Holy Family Church leaders in Gaza will ‘stay and serve’ amid evacuation orders in city

A view of the damage to the Holy Family church in Gaza City following an Israeli strike on the church, in the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City on July 17, 2025. / Credit: OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP via Getty Images

ACI MENA, Sep 5, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Despite evacuation orders and escalating military operations across Gaza, the Emergency Committee at Holy Family Church — Gaza’s only Catholic parish — recently announced that its members will stay put to care for displaced residents who have taken shelter there.

Israeli forces recently issued general orders to residents to evacuate the Zeitoun neighborhood, one of the largest neighborhoods in Gaza City, which covers approximately 9 square kilometers (about 3.5 square miles) and was, until the war, home to over 100,000 people. Holy Family Church is located within this neighborhood, though it did not receive any specific order to evacuate its compound.

The Emergency Committee opened its statement with a biblical verse: “And so, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and unmovable, abounding always in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not useless in the Lord” (1 Cor 15:58).

Staying at the parish is both a moral and pastoral duty, the committee said, driven by the need to care for elderly and disabled residents who depend on the church’s round-the-clock support.

The Emergency Committee, operating “since the first day of war,” vowed to remain “at the forefront of service” to the community. The decision to stay was made to protect those who have sought refuge within the church, while emphasizing that the choice to leave or remain “must be left to the conscience of every civilian.”

The language of the committee’s Aug. 27 announcement echoes a joint statement issued the day before, on Aug. 26, by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which warned that evacuation orders forcing civilians to relocate to southern Gaza amount to a “death sentence” for many who have found shelter in religious institutions. 

The Catholic church complex of Holy Family and the nearby Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrios have housed hundreds of civilians since the war began, many physically unable to make the journey south.

“The path of justice leads to life,” both patriarchates declared, urging world leaders to protect civilians’ right to remain on their land and reject mass expulsion policies. The Emergency Committee also called on local and international authorities to break the cycle of violence and find solutions that protect life and human dignity.

Father Gabriel Romanelli, Holy Family’s Catholic parish priest, reinforced this position in an interview with Vatican News. “We are in God’s hands. We are here for Jesus Christ. We are here to serve him in the Eucharist, and to serve him in the poor, the sick, and the suffering,” he said.

Romanelli added that the priests and sisters remaining at the church believe they have a moral obligation to continue caring for elderly, disabled, and other vulnerable people who have depended on church institutions for daily survival for years. Forcing such people onto the streets would be catastrophic, he warned, given widespread malnutrition, physical vulnerability, and the near-total absence of medical care outside the church walls.

The Emergency Committee’s declaration comes as military operations in Gaza have sharply escalated, with heavy bombardment targeting densely populated neighborhoods. Local authorities and residents report mounting civilian casualties and widespread destruction. Against this backdrop, church leaders have renewed urgent calls for immediate international action to protect civilians, ensure humanitarian aid delivery, and prevent forced displacement.