A first sign of hope. A first return to normality in a land that hopes to embrace once again the thousands of pilgrims who used to animate Jerusalem and the Holy Places. Sending this message was a group of Spanish travelers arriving from the province of Ciudad Real and Seville. Fifty people who chose to return to the places of the Gospel guided by Fr. Luis Quintana, Vice Commissioner of Holy Land for Spain. “It was truly a great joy” commented the father speaking about his return to these places. “We were the pioneer group after the first phase of the pandemic. Then, when Covid-19 passed, we were also the first group after the first part of the war. We are the 'return group'. But with joy and optimism, because we believe and pray that, little by little, peace will return. We are really very happy and we look forward to pilgrimages being able to resume”.

In one week, the group of Spanish citizens was able to visit all the traditional places of pilgrimage in the Holy Land. “We were able to go everywhere: Jerusalem, Nazareth, Cana, Haifa, the places of the Sea of Galilee, from that of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes to the Primacy of Saint Peter, Capernaum, Mount Tabor, Magdala, Jericho, Qasr al-Yahud for the baptism of the Lord. In short, there was no place that we could not visit” commented Quintana. And among the various sites visited by the pilgrims from Spain, there were also additional places compared to other occasions, from the Dormition of Mary, which was sometimes closed, to Qasr al-Yahud on the Jordan River. To those who wish to return to the Holy Land, Fr. Quintana sends a clear message: “Take courage and trust the Commissariat of Holy Land because we are the official channel of the Holy See to coordinate pilgrimages. We are in direct contact with the Custos and we have official channels, as well as real and truthful information. The friars of the Custos welcomed us with open arms. So, let pilgrims trust us: if we say that it is possible to go, it is because it really is possible to go”.

The courage is the same that Manuel asks for, one of the members of the group that set out from Ciudad Real. “What would I say to those who want to visit the Holy Land? Don't think twice: in fact, I believe this is the ideal moment because there are not the crowds of the past and everything turns out to be more welcoming” he says. “In my life, by now a bit long since I am 73 years old, I have made several trips and various pilgrimages. My feeling on this trip, however, was very different from everything I have experienced in the past: in every place I felt faith more strongly” continued Manuel. The journey of this group can truly be a first sign of confidence in a Holy Land that needs Christians to return from all over the world as in past years. “I believe it can be a sign of hope, certainly, both for the pilgrims and for the local residents” explains Fr. Quintana, who announces that from Spain they already have other trips planned in the coming months. Many people are already starting to ask for information, many are already signed up and hope to leave as soon as possible. And, as Manuel tells after his return to Europe, “it is a journey that leaves very profound feelings. The place that struck my heart and faith the most was the Holy Sepulcher, but everything, absolutely everything, leaves a deep mark”.