Eucharistic edoration at the Holy Family Parish in Gaza, led by the parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, in December 2024. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Gabriel RomanelliACI MENA, Sep 19, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).The city of Gaza continues to reel as Israeli airstrikes pound multiple neighborhoods and the conflict there escalates. Days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the launch of a ground operation urging civilians to evacuate designated combat zones, Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz has maintained that Gaza faces the risk of massive destruction unless Hamas releases Israeli hostages and surrenders its weapons.Amid this turmoil, the Holy Family Catholic Church in the al-Zeitoun neighborhood of southern Gaza has become both a spiritual center and a refuge, sheltering about 600 people from both Christian and Muslim families. The church provides a measure of calm as shells continue to fall nearby.In the same neighborhood stands the histo...
Eucharistic edoration at the Holy Family Parish in Gaza, led by the parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, in December 2024. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Gabriel Romanelli
ACI MENA, Sep 19, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).
The city of Gaza continues to reel as Israeli airstrikes pound multiple neighborhoods and the conflict there escalates.
Days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the launch of a ground operation urging civilians to evacuate designated combat zones, Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz has maintained that Gaza faces the risk of massive destruction unless Hamas releases Israeli hostages and surrenders its weapons.
Amid this turmoil, the Holy Family Catholic Church in the al-Zeitoun neighborhood of southern Gaza has become both a spiritual center and a refuge, sheltering about 600 people from both Christian and Muslim families. The church provides a measure of calm as shells continue to fall nearby.
In the same neighborhood stands the historic Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrius, which maintains its centuries-old presence in the territory. It too has served as a shelter, though for a smaller number of people.
The two churches are in separate locations, not in the same compound, and are about 1.7 miles apart — roughly a 40-minute walk, according to Google Maps.
The relationship between Holy Family Church and the Church of St. Porphyrius is good and it has become even stronger since the war began. Both are close in mission and serve the Christian community in the area, but all Christians there right now rely heavily on Catholic aid being channeled through Catholic organizations.
St. Porphyrius Orthodox Church in Gaza City on Jan. 5, 2024. Credit: The Holy Orthodox Order of St. George the Great Martyr
Most people taking refuge in the Holy Family Church are Orthodox, as their community in Gaza is larger than the Catholic one and there are more resources available there.
Sources from the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem have said they are closely monitoring the situation in Gaza and warned of the dangers of continued escalation.
Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa of Jerusalem earlier stressed that another round of violence "will only bring more destruction and suffering," urging the international community to act swiftly to stop the war and protect civilians.
These calls echo the Holy See's position, with Pope Leo XIV and Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, repeatedly urging respect for civilians and secure passage for humanitarian aid — especially to areas with Christian communities.
Father Gabriel Romanelli, pastor of Holy Family Church, has emphasized on multiple occasions that the church "will not abandon the people in this difficult time" and will keep its doors open to anyone in need of shelter and hope."
As the war drags on and Gaza's Christian community continues to shrink, concerns grow over collapsing infrastructure and worsening humanitarian conditions. Yet the church remains a witness to suffering and a beacon of hope.
This story was first published by ACI MENA, CNA's Arabic-language news partner, and has been translated for and adapted by CNA.
St. Januarius and the miracle of the liquefaction of his blood contained in a relic. / Credit: Louis Finson, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons; Photo2023, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsACI Stampa, Sep 19, 2025 / 11:10 am (CNA).The miracle of the liquefaction of the blood of St. Januarius was announced in Naples on Sept. 19, with the centuries-old relic once again offering what Abbot Monsignor Vincenzo De Gregorio called an "invitation to stake everything" on trust in God."We are delighted to announce that the relic has been found completely liquid," said De Gregorio, the abbot of the Treasury Chapel of the Naples Cathedral.As is tradition, the announcement was accompanied by the waving of a white handkerchief by one of the members of the Treasury of St. Januarius Deputation.Cardinal Domenico Battaglia, the archbishop of Naples, presided over the morning Mass, then displayed the vial containing the patron saint's blood before all present during the celebration. From th...
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null / Credit: nito/ShutterstockWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Sep 19, 2025 / 14:31 pm (CNA).This week the Patients Rights Action Fund, which works to "end the dangerous and discriminatory public policy of assisted suicide," provided an update on current assisted suicide legislation in the United States, revealing the deadly practice's ongoing expansion throughout the country.In a Sept. 18 webinar, group coalitions director Jessica Rodgers explained that most states that allow assisted suicide follow the "Oregon model," based on Oregan's assisted suicide criteria. The model requires "the patient to be 18 years of age or older, have a terminal illness with six months or less to live, make two or more separate requests with a 15-day waiting period in between, and have two witnesses, which can include heirs to the estate or friends of heirs," Rodgers said. "The drugs must be self-administered and all states do require the falsification of the death certificate," Rodgers said...
Eucharistic edoration at the Holy Family Parish in Gaza, led by the parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, in December 2024. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Gabriel Romanelli
