Christian families in Gaza split up to increase the chance ‘someone will survive’ Israeli bombing

Tiny Christian community to observe day of prayer for peace on October 7

Gaza's Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius, which was damaged by Israeli bombardment about two weeks after hostilities began in 2023. Reuters

Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza

Fear has driven families from Gaza's small Christian community to seek shelter at different locations, to increase their chance of survival amid relentless Israeli bombardment over the past year.

Following a call by Pope Francis for a day of prayer and fasting, about 700 Christians sheltering in two churches in northern Gaza will observe a day of prayer on October 7 to mark a year since war between Israel and Hamas broke out.

“In this dramatic hour of our history … while the winds of war and the fires of violence continue to devastate entire peoples and nations,” the Pope said as he called for prayer, according to the Vatican News website.

Fear separates families

The tight-knit community of Christians in Gaza numbered 1,017 before the war began last year. Many left Gaza after dozens were killed as church buildings were hit in Israeli shelling, and in sniper attacks.

More than 400 Christians are living at the Holy Family Church, the only Roman Catholic parish in Gaza, and about 300 Christians and Muslims are at the nearby Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius church.

Much like the rest of Gaza, the parishioners described the shortages of food and water, and difficult living conditions where between 20 and 50 people sleep in a single room in the church, while living in terror that they could be killed.

Ibrahim Jahshan lives with his wife and three children at the historic Orthodox church, while his brother, wife and three daughters stay at the Holy Family Church. The decision to split up was deliberate, in the hope that at least one part of the family will survive in case of an Israeli attack.

Mr Jahshan moved his family to the church soon after the war started, following the Hamas-led attack on Israel in which militants killed 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostage. More than 41,600 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in incessant Israeli attacks since.

“When the war started on October 7 we left our house because it was near the Hamas office and came to the orthodox church,”Mr Jahshan, who sings in the church choir and works at the Middle East Council of Churches, told The National.

“My brother’s family and my mother went to the Catholic church because we thought if the Israelis shoot they will not shoot both the churches so at least one family will be OK.

“Most Christian families are like us in Gaza, they are doing the same so someone will survive. We are afraid to be in the same place in case we are all killed.”

Strikes on churches

Mr Jahshan’s 77-year-old mother was among scores of people who died this year due to lack of medicine. He did not want to dwell on the details of his mother’s death as he said it brought “overwhelming sadness”.

“The Israelis had circled the Catholic church, there was bombing and shooting and my mother got so afraid, she fell down and was hurt,” he said. “There was no medicine, there were no hospitals, no doctors to help. She died and we could do nothing.”

Christians at both churches said that more than 40 people had died in the war, including 17 who were killed when the Israelis attacked the historic Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius on October 19 last year.

Israeli army snipers shot dead three women in the compound of the Holy Family Catholic church in November and December last year. More than 20 have died from a lack of adequate medical care, according to church estimates.

Mr Jahshan’s brother declined to speak but confirmed his family lives at the Catholic church. The brothers sometimes meet when there is a pause in shelling and speak daily on the phone.

“I pray to God to send peace to all of Gaza and that the war ends in Gaza and Lebanon,” Mr Jahshan said.

“We are one year into the war and there is not enough milk, food or medicine. I pray for a safe life for my children so they can have fun, play basketball, football and go to school.”

Fasting and prayer

The congregations at both churches draw strength from regular Mass services.

The people at the Holy Family Church also look forward to the almost daily calls from Pope Francis, who prays with them and has constantly checked on their safety throughout the past year. The Pope has repeatedly urged an end to the war and called for more to be done to bring peace.

“I call Gaza daily; there’s a parish there,” Pope Francis said last month. “War is always a defeat, always, without exception. And we must not forget that. This is why everything done for peace is important.”

Sister Nabila Saleh of the Rosary Sisters School in Gaza was among the few who gathered in the church stairwell to hear the first call from Pope Francis a week into the war.

“The calls bring courage and joy,” said Sister Nabila, who listened to the calls for more than six months before poor health forced her to leave for Jordan.

“He calls every day. When you listen to him speak, you feel the church is with you. The Holy Father prays for peace, he tells us how he is working for peace. People tell him about the situation around, how they are afraid of the bombardment.”

Priests and nuns often place his call on the speaker when the network connection is strong so he can bless children and the sick. Sister Saleh continues to speak to people at the Gaza parish daily to check in with them.

“Every day when I talk to them, they worry about their children, about the future” she said. “We must come together on October 7 to pray for peace in the Middle East.”