There are no tourists in Bethlehem this Christmas. The relic vendors are desperate on almost deserted streets and the clergy prepare for unusual celebrations: without fidelity but with many prayers for these troubled times.
In Bethlehem last December, a large number of air-conditioned buses brought tens of thousands of tourists to this small Palestinian city, less than ten kilometers from Jerusalem, behind a concrete wall built by Israel.
In the Basilica of the Nativity, there were almost elbows to contemplate for a few minutes the cave where, according to tradition, Christ was born more than 2,000 years ago.
But this year the basilica is empty.
Under the ship, in the Cave of the Nativity, four monks recite their prayers in Armenian almost in a trance. Their voices echo in the hollow, amid incense fumes.
“The love of God fills this place, this holy place, to tell us, don’t be afraid, I am with you, all this will pass and I will continue … And thank God Christmas always exists and gives meaning to everything. hope, peace and encouragement to donate, ” explains Rami Asakrieh, the father of Bethlehem parish in the occupied West Bank.
“Sometimes more than half a million people came to the basilica during the holidays, but this year with the coronavirus there are many sanitary restrictions (…) There is less trade, but more religion,” he says.
This year, on the night of December 24, there will be no wrong with an audience in the basilica, nor with the presence of Palestinian leaders led by President Mahmoud Abas. The Christmas with only the priests will be broadcast all over the world
– “Pain and pain” –
In these last days before Christmas, the chapel of Santa Catalina, next to the Basilica of the Nativity, was opened to the local public.
“Christmas is the feast of joy and peace for all peoples, but this year due to the pandemic (…) depression reigns,” complains Nicolas al-Zoghbi leaving Mass, speaking of the “sorrow and pain”. of those who, like his son, lost their jobs, for example.
“We hope that the Lord will destroy the coronavirus and that we can return to our previous life,” says this man in his 70s.
The local economy is in tatters on the street.
“We haven’t sold anything for nine months, and for the past few days I’ve sold (items) for a total value of 170 shekels ($ 52),” Georges Baboul says desperately in front of his store.
“I’ve been in this business for 60 years and I’ve never seen anything like this in my life,” he says, even during the Palestinian riots in the West Bank, an area occupied by Israel since 1967.
“You are the first customer to enter my store since March … we are dying,” says Seif, a young Muslim salesman.
– No Gifts in Gaza –
Without foreign tourists, the merchants of Bethlehem cannot count on the hundreds of Christians from the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian area under Israeli blockade, who cross Israeli territory to visit Bethlehem.
“This year we have not received permission due to the coronavirus pandemic,” explains Father Yusef Asad, of the Latin monastery in Gaza.
Like the mosques in this enclave, under Hamas control, the Latin Church is closed to the public and the masses are broadcast online.
Isa Abu Georges, who couldn’t buy presents for his children, follows the masses online.
At Christmas, “my family and I will pray to God that the pandemic will end and there will be peace in the Holy Land and in the world.”