Benny at Beit Jala Seminary

Over the last two days of the liturgical calendar, I had the opportunity to realize an important visit for me. As a seminarian of the Saint James Vicariate for Hebrew Speaking Catholics in Israel, I went to spend a day and a half in the Seminary of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem in Beit Jala – a place in which many young men like me are studying and preparing for priestly ordination for the Arabic speaking local Church.

It was important for me to begin a process of getting to know one another in order to deepen friendship with my brothers who have chosen to walk the same path as I. Even though we still do not speak the same language, I wanted to begin building true friendship with them. If we succeed, I believe that this will yield fruit for the Local Church.

On Friday evening, I was warmly received by two seminarians whom I had already met on different occasions (one of them is from Haifa and so he speaks fluent Hebrew). After greeting the rector of the seminary, Father Adeeb, and the spiritual father, Father Rafiq, we went to pray in the chapel with the other seminarians. In the program was the prayer of the rosary and confession. After that we went for dinner and in the evening we watched a movie.

The following day we began with morning prayer followed by mass. For morning prayer, I had taken with me our own booklet for morning prayer in Hebrew from the kehilla and I was moved to note how close the two languages are – Hebrew and Arabic. During the songs, they moved apart a little at certain moments but intersected again when words were said that are so similar in Hebrew…

The texts in the prayer seemed very appropriate for this circumstance. In the short reading we heard:

"Be of one mind with one another" (Romans 12:16).

After breakfast, one of my companions brought me to Jerusalem, back home, and I left happy, with a strong desire to come back for another visit.

I conclude wit the words of the antiphone that was sang before the Benedictus prayer in the morning:

"Guide our steps, Lord in the way of peace".