Hebrew-speaking Catholics journey from Israel to Rome with a prayer for peace

By Fr. Paweł Rytel-Andrianik & Karol Darmoros 

They stay in Israel, communicate Hebrew, and are Catholic. While the members of the Vicariate of St. James for Hebrew-speaking Catholics had beforehand met with figures reminiscent of St. John Paul II, this was the primary time they got here collectively as a Vicariate to satisfy the Pope.

“We are happy that we could meet the Holy Father. I told him that we are Hebrew-speaking Catholics, we have seven communities in Israel, and we ask him not to forget us,” stated Fr. Piotr Zelazko, Patriarchal Vicar of St. James for Hebrew-speaking Catholics in Israel, chatting with Vatican News.

The Holy Father welcomed the pilgrims with a smile and an open coronary heart. “It was the culmination of our pilgrimage. The Pope blessed us and spoke with us. It was an incredibly moving encounter,” Fr. Zelazko added.

Abi, one of many pilgrims, stated he felt at residence in Rome. “We are 100% Israelis and 100% Catholics, and we pray for peace,” he stated.

Another pilgrim, Nadav, harassed that the roots of the Church are within the Holy Land. “Our patron, St. James, was a Jew and spoke Hebrew. We are a sign of hope, and we pray for peace in the Holy Land between Israelis and Palestinians,” he affirmed.

Holy Door and prayer in Hebrew

The pilgrims visited Rome’s basilicas and catacombs, praying in Hebrew. “I am certain that in many of these places, the Eucharist was celebrated in Hebrew for the very first time,” Fr. Zelazko famous.

A very putting second got here because the group handed by the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica. “We did not feel like guests. St. Peter was born in Galilee; St. Paul was a Jew, so we were at home,” the priest underlined.

70 years of the St. James Vicariate

The St. James Vicariate was established in 1955 and immediately embraces seven Hebrew-speaking communities in Israel. It is a small however vibrant a part of the Latin Church within the Holy Land.

“We have parish life, youth groups, and summer camps for children… We are a minority, but we try to be a bridge between Jewish society and the Church,” Fr. Zelazko stated, encouraging the devoted worldwide to help the mission of the Vicariate.

The Hebrew-speaking Catholic group has loved the help of successive Popes. St. John Paul II performed an important position, welcoming members of the group, turning into the primary Pope to go to a synagogue in Rome, and praying on the Western Wall in Jerusalem.

His gestures broke down limitations and opened new paths for Catholic-Jewish dialogue. The Vicariate’s jubilee additionally coincides with the sixtieth anniversary of Nostra aetate, the Vatican II declaration on the Church’s relations with different religions.

A mission of hope

Hebrew-speaking Catholics, residing in a land scarred by battle, search to bear witness to peace.

“The world in the Middle East needs people who show that peace is possible,” Fr. Zelazko stated.

Their presence in Rome and their prayer within the language of the Apostles function a reminder that the Church’s roots are within the Holy Land—and that this small group has an incredible mission immediately: to be beacons of unity, peace, and hope.