On 8-13 January, CNEWA Canada National Secretary Carl Hétu accompanied Bishop Pierre Morissette of Saint–Jérôme, president of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, to Jerusalem for the annual meeting of the International Coordination of Episcopal Conferences in Support of the Church in the Holy Land. Established in 1998 at the request of the Holy See, the conference brings together bishops from Europe and North America and members of the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land.
Entitled “Building Bridges of Peace,” this year’s program consisted of plenary discussions, presentations and other activities pertaining to the needs of Christians in the Holy Land, religious freedom, ecumenism, interreligious dialogue with Judaism and Islam, Catholic education, the mission and challenges of consecrated life and pilgrimages.
Participants in the conference, which included nine European and North American bishops, visited sites in Israel and the West Bank, where they met with politicians and religious leaders.
“The meeting revealed that action, particularly on the part of Bishops conferences and Catholic aid agencies, is needed now more than ever to ensure the survival of Christians in the Holy Land and all over the Middle East,” said Mr. Hétu.