A priest told CNN hosts Monday morning that Christmas is the story of a “Palestinian Jew” in “occupied territory.”
CNN’s Poppy Harlow asked Catholic priest Fr. Edward Beck to speak to feelings of hopelessness as wars continue to rage around the world.
“Can I ask you the question that my kids ask me, and I think most people’s kids ask them? Then why do such bad things happen? As we sit here on Christmas there is still so much pain and suffering, particularly right now in the world. Can you speak to those who feel hopeless this morning, father?”
“The story of Christmas is about a Palestinian Jew born into an occupied country, having to flee as refugees into Egypt.” – Father Edward Beck @FrEdwardBeck on @CNN a few minutes ago. @NY_Arch @CardinalDolan pic.twitter.com/EFVsU3i1p4
— Avi Kaner ابراهيم אבי (@AviKaner) December 25, 2023
“I don’t think, Poppy, we get an answer for the why, but I think the message of Christmas is that God enters into it with us and we’re not alone in it,” Beck said.
“What I’m so struck by is that the story of Christmas is about a Palestinian Jew. How often do you find those words put together?” he continued. “A Palestinian Jew born into a time when his country was occupied, right? They can’t find a place for her to even give birth, his mother. They’re homeless. They eventually have to flee as refugees into Egypt, no less. I mean, you can’t make up the parallels to our current world situation right now.”
“So in some way that is who we believe God becomes. Born into that situation, and yet that very man Jesus says, ‘Love one another. Love your enemies. There is hope. There is light in the darkness. I’m attesting to that,'” Beck told Harlow. “So somehow that God enters that experience of suffering and that struggle and is actually born into it, that is what is so miraculous about the celebration for me.” (RELATED: City Where Jesus Was Born To Remove Christmas Decor ‘In Honor Of The Martyrs’ And ‘Solidarity’ With Palestine: REPORT)
According to the New Testament, Jesus was Jewish, having been born in the town of Bethlehem in the Roman province of Judaea (Matthew 2:1). The phrase “Palestine” is never mentioned in the New Testament nor was it in use during that time.
The name “Palestine” is derived from the land of Philistines, who originated from modern-day Greece and Turkey. It wasn’t until approximately one century after Jesus’ death that Roman forces expelled the Jews from Judea and named the area “Syria Palaestina.”