Patriarch Fouad of Jerusalem of the Latins: in London to appeal for support to the Christians of the Holy Land

His Beatitude Fouad Twal, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, will celebrate the Sung Mass at 5-30pm on the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Westminster Cathedral, 8th September 2009. The Society will be represented by Fr Mark Woodruff.

Independent Catholic News reports:

Archbishop Fouad Twal, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, is in the UK this September, to speak about the plight of Christians in the Holy Land. The Patriarch was invited by Aid to the Church in Need as part of its work raising awareness of the challenges facing Christians in the region.

After Mass, the Patriarch will talk about the plight of Christians in the Holy Land in the Cathedral Hall.

In an interview with ACN in Rome, Patriarch Twal said: “I look forward very much to my visit to London. It will be an opportunity to share with so many friends the sufferings and joys that we experience in the land of Christ.”

He said the visit would build on the success of Pope Benedict XVI’s pilgrimage to the Holy Land in which the Pontiff pleaded with Christians not to emigrate.

Thanking ACN for its commitment to support suffering faithful in the Middle East, Patriarch Twal stressed the problems of poverty and discrimination facing Christians.

He added: “If only the faithful are given the chance to lead a normal life, they will stay in the Holy Land. As long as they cannot lead a normal life, they will be tempted to leave.”

Christians in the Holy Land have plummeted from 20 percent of the population to less than 1.5 percent in the last 40 years.

The event in September will be followed six weeks later by a visit to the UK by Bishop Joseph Coutts of Faisalabad, Pakistan, who will be the keynote speaker at ACN’s annual Westminster Event on Saturday, 17th October. He will celebrate the 10.30am Mass in the Cathedral and will give the keynote address in the hall afterwards. Tickets for the talk are £5 each.

The event will begin with a brief address by Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster.

In a message to ACN, Bishop Coutts said he was delighted to be visiting the UK and thanked the charity for its ongoing support for the Church amid continuing hardship suffered by Christians and other minorities.

ACN UK director Neville Kyrke-Smith said: “It is critical that we get the message out there about what Christians are enduring for their faith today in the Middle East and Pakistan and we are so glad that Patriarch Twal and Bishop Coutts can give us their first-hand testimonies.”