Inside the High Walls of Palestine—The Church of the Nativity

Lantern Festival wishes for national peace and a world fraught with war, Praying for peace to descend, as the globe shares the warmth and the cold. The Lantern Festival, a cultural celebration for the Chinese people: the first significant festival after the Chinese New Year, symbolizing reunion and happiness. However, in the Middle East and Eurasia, wars rage and refugees wander, turning Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, into a battlefield. People long for peace and prosperity. The Lantern Festival, reflecting on the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem after Christmas 2016, remembering the times of peace in the Middle East, and praying for world peace. Bethlehem in Palestine is a city with a profound historical and cultural background. Located in the central part of Palestine, on top of the Judaean Mountains, and south of Jerusalem at an altitude of 680 meters, it is famous for having the second-largest Christian community in the Palestinian territories. Despite the modern majority of Muslims in Bethlehem, due to its historical and religious background, it remains an important pilgrimage site for Christians worldwide. Bethlehem is best known as the birthplace of Jesus. Therefore, it attracts millions of Christians from around the world to pilgrimage, bringing a significant number of tourists and believers to this small city every year. Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem