Franciscan churches draw attention to the forgotten children of Gaza

Once you hear their stories, it’s hard to stay silent. That’s why Mary Grace added a name to the Children’s Shroud, a large white cloth that bears the names of over 18,000 Palestinian children known to have been killed in Gaza since October 2023.

This simple gesture makes a clear statement: all life is precious.

Handwriting names of the deceased children on the shroud echoes a tragic practice in Gaza where parents write their children’s names on their bodies so they can be identified if their home is bombed. As she wrote a name on the Children’s Shroud, Mary was brought to tears.

"I was crying; It touches the heart to know the name, to make that connection," said Mary, who belongs to Immaculate Conception Parish in Durham, North Carolina, a church that is stewarded by the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe. "These are the names of real little kids killed in a series of horrific attacks, a genocide."

Friars of the Franciscan Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe have joined an interfaith effort led by Doctors Against Genocide, Priests Against Genocide and Justice for All to bring the Children’s Shroud to churches and other religious sites to raise awareness for the plight of the Palestinian people and highlight the moral urgency to end the genocide.

At the heart of the Franciscan charism is a recognition of the infinite value of each and every human life. That spiritual and moral conviction informs the Church’s commitment to justice and peace. Recently, Pope Leo XIV appealed again for an end to the "to the repeated acts of violence against the Palestinian population of the West Bank" during his weekly Angelus on Aug. 16.

An act of solidarity and prayer

Mary recently hosted a section of the Children’s Shroud at her home in Durham. At that gathering, Br. Jacek Orzechowski, OFM, a recently appointed animator of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation for the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe, shared with the invited members of her interfaith circle – including some members of the Jewish community – about his recent experience in the West Bank and how it was moving toward a full-fledge ethnic cleansing. The gathering concluded with guests inscribing the names of children to the shroud. The next day, at Sunday morning Mass, many others had an opportunity to take part in this project at Immaculate Conception Parish in Durham.

St. Camillus Parish in Silver Spring, Maryland, and New York’s Siena University have also invited their communities to host the shroud to educate people of goodwill about the atrocities being committed in Gaza. The United Nations described the acts of genocide in a recent report.

People of all ages have seen the shroud, learned about the ongoing genocide and taken the sacred step of inscribing a child’s name as an act of solidarity and prayer.

"Any parish can do it; any community can do it. You don’t have to be Catholic or Christian. Anybody can do this and it just becomes a meaningful move toward a recognition of the humanity of these children and families," Mary said.

"It's been really gratifying to see how much people care about what's going on in Palestine now. The tide is shifting in the United States, and more people are saying, ‘Oh, this is horrible. We have to stop it," she added.

A future of justice and peace for all

Franciscans have been entrusted to care for religious sites and people in the Holy Land for 800 years, and they have decried the systemic violation of basic human rights. The Palestinian people have endured decades of military occupation and gross injustice.

In recent years, some people have hesitated to speak the truth for fear of being labeled as antisemitic. Mark Braverman, a prominent Jewish-American author, activist and psychologist, has challenged Franciscan-hearted people to claim their tradition and a moral courage.

"I understand the reluctance of some to challenge the actions of the State of Israel, but I say this to you. To allow the shutting down of faithful and legitimate protest out of a feeling of love and support for the Jewish people is not an act of love," said Mark.

In a powerful video message, Mark speaks about his work as a Jewish man to promote justice for the oppressed people of the Occupied West Bank and that he understands well the collective trauma and existential fear that grips both sides.

"I pray for a future of dignity and peace for both peoples," said Mark.

How to get involved

The Gaza Children’s Shroud is an interfaith nonviolent movement aimed at ending the genocide and helping to bring a just and lasting peace. It helps to wake up the collective conscience of our nation and empowers us to claim our God-given power to be instruments of his peace. For more information, contact Br. Jacek Orzechowski, OFM, at jorzechowski@friars.us.

On Sept. 1, the entire shroud will be displayed at City Hall North in Philadelphia, the first stop in a yearlong traveling exhibition to hold up the truth that our freedom and the freedom of the Palestinian and Israeli people – which includes a freedom from fear and from want – are intimately connected.

On Sept. 16, the shroud will be displayed at the United Nations Church Center in New York City, where various non-governmental organizations and ambassadors will have the opportunity to inscribe some of the remaining names onto the shroud. In October, the shroud will travel to Washington, D.C., before continuing to other cities.