Two Arab Nuns From Palestine Are Canonized by Pope Francis

posted on: May 20, 2015

Pope Francis canonized two 19th-century nuns from Ottoman-ruled Palestine on Sunday, just days after the Vatican moved to formally recognize a state of Palestine, offering tacit support to a bid for full sovereignty.

The canonization of Sister Mariam Baouardy, who founded a Carmelite convent in Bethlehem, and Sister Marie Alphonsine Ghattas, who founded a congregation of nuns, was not related to the Vatican’s announcement last week of a new treaty with the Palestinians, Vatican officials said Friday.

The two new saints, now named St. Mary of Jesus Crucified and St. Marie-Alphonsine, are being held up as beacons of encouragement to Christian communities in the Middle East that are being persecuted by Islamic extremists.

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Sunday’s ceremony in St. Peter’s Square was attended by the Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, who met with the pope on Saturday, and about 2,100 people from the Palestinian territories, Jordan and Israel, led by the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Fouad Twal.

Last week before leaving for the Vatican, the patriarch called the canonization of the two nuns “a spiritual event of prime importance for the citizens of the Holy Land, amid the difficulties we are experiencing.” He added: “As the Holy Land, wrecked by violence and dissent, has for some time had a tarnished image, our two saints emerge to restore its sanctity, reminding us that sanctity is possible even in the most difficult circumstances.”

Source: www.nytimes.com