Cardina lPierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, presided over the festive mass on the occasion of the Feast of the Virgin Mary, Lady of Palestine, at the Monastery of Rafat west of Jerusalem. A group of bishops, priests, and hundreds of Christians from the parishes of Jerusalem and Galilee participated in the mass, while a large number of Christians from the West Bank were unable to attend due to not obtaining permits from the Israeli authorities.

In his sermon, Pierbattista Pizzaballa spoke about the active role of women in achieving peace. He explained: "The woman in the New Testament, the Virgin Mary, is the one who brought peace to the world through the birth of her son, Jesus Christ." And the woman clothed with the sun in the Book of Revelation challenges evil; therefore, we must realize that without this woman, the Virgin Mary, Lady of Palestine, we will not be able to confront evils and war.

And Pierbattista Pizzaballa  emphasized the necessity of holding on to faith and hope despite the difficult circumstances. He added, "The war might not end soon." And even if it ends, its repercussions will continue. And although we live in the harshest conditions within the Holy Land, we must remain faithful and confident, entrusting our affairs to the Heavenly Father, just as the Holy Virgin did.

In a statement, Beit Sabala said, "We will never surrender." Despite the killing, war, and brutality, we will not be dragged into this violence. We will remain steadfast as the daughter of this land did two thousand years ago.

Amir said, "It is a great honor for me to participate in this procession while carrying the statue of the Virgin." Amid the prayers and hymns, I was looking at her raised face, as if she were looking at me and saying, "You are my son, and I am always walking with you and accompanying you."

As for Nabil, he likened carrying the wooden plank on which the statue of the Virgin was placed to carrying the cross, saying, "That weight on my shoulders reminded me of the heavy cross that Jesus carried." And today, we all carry heavy crosses: the cross of war and the cross of pain. But we continue to carry it because we believe that it will lead us to salvation and resurrection, and we will bear witness to it as the Holy Virgin did.

The celebratory mass concluded with the traditional procession, where the participants circled the monastery carrying the statue of the Virgin Mary, Lady of Palestine. Among the bearers of the statue were the students Amir Khamshta and Nabil Tubasi, who came with a group of students from the Freres School and the Terra Sancta School in Jerusalem to participate in the celebration.