Pentecost prayer at Latin Patriarchate

At 18.00, on June 11, 2011, the prayer gathering at the Latin Patriarchate Co-Cathedral began with an entrance hymn in Arabic, Italian and Hebrew. His Beatitude entered together with Bishops William Shomali and Kamal Bathish and Father David Neuhaus (St James Vicariate) as well as delegates of the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land and of the Vatican Embassy, all together representing the Latin Church of Jerusalem hosting the event.

A word of welcome by Father David was followed by the readings that focused on the gift of the Holy Spirit. Benedetto, from the Saint James Vicariate community, sang the Psalm in Hebrew. The homily of the Patriarch focused on the gift of the Spirit in our present situation and the need not to lose hope.

A particularly prayerful moment was the litany of the saints, a long line of saints from the Holy Land, starting with Abraham, Moses, David and the prophets, including many of the saints of the New Testament and the Fathers of the Church and ending with the most recent: Blessed Mariam Bawardy and Marie-Alphonsine Ghattas.

The prayer service was broadcast live by Christian TV channels to the Middle East and Europe, and to the Americas.

(Photos thanks to Mounir Hodaly)