Resources on Israel-Palestine for U.S. Catholics (and Everybody)

A list of materials for learning, taking action, and prayer

Prayer books and rosaries made out of Palestinian olive wood, lining the pews at Holy Family Church, the Catholic parish in Gaza. Photo from the parish’s Facebook page.

As some readers will know, over the last few years much of my writing and speaking has been dedicated to the ever-worsening situation in Israel-Palestine. In this post, I’ve curated a list of my own work and that of other Catholics, including Fr. David Neuhaus, Patriarch Emeritus of Jerusalem Michel Sabbah, and Julie Schumacher Cohen, who I collaborate with frequently. It includes educational resources like videos and articles, first-person accounts and expertise from those in the Holy Land, news updates, prayer texts, and examples of American Catholic activism. This list is certainly limited—there is much more I could recommend, and I plan to expand it further—but I hope it is a helpful starting place for Catholics (and indeed anyone) interested in Israel-Palestine and how it relates to our faith.

If you have suggestions for resources I should add to this list, let me know in the comments.

Educational Resources by and for Catholics

Articles and Op-eds

• What should Catholics think about Gaza, Israel and Palestine? Catholic social teaching has answers. By Julie Schumacher Cohen and Jordan Denari Duffner

• U.S. Catholic Sign-On Letter on Israel-Palestine (issued in May 2024): Full text and list of signers, nearly 6,000 (video version; links to media coverage)

• ​​American Catholics can’t look away from violence and death in Gaza, by Jordan Denari Duffner

• Catholics must oppose the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, by Julie Schumacher Cohen

• Gaza and Israel-Palestine: The role of Jesuit higher education in a time of turmoil, by Julie Schumacher Cohen

• Pope Francis was a tireless advocate for peace in Palestine, by Julie Schumacher Cohen

• Catholic Guilt and Gaza, by Julie Schumacher Cohen

• Palestinian and Israeli children both have the right to live in safety and dignity, by Julie Schumacher Cohen

• President Biden is known for his empathy. I pray it will extend to Palestinians, by Julie Schumacher Cohen

• Unchristian: What Islamophobia and antisemitism have in common, by Jordan Denari Duffner

Resources and reports

• Sign-up for quarterly updates on Israel-Palestine from the Catholic Advisory Council of Churches for Middle East Peace

• Faith-Rooted Primer for Understanding and Addressing Bigotry in the U.S. amid the Violence in Israel-Palestine, from the Shoulder to Shoulder Campaign. (I helped write and edit this resource)

• “Injustice in the Holy Land:” two-page resource suitable for classroom use (behind a paywall), by Julie Schumacher Cohen and Jordan Denari Duffner

• “Seeking Justice, Peace and Equality in Israel-Palestine”: resource suitable for classroom use (behind a paywall), by Julie Schumacher Cohen and Jordan Denari Duffner

• Report: 71% of U.S. Catholics support a Gaza ceasefire (2024)

Videos

• U.S. Catholic Sign-On Letter on Israel-Palestine, Video version

• Video lecture: Palestine-Israel and Catholic Social Teaching, hosted by Loyola Marymount University, by Jordan Denari Duffner

• Webinar: Seeking Justice, Peace, and Equality in Israel-Palestine (hosted by Ignatian Solidarity Network, co-sponsored by CMEP’s Catholic Advisory Council) (includes an examen prayer)

• Webinar: Injustice in the Holy Land: Israel-Palestine and Catholic Social Teaching (hosted by Ignatian Solidarity Network, co-sponsored by CMEP’s Catholic Advisory Council) (includes a prayer for Catholic or interreligious settings)

• Blessed are the Peacemakers, panel at Georgetown University

• Panel: Catholic Perspectives on Israel-Palestine at the University of Notre Dame

Podcasts

• “Catholic Social Teaching and Advocating for Palestinians with Jordan Denari Duffner” on Across the Divide podcast

• “Catholic Faith and Peacebuilding Work with Julie Schumacher Cohen” on Across the Divide podcast

Catholic Voices in the Holy Land

• Statements from ‘A Jerusalem Voice for Justice,’ an ecumenical group in the Holy Land

  • An SOS for Gaza: Cast Your Nets Again

  • Out of the Depths I Cry to You

• Statement from Catholic and Orthodox priests in Taybeh, a Christian town in the West Bank

• Interview with Fr. David Neuhaus, an Israeli Jesuit

• Three part video mini-series: Catholic and Christian Communities in the Holy Land

• Webinar about Catholic humanitarian orgs who support Palestinians Gaza and the West Bank.

• “The real cause of the war in Gaza—and the only path to peace” by Michel Sabbah

• “Landscape of Loss: The tightened vise around Palestinian society threatens the Christian community’s survival,” article by Fatima AbdulKarim

• “Holy Land Justice & Peace decries weaponization of ‘just war’,” Vatican News

• “A Catholic Perspective on the People, Land, and State of Israel,” by Fr. David Neuhaus, S.J. (contact me for a PDF)

• August 2024 statement from heads of Churches in the Holy Land

• Facebook profile featuring photos/videos from the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza. (You’ll have to friend request them)

• “Staying in Gaza as an act of love: Stories from the Catholics who risk their lives to serve.” By Jeff Abood

• Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem website

• Is Peace Possible? Christian Palestinians Speak (book)

News and Statements

• Pope Francis statements (a selection)

  • Pope Francis calls for an end to ‘heavy bombing in Gaza,’ Vatican News

  • “Pope Francis used final Easter address to call for Gaza ceasefire,” USA Today

• Bishops statements

  • Individual statements from U.S. bishops (Cardinal McElroy and Archbishop Wester; Bishop Stowe)

  • Statements from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (most recent linked here)

• Georgetown faculty call for solidarity after postdoc Badar Khan Suri's detention, RNS

• “Caritas Jerusalem: ‘Needs are immense’ in Gaza and West Bank”, Vatican News

Examples of U.S. Catholic Activism and Solidarity

• U.S. Catholic Sign-On Letter on Israel-Palestine, text and list of signers, nearly 6,000 (video version; links to media coverage)

• Contact your elected officials by signing up for Churches for Middle East Peace’s Action Alerts list serv

• Video: My remarks at a vigil for ceasefire in November 2024

• Catholic Relief Services in Gaza and West Bank (2024 report)

• Christians for Ceasefire and a Just Peace coalition (which involves many Catholics)

  • Activism includes civil disobedience, vigils and Masses outside the White House, disruptions at Congressional buildings and Christian Zionism conference, solidarity trips to the West Bank, Gaza, and Israel

    • Some of the Catholic organizations involved are: Catholic Advisory Council of Churches for Middle East Peace, Pax Christi USA, Franciscan Action Network, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, Catholic Worker Houses

    • Other Christian orgs to be aware of: Friends of Sabeel North America, Christians for a Free Palestine, Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation, Christians for Middle East Peace

• Catholic Advisory Council of Churches for Middle East Peace

  • Produces educational events and resources for Catholics (sign-up for quarterly updates)

• Video briefly summarizing some U.S. Catholic activism (clip starts at 5:15)

Prayerful resources on Israel-Palestine

• Examen for Israel-Palestine, by Julie Schumacher Cohen

• Video: Advent Not Arms Prayer Vigil Remarks by Jordan Denari Duffner

• Video: Prayer delivered by Jordan Denari Duffner at Christians for Ceasefire vigil in Dec. 2023

• Essay: Walking the Way of the Cross with Jews and Muslims in Jerusalem, by Jordan Denari Duffner in U.S. Catholic

• Prayer by Rose Marie Berger on Israel-Palestine

• Resources for Sunday of Mutual Flourishing (Oct. 6)