Bulgarian Patriarchate condemns attack on Holy Family Church in Gaza

Headquarters of the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in Sofia. Photo: orthodoxianewsagency

On July 18, 2025, the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church issued a statement regarding the situation in the Gaza Strip, condemning the recent attack on the Catholic Church of the Holy Family, which resulted in the deaths of civilians. The statement was reported by the Orthodoxia News Agency.

According to the Synod, the ongoing siege of Gaza has led to a major humanitarian catastrophe. Thousands have been killed, and millions are left without food, water, medicine, or electricity. The Church calls on the international community and religious organizations to exert real pressure on all parties in the conflict to bring about an immediate end to the hostilities.

The Bulgarian Patriarchate emphasized that the daily bombings – including strikes on churches, hospitals, and civilian neighborhoods – violate not only international law but also moral and Gospel principles. “The voice of spilled blood cries out to Heaven and to our conscience,” the statement declares.

The Church demands an immediate end to the blockade, unrestricted access to humanitarian aid, and the establishment of conditions for a just peace. The document also includes a warning: inaction in the face of suffering becomes complicity in it.

The Bulgarian Patriarchate expressed its prayerful support for the Orthodox Church of Jerusalem, its Patriarch Theophilos III, and the clergy currently in Gaza.

The statement concludes with the words: “May Almighty God protect and preserve His innocent children and remind all those responsible that the restoration of peace lies in their hands.”

On July 17, 2025, an Israeli airstrike hit the only Catholic church in Gaza – the Church of the Holy Family – where around 450 people, including children and persons with disabilities, had taken shelter. Three people were killed, and about ten others were injured, including the parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that the Jerusalem Patriarchate also condemned the attack on the Holy Family Church in Gaza.

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