Saint James Vicariate For Hebrew Speaking Catholics in Israel

PASTORAL OF THE LOCAL CATHOLIC CHURCH TOWARDS MIGRANTS AND ASYLUM SEEKERS IN ISRAEL

Since the end of the 1990s, Israel has been importing large numbers of migrant workers. The Filipino community being the largest among the migrant communities, a Filipino Chaplaincy was established already in the 1990s; then an Indian Chaplaincy was established in 2010. The work of the Latin Patriarchate with the Migrants and Asylum Seekers in Israel started to be more structured and organized in 2011. It was in the wake of a visit to Jerusalem by Archbishop (subsequently Cardinal) Antonio Maria Vegliò, President of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Itinerant People. In April 2011, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem formally established a Coordination for the Pastoral among Migrants (CPAM) to direct the Church’s efforts in serving, organizing and catechizing the extensive population of Roman Catholic migrants in Israel, particularly those who are not taken care of by other Church bodies or religious orders and congregations.

In April 2018, Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Apostolic Administrator of the Latin Patriarchate, transformed the CPAM into a “Vicariate for Migrants and Asylum Seekers” (VMAS) under the responsibility of a Patriarchal Vicar who works in communion and in agreement with the Patriarch. He also erected the “Holy Family” personal parish destined to care for the migrants and asylum seekers in all pastoral, sacramental and formative aspects, having all the faculties that universal law grants to parishes.

The Vicariate for Migrants is served by Pastoral Workers belonging to the local Catholic Church who, following the example of Jesus the Good Shepherd, and moved by the Holy Spirit, are committed to accompany the pastoral work among migrants. To realize this vision, the members of the VMAS strive to answer the call of Pope Francis, addressed to the local Churches, to welcome, protect, promote and integrate our brothers and sisters who are migrants, asylum seekers into the life of the Church and of the society at large.

The VMAS tries to circulate information among those concerned with the migrants in the Holy Land, raising consciousness about the concerns of the migrants, informing the Catholic bishops, circulating updates and input, coordinating with the NGOs within civil society that work for the rights of migrants and asylum seekers, representing the concerns of the migrants to the media, coordinating with the local Embassies of the migrants’ countries and dioceses of origin, etc. It also tries to raise funds from donors for projects.

From 1990 to 2013, four Chaplaincies were established in Israel: the Filipino, the Indian, the Sri Lankan and the Ge’ez rite chaplaincies, all of them being presently under the responsibility of the VMAS. In addition, there are individual chaplains or specific priests for the Rumanian, Polish, Latin American, English speaking African, French speaking African, Korean and other communities. We also are in touch with the priests who accompany the Lebanese-Maronite and the Ukrainian-Byzantine communities.

In addition to pastoral care provided by the chaplaincies (liturgical, sacramental, social, etc.), the VMAS gives special attention to the second generation, sons and daughters of migrants, through different activities, such as Infant care, Catechism, After school programs and Youth programs. In view of this ministry, a few Pastoral Centers were established: The Pastoral Center Our Lady Woman of Valor (Tel Aviv), the Saint Joseph Center (Tel Aviv), and the Saint Rachel Center (Jerusalem) that was run by the Saint James Vicariate.

From September 2021 VMAS and St. James Vicariate have separate Vicars. Fr. Nicodemus Schnabel became responsible for the pastoral care of the migrants and asylum seekers in Israel.

MASS SCHEDULE FOR MIGRANT COMMUNITIES

Filipino Chaplaincy in the Holy Land

Jerusalem

San Lorenzo Ruiz Filipino Community

Ratisbonne –Salesians

26 Shmuel Hanagid Street

Sunday mass in English/Tagalog on Sundays: 9.15

OLPH Novena mass in English on Wednesdays: 21.15

Children’s Mass in English on Saturdays: 16.00 (during school year)

Mass in English on Saturdays: 21.15

Good Shepherd Catholic Filipino Community

Rosary Sisters Convent

14 Agron Street

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 10.00

Notre Dame

Across from New Gate

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 18.30

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 9.00

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 18.30

Tel Aviv-Jaffa

St. Anthony of Padua Church

53 Yefet Street, Jaffa

Weekday mass in English on Wednesdays: 20.00

Sunday mass in Tagalog on Saturdays: 17.00

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 19.30

Sunday mass in English on Sundays:10.30

Our Lady Woman of Valor

33 Shivat Zion Street, Tel Aviv

Weekday mass: 20.00 (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday in English / Wednesday in Tagalog)

Adoration on Friday: 18.00

Sunday mass in English or Hebrew on Saturdays: 15.00

Sunday mass in Tagalog on Saturdays: 16.30

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 18.00

Sunday mass in Tagalog on Saturdays: 19.30

Sunday mass in Tagalog on Sundays: 9.30

Haifa

St. Joseph Church

80 Sderot Hamegenim

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 19.00

Stella Maris Carmelite Monastery

Mount Carmel

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 9.00

Afula

36 Menachem Ussishkin Street

Corner Aliya Street - +393895623744

Sunday mass once a month on Friday: 17.00

Ashkelon

15 Hahistadrut street

Sunday mass on 2nd and 4th Friday of the month: 20.00

Eilat

First Club Eilat Hotel (Ground Floor, left wing)

Hatmarim 39, Eilat - 08-6315739

Sunday mass in Spanish on Saturdays: 12.00

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 18.30

Kfar Saba

Beit Gil Paz

2 Tel Hai street

Sunday mass on 2nd Tuesday of the month: 21.30

Kiryat Shmona

Kibbutz Sdei Nehemiah

Benedictine Sisters of Tabgha – 054-532 9673

Mass in English, third Saturday of the month: 20:00

Herzliya

13 Ben Gurion street

Sunday mass in English on Fridays: 19.30

Nazareth

Mensa Christi Chapel - +393895623744

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 17.00

Netanya

2 Smilanski Street -

Sunday mass in English twice a month on Saturday: 19.00

(Dependent on availability of hall and priest)

Rehovot

St. Therese of the Child Jesus Filipino Community

10 Ya’aqov Street (corner Herzl)

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 19.00

Tiberias

Saint Peter Church

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 8.30

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Indian Chaplaincy Holy Land

Jerusalem

St. Saviour’s Church, New Gate, Old City

Mass in Konkani – Every Saturday at 9.00

Terra Sancta College

2 Keren Hayesod

Mass in Malayalam – Every Sunday at 14.30

Tel Aviv - Jaffa

St. Anthony Church

51 Yefet, Jaffa

Mass in Konkani – Every Saturday at 09.00

St. Peter’s Church

Mifrats Shlomo 1, Old Jaffa

Mass in Malayalam - Every 2nd & 4th Friday at 18.30

Our Lady Woman of Valor (OLWV)

Shivat Tsion 33, Tel Aviv

Novena & Mass in Konkani – Every Tuesday at 19.30

Novena & Mass in Malayalam – Every Tuesday at 21.00

Haifa

St. Joseph’s Latin Church

80 Hamegenim street

Mass in Konkani - Every 2nd Saturday at 18.00

Stella Maris Church

Mass in Malayalam - Every Sunday at 14.30

Acre

St. Saviour’s Anglican Church

39 Lochamey Hagetaot street

Mass in Malayalam - Every 4th Saturday at 14.30

Ashkelon

Aliyat Hanoar 6

Mass in Malayalam - Every 3rd Friday at 19.30

Beersheva

St. Abraham Parish,

51 Hashalom street

Mass in Malayalam – Every 1st & 3rd Friday at 18.00

Herzliya

St. Mary’s Chapel, 2 Hadar

Mass in Konkani – Every Friday at 19.30

Mass in Malayalam - Every 3rd Saturday at 16.00

Nof Yam

Divine Mercy Chapel

6 Yigal Yadin street

Mass in Konkani – Every Saturday at 18.30

Kiriyat Shmona

Amiad Kibbutz

Mass in Malayalam - Every 4th Monday at 02.30 pm

Nazareth

Chapel of the Sisters of Nazareth, opposite the Basilica

Mass in Malayalam - Every 4th Sunday at 14.30

Netanya

Samuel Hanatziv 28

Mass in Malayalam - Every 3rd Friday at 16.00

Ramla

St. Nicodemo Catholic Church

1 Bialik street

Mass in Malayalam - Every 1st Saturday at 16.30

Rehovot

St. Therese of the Child Jesus

10 Ya’aqov Street (corner Herzl)

Mass in Malayalam – Every 1st Saturday at 10.30

Tiberias

St. Peter’s Church, 1 Hayarden str.

Mass in Malayalam - Every 4th Sunday at 17.00

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Geez Rite Community in the Holy Land

Tel Aviv

Our Lady Woman of Valor

Shivat Tsiyon 33, Tel Aviv

Sunday mass in Geez on Saturdays: 8.30

Jerusalem

Ratisbonne –Salesians

26 Shmuel Hanagid Street

Sunday mass in Geez on Saturdays: 8.30

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English speaking and French speaking

African Community in the Holy Land

Tel Aviv-Jaffa

St. Peter Church

Sunday mass in French on 1st and 3rd Saturdays: 10.00

St. Anthony of Padua Church

53 Yefet Street, Jaffa

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 11.00

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Latin American Community in the Holy Land

Tel Aviv-Jaffa

St. Peter Church

Old Jaffa

Sunday mass in Spanish on Saturdays: 18.30

Ramleh

St. Nicodemus, St. Joseph of Arimathaea

1 Bialik Street

Sunday mass in Spanish on 2nd, 3rd and 4th Saturday of the month: 9.30

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Polish Community in the Holy Land

Tel Aviv-Jaffa

St. Peter Church

Old Jaffa

Sunday mass in Polish on Sundays: 18.00

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Rumanian Community in the Holy Land

Chaplain: Father Cristian Vacaru – 054-970 6471

Jerusalem

St. Charles Borromeo Monastery Chapel

12 Lloyd George Street, German Colony

Sunday mass in Romanian on Saturdays: 10.00 (sometimes at 18.00)

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Korean Community in the Holy Land

Ein Karem

Saint John in the Desert

Sunday mass in Korean, twice a month, on Saturday: 11.00

Other masses welcoming migrants

Jerusalem

Notre Dame

Across from New Gate

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 18.30

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 9.00

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 18.30

Jaffa

Saint Anthony Church

Yefet Street, Jaffa

Weekday mass in English from Monday to Friday: 7.00

Weekday mass in English on Wednesdays: 20.00

Weekday mass in English on Saturdays: 11.00

Sunday mass in English on Saturdays: 19.30

Sunday mass in Arabic on Saturdays: 18.30

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 10.30

Sunday mass in Arabic on Sunday: 9.00, 18.30

Saint Peter Church

Old City

Weekday mass in English from Monday to Friday: 7.00

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 9.00

Tiberias

Saint Peter Church

Sunday mass in Hebrew on Saturdays: 18.30

Sunday mass in English on Sundays: 8.30

Weekday mass in English from Tuesday to Thursday: 19.00

Weekday mass in English on Fridays: 18.30