Dear brothers and sisters, may the Lord grant you His peace.

Our hearts and our gaze return here, to the Holy Land. To the land in which the Son of God gave His life to the very end and from which the Church was born.

Even today, from these holy places, we continue to draw from the source of Easter the meaning and hope of our service. Yet we cannot hide that the time we are living through is difficult. War, violence and insecurity have struck Gaza, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon and Syria.

To all this has been added the long absence of pilgrims, which has worsened an already deeply critical economic situation. Many Christian families who lived thanks to pilgrimages now struggle to support themselves. Young people find it increasingly difficult to imagine a future here, in their own land.

Hope itself seems wounded in Bethlehem, in Jerusalem, in northern Israel, as well as in Lebanon and Syria. In this context, the words of the Holy Father resound strongly, who has called us to the urgency of prayer and fasting for peace, firmly asking that the conflict in the Holy Land come to an end. Good Friday thus takes on an even deeper meaning for us.

The Pontifical Good Friday Collection for the Holy Land is not only a gesture of solidarity, it is a concrete sign of communion with the Church of Jerusalem. Thanks to this collection, dear brothers and sisters, we can support schools, parishes, charitable works, social projects and emergency interventions, keeping alive the Christian presence in the places of redemption. Today more than ever we are called to rebuild not only buildings, but relationships, trust, hope.

And this passes above all through education, through young people, through families, through places where a culture of encounter and peace can be born. On Good Friday, as we contemplate the crucifix, we ask you not to forget the Holy Land. Remember us in your prayers and support us with your generosity.

Your closeness is for us a precious sign of fraternity and hope. From the holy places we assure you of our remembrance in prayer and we wish you to live the Lord’s Easter as a source of new life. Thank you from the heart.

The Holy Land and the Franciscans of the Seraphic Province of Umbria and Sardinia, in the light of the 800th anniversary of the passing of our Seraphic Father Saint Francis, send their wishes for an Easter of peace.