Interreligious Prayer in Kfar Aza

Religious leaders from Israel’s Jewish, Muslim, Christian and Druze communities gathered at the ruins of Kibbutz Kfar Aza on Wednesday to pray and call for the return of all the hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza.

Led by representatives of the Home Front Command and the Israel Police, the spiritual leaders toured the kibbutz and saw where the Oct. 7 massacre took place. Around 100 of the kibbutz’s nearly 800 residents were killed.

At noon, a prayer written eight years ago during the visit of religious leaders to Nazi extermination camps in Poland was said on the kibbutz grounds. They also prayed for the safe return of the hostages and soldiers.

The clergy visited also Rahat, a Bedouin community in the Negev where 21 residents were killed and six taken as hostage.

Fr. Tiago reports:

I got an invite from the Israeli Ministry of the Interior to join a crew of religious leaders on a trip to Kfar Aza on November 29th, 2023. This diverse bunch included representatives from the three major Abrahamic religions - Jewish Rabbis, Muslim Sheiks, and Christian leaders, including an Orthodox archbishop, a Greek Orthodox, and Maronite and Catholic priests. We were a mix of backgrounds too, with Jews, Arabs, Druze, and Bedouins all in the mix. Together, we went to visit one of the first kibbutzim that got hit hard by Hamas back on that tragic Saturday, October 7th.

What we saw was devastating - the aftermath of terror that took innocent lives. We heard gut-wrenching stories, many of which were already out in the media. The attackers used heavy weapons to target people who were just starting their day or still in bed. Houses were set on fire, and those who couldn't escape were either shot or burned alive.

Our journey also took us to Rahat in the Negev, Israel's biggest Arab city, where the entire population is Muslim, mostly Bedouin. There, we learned about the Muslim lives lost in the attack and those held hostage by Hamas in Gaza.

But amidst all the pain, I witnessed something remarkable for the first time in my life. People from different religions - Jews, Muslims (Arabs, Druze, and Bedouins), and Christians - weren't just praying together. They were praying for the victims of that horrific event, for the kidnapped, for the young soldiers at the front lines, and for peace. Most importantly, there was a shared belief in unity and coexistence. These folks all live in Israel, proudly embracing their identities. As one of the rabbis put it, "It's our duty as religious leaders to teach the coming generations about living together harmoniously, right from our synagogues, mosques, and churches." A young Muslim woman in Rahat welcomed us with these words: "If the massacre on October 7th doesn't teach us that we can and must live together in unity, nothing else will."

Processing everything, I saw and heard will take some time.