Bethlehem’s Defiant Tree Lighting: Empty Symbolism Amidst Desecration
Catholic News Agency portal reports (December 8, 2025) that Bethlehem has resumed Christmas celebrations after a two-year suspension during the Gaza conflict, beginning with the lighting of a giant Christmas tree in Nativity Square. Bethlehem Mayor Maher Canawati justified this decision by citing economic necessity (“tourism was down to zero”) and declaring it a “light of hope,” while simultaneously acknowledging public disagreement over its appropriateness. The celebration occurred as bombs continued falling near sacred sites, with Fr. Gabriel Romanelli reporting an explosion 200 meters from Gaza’s Holy Family Church during the tree lighting ceremony. This grotesque juxtaposition exposes the complete secularization of Christmas under modernist influences.








