‘Holding on’: Gaza’s tiny Christian community tries to capture the holiday spirit

While the ceasefire has eased some suffering in the embattled enclave, Gazans lament the losses of two years of war, friends who cannot celebrate Christmas with them

AP — Attallah Tarazi recently received Christmas presents that included socks and a scarf to shield him against the Gaza winter, and he joined some fellow Palestinian Christians in a round of hymns.

“Christ is born,” the group sang in Arabic. “Hallelujah.”

The presents and hymns offered the 76-year-old a taste of the holiday in a devastated Gaza, where a fragile ceasefire has provided some relief, but the losses of the Israel-Hamas war and the ongoing struggles of displaced people are dampening many traditional festivities.

Tarazi and much of the rest of Gaza’s tiny Palestinian Christian community are trying to capture some of the season’s spirit despite the destruction and uncertainty that surround them. He clings to hope and the faith that he said has seen him through the war.

“I feel like our joy over Christ’s birth must surpass all the bitterness that we’ve been through,” he said. He’s been sheltering for more than two years at the Holy Family Church compound in Gaza, where a church group, including choir members, toured among displaced people this Christmas season, he said.

“In such a glorious moment, it’s our right to forget all that’s war, all that’s danger, all that’s bombardment.”

But for some, the toll is inescapable. This will be the first Christmas for Shadi Abo Dowd since the death of his mother, who was among those killed in July when an Israeli strike hit the same Catholic church compound where Tarazi lives and which has been housing displaced people.

Israel said the strike was unintentional and expressed its “deep sorrow.” Abo Dowd said his son was wounded in the strike, which also hurt the parish priest.

Ahead of Christmas, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, paid a visit to the Holy Family Parish. A patriarchate statement said the visit marked the beginning of Christmas celebrations in “a community that has lived and continues to live through dark and challenging times.”

Abo Dowd, an Orthodox Christian who observes Christmas on January 7, said he does not plan to celebrate beyond religious rituals and prayers. “There’s no feast,” he said.

“Things are difficult. The wound is still there,” he said. “The suffering and pain are still there.”

He added: “We’re still living in a state of no peace and no war.”

Violence has decreased since the ceasefire agreement took effect in October, but deadly attacks have not entirely ended. Israel and Hamas have traded accusations of breaking the truce, and the more challenging second phase of the ceasefire, which is meant to see the implementation of longer-term security and governance structures in Gaza, has yet to be implemented.

The war displaced the vast majority of the territory’s some 2 million residents. Accentuating some of the many struggles and needs of the enclave and its people was torrential rain that recently flooded displacement camps and collapsed already badly damaged buildings.

“I always tell my children, ‘God only gives the toughest battles to his strongest soldiers,’” Abo Dowd said. “We’re holding onto our Christian faith and onto our country, and we love our country.”

He and others know of many Christians among those who fled Gaza during the war and more who hope to leave if given the opportunity. He worries about the effect on the Christian presence and on Gaza’s social fabric. “It’s a tragedy,” he said.

His children would like to study abroad. “They’re young. What will they stay to do? There’s no future.”

The departure of many relatives and friends means Christmas doesn’t feel the same for 23-year-old Wafa Emad ElSayegh.

He and family members gathered with others at Gaza’s Greek Orthodox church compound to put up decorations. But the absence of friends who escaped Gaza fueled his nostalgia.

“We used to be together in everything,” said ElSayegh, who’s now staying with his family at the home of an aunt who left Gaza during the war.

His favorite part of Christmas was the togetherness — the family gatherings, the celebratory events that he said drew Christians and some Muslims, and the excitement of children receiving gifts.

“There would be celebrations, songs and an indescribable joy that we, unfortunately, haven’t felt in a long time,” he said. And with many relatives away, he said the usual Christmas atmosphere cannot be recreated.

Elynour Amash, 35, is trying to bring some of that cheer to her children “through decorating and lighting the tree so they can feel that joy is possible despite all pain.”

“My children feel a little bit of joy, like breathing after a long period of suffocation,” she said in written responses to The Associated Press. “They’re happy they’re celebrating without fear of a nearby explosion and because some chocolates and sweets have returned to their lives, in addition to foods that they had long been deprived of.”

She’s thankful her home is still standing, but the scenes of displaced people in tents that cannot shield them from the cold and rain often drive her to tears.

“The sounds of explosions and gunfire can still be heard, and the fear hasn’t left the hearts. There’s continuous worry that the ceasefire won’t last.” She sees the toll in her youngest, who trembles when he hears loud noises.

“It’s as if the war lives inside of him,” she said. “As a mother, that pain is indescribable.”

She also worries that someday Christians could disappear from Gaza. But, for now, “our presence, no matter how small, is a testimony of love, steadfastness and faith in this land,” she said.

Tarazi is determined to stay.

Early in the war, he lost a sister, who was among those killed when an Israeli airstrike hit the Orthodox church compound housing displaced people. The IDF said it had targeted a nearby Hamas command center. Tarazi said a brother also died after he could not get needed medical care due to the war.

He prays for peace and freedom for the Palestinian people. “Our faith and our joy over Christ’s birth are stronger than all circumstances,” he said.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.