Connections to CNEWA’s world Pontifical Mission Marks 75 Years edition (see page 6). A Mass commemorating the anniversary, celebrated by Archbishop Giovanni Pietro Dal Toso, papal nuncio to Jordan, was held at the Church of Mary of Nazareth on 17 July. In Lebanon, the 75th anniversary was marked with a press conference at the Catholic Information Center in Beirut on 18 July. Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai, Maronite patriarch of Antioch and all the East, presided at a Divine Liturgy commemorating the diamond jubilee and hosted a reception.
Msgr. Peter I. Vaccari, right, plates food at St. John the Merciful Table in Zahleh, Lebanon, with Melkite Archbishop Ibrahim Michael Ibrahim of Zahleh and Furzol, center, and the volunteer cook, on 25 July. Commemorations continued for the 75th anniversary of Pontifical Mission, CNEWA’s operating agency in the Middle East, with a second pastoral visit to the region. Msgr. Peter I. Vaccari, president of CNEWA-Pontifical Mission, traveled to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, from 14 to 26 July, accompanied by Tresool Singh-Conway, CNEWA’s chief financial officer, and Thomas Varghese, director of programs. The trip began in the Jordanian capital, Amman, with visits to programs funded by CNEWA-Pontifical Mission, including Beit Mariam, a center for girls featured in this
Aid for Gaza Continues At the time of publication, the distribution of humanitarian aid in Gaza was ongoing, as conditions there continued to plunge. CNEWAPontifical Mission was working with local parish partners and kitchens to distribute food, potable water, medical and other aid, including regular meals to 1,000 people in northern Gaza coordinated with the Greek Orthodox parish of St. Porphyrios.
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Msgr. Vaccari traveled to Syria, 22-24 July, where he met with bishops, consecrated men and women, and the lay leaders who conduct the work of the church in difficult circumstances.
“The historic role of Pontifical Mission has never been more important than at the present hour,” said Msgr. Vaccari from Amman. In April, Msgr. Vaccari traveled to Israel and Palestine with Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, chair of CNEWA’s board of trustees, kicking off the anniversary observations with Masses in Jerusalem and Beit Jala and visiting with those suffering amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. For more, visit our blog at cnewa.org.
On 29 July, the church was hit by an Israeli missile, which failed to explode on impact; three people were injured by falling debris. Earlier in July, the CNEWAfunded Al Ahli Arab Hospital was included in a general evacuation order of several neighborhoods in Gaza City. By mid-August, more than 40,000 people (more than 39,000 Palestinians and almost 1,500
Israelis) had been killed in this conflict that began on 7 October. Follow our blog for more updates on CNEWA’s work in Gaza. CNEWA Board Elects Members CNEWA’s international board of trustees elected two new members at its biannual meeting on 6 June, including Archbishop Richard W.