Press Release issued by the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem on the Assaults Against Worshippers During Holy Fire Saturday

Jerusalem, Easter Sunday — April 20, 2025

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God” (Matthew 5:9).

The Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem emphatically condemns the egregious violations that desecrated the sanctity of Jerusalem yesterday, particularly in the Old City and around the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, during the celebration of the blessed Holy Fire Saturday.

Israeli police forces transformed the sacred city into a militarized zone, erecting barriers, obstructing the faithful from reaching their churches, and perpetrating assaults against scouts and worshippers, both locals and pilgrims from around the world.

These reprehensible actions, which deprived thousands of believers of their divine right to prayer and worship, stand in direct contradiction to Jerusalem’s eternal vocation as a city of peace for all the children of God. As our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory, declared: “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations”(Mark 11:17).

In the midst of this affliction, we lift our hearts to the Risen Lord, imploring His just peace to reign over His Holy Land, for the shadow of injustice to be lifted from His city, and for the machinery of war to fall silent in the afflicted land of Gaza. May the light of the Resurrection shine once more upon all the peoples of our region, bearing witness to the triumph of justice, hope, and freedom.

Source: Patriarchate of Jerusalem