Pope Francis was the leader Palestinian Christians needed

Not long ago, my cousin in Palestine located our grandfather’s baptismal certificate, which states that he was baptised in a church in his Palestinian village in 1885.  

He lived an incredible life, witnessing two world wars and a sequence of Arab-Israeli wars, including Israel’s occupation of the West Bank. A farmer who rode on horseback and rolled his own cigarettes, he contentedly cultivated his land and nurtured his olive trees – never leaving Palestine, even as several of his children migrated to the United States. 

I’m grateful to have this documentation and the certificate of his baptism, especially since Palestinian existence is always under attack. 

For Palestinian Christians, it’s both laughable and offensive when people try to erase our community’s presence in Palestine. 

Palestinian Christians are an important minority who have been betrayed not by Palestinian Muslims, but by Christian leaders around the globe. This is why the passing of Pope Francis hits us especially hard, because he was a rare western Christian leader who recognised and acknowledged our existence, both lovingly and compassionately.

Born in the US, I was exposed to several different denominations of Christianity before finally settling on one that felt right. Because hearing Arabic during church services mattered to my family, I was baptised into the Lebanese Maronite Church, but my family attended Orthodox services. 

I also attended Catholic school from kindergarten through the 12th grade, and I remember being fascinated by the nuns who ran our school, many of whom had traveled the world and served people in the poorest regions. They had a strength and resolve I couldn’t help but admire. 

Compassion and spirituality

I briefly attended an Orthodox church, but in my 30s, I was drawn to the Quakers, a denomination that met my spiritual needs. I liked their direct and practical approach to their faith. 

During Easter, I was reflecting on the Good Friday masses I used to attend, and how much they moved me. Although I spent time in various churches over the years, I always felt that Pope Francis was a special man, combining his logic and reason with compassion and spirituality. 

I am particularly saddened by his passing because as a Palestinian Christian, so many other “Christian” leaders have utterly failed our small community. 

May we always remember that Christianity is, at its core, not about prosperity or power, but rather a religion of mercy

Adamantly pro-Israel, they have been silent on the brutality of the Israeli military, its vicious occupation of Palestine, and its war on Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians. They have contributed to the erasure of Palestinian Christians in the global conversation, framing the occupation of Palestine as a conflict between Jews and Muslims – some kind of medieval holy war. 

During a visit to a local church, which I attended not long ago out of curiosity, the pastor welcomed a special guest: another Christian pastor who lived in the Middle East, in a “mostly Muslim country”. He had single-handedly, through the power of his faith, converted dozens of Muslims over to Christianity, we were told. The congregation burst into applause, and I walked out.

By enthusiastically joining such casually Islamophobic conversations, many Christian leaders in the West have not only forgotten what the Bible teaches about love and compassion; they have also forgotten about us, the Christians of Palestine who have nurtured the faith for centuries and kept it alive. 

What a terrible betrayal, to know that people who support the genocide in Palestine attend mass every Sunday and “pray for peace”.

Held in the light

Pope Francis was a rare leader who cut through the fog of war. How affirming it was to hear him speak about the horrors of what we watched on our phones and computers every day, listening to the shock in his voice as he described the bombing of children in their tents. I was startled to learn not long ago that it had become part of Pope Francis’s evening routine to phone the Christians sheltering in Gaza – not to preach to them, but to let them know he was thinking of them. 

How simple. How compassionate. How Christian.

For a community that has been forgotten and neglected by most of the world, including other Christians, this was a blessing indeed. 

An essentially good man who was comfortable articulating the nuances of spirituality and the complexities of human life, the Pope never strayed from showing love and compassion to those who needed it most. He was not as progressive as many wanted him to be; I acknowledge this. But as a Palestinian Christian, to know that he spoke of us often – and did not back down from acknowledging our struggle – I saw how he bravely went further than any other leader of any western nation or church. 

I miss him, and I hold him in the light. 

We, the Palestinians who have baptised people into the faith for more than 2,000 years, are grateful for what Pope Francis did on earth to champion the oppressed. Christians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank have held masses in his memory. 

May we always remember that Christianity is, at its core, not about prosperity or power, but rather a religion of mercy. 

We have never needed this more than today.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.