We are horrified by the actions of the Israeli Government as they carry out collective punishment of Palestinians for the heinous, unjustified crimes of Hamas on 7 October 2023. We cannot be silent in the face of the continued suffering of the Palestinian people. Every life lost is a tragedy, every child killed is horrific, every act of violence deepens the cycle of trauma and suffering. Lasting peace cannot be built through violence and suffering; it must come from our collective commitment to justice and peace for all.
We call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, and the restoration of a principled, UN-led humanitarian response through impartial humanitarian organisations to Gaza.
We join with the voices of our partners in the Christian community who are speaking out including the Archbishop of York, the College of Deans, and the Anglican Archbishop in Jerusalem, the Most Revd Hosam Naoum who described the aid distribution in Gaza as “the Hunger Games”. He said:
"Every part of our lives and ministries is covered with the shroud of death. (We are) resisting and ministering in multiple life-threatening situations simultaneously".
Following the strike at the Holy Family Church in Gaza, the Pontifical Mission for Palestine said:
"When unarmed civilians seeking refuge in a holy site are killed, it suggests a broader strategy to render Gaza uninhabitable, a violation of international law and a betrayal of humanity."
His Beatitude Cardinal Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, also strongly condemned the attack on the Holy Family Church, he said:
"Death, suffering, and destruction are everywhere in Gaza," the Patriarch stated. "The time has come for leaders to raise their voices and do all that is necessary to stop this tragedy."
As we live in a deeply fractured time in our global history we are inspired to renew our message of friendship and peace building to the world now and in the future.
This year Dresden, Hiroshima, Nagasaki all mark the 80th anniversary of the bombings of their cities; cities in post-war years that forged friendships with Coventry Cathedral, sharing together the lived horror, destruction and renewal, hope amid darkness, and resurrection. This year we mark the 85th anniversary of the bombing of Coventry, a significant anniversary as so few who survived this horror are now left to remind us “never again”. After the Cathedral was bombed the words “father, forgive” were spoken by Provost Howard, radical words at the time to forgive the enemy when we were still at war with Germany. During the BBC radio broadcast from the Cathedral ruins on Christmas Day 1940, six weeks after the Blitz, Provost Dick Howard declared that when the war was over we should work with those who had been enemies ‘to build a kinder, more Christ Child-like world.’ From the destruction, a vision for peace building and reconciliation work rose from the ashes which is at the heart of Coventry Cathedral’s mission to this day. It was decided that the Cathedral Ruins would be left as a reminder to share the story of human’s capacity both to destroy and to reach out to our enemies in friendship and reconciliation.
We call upon fellow Christians to join us in advocating for an end to this humanitarian catastrophe and for a just peace that recognises the rights and dignity of both Palestinians and Israelis. We abhor racism, in all its form and we welcome Jewish and Muslim communities in Israel and Palestine working together for peace and justice.
Archbishop Hosam Naoum in Jerusalem recently said:
“If I can reconcile myself as both Palestinian and Israeli and Arab and a Christian, that means that we can live together as Israelis and Palestinians. That’s something we can do,” he says. “We have done it for many centuries, actually, as Jews, Christians, and Muslims in the land of the Holy One, and we can do it again, but we need to be determined to walk the path of peace.”
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Resources
Further reading: Reconciliation in a suffering world Sermon given by Dean John Witcombe on Sunday 20th July 2025.
Further listening: BBC Radio 4 Sideways, Chasing Peace
