holy Land, even more secular symbols like Santa Claus take on a more religious undertone. And here, it is not “happy holidays,” but Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah. My personal experience is that when it comes to belief in God—however that manifests itself—people of good will here see it as something that unites us, since it is to the one God that we all pray.

In the light of this simple reflection, I wish you all a blessed Advent and Christmas season. I also pray that each of us finds the peace in our souls that will nourish a spirit of love and self-giving when confronted with conflict and judgment. The renewed hope for an end to the conflict here is fragile. The outcome, which affects so many, is often left to the decisions of a few. Yet this Christmas, let us celebrate that which unites us and helps us become more caring and loving people who discover the seeds of goodness in each person.

In closing, I share this uplifting quote from Pope Leo XIV at his farewell ceremony at the Beirut airport on December 2, which can encourage all of us: “Let us choose peace, and let peace be our path, not just a goal!” I highly encourage you to take some time to read his discourses, which are very pertinent to the situation we are living in the Middle East.

Count on my prayers.

Father David Steffy, L.C.