An excellent turn out was seen at the recent Sebastia conference organized by ATS pro Terra Sancta alongside Sebastia’s township, the Mosaic Centre in Jericho, La Bir Zeit University and the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Ancient Times under the project, which was financed by PMSP and the Lombardy region. Over one hundred people attended […]

Also during the Holy Week (until Wednesday) you can visit the Museum of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum, founded in 1902 as the first museum in Jerusalem and recently reopened to visitors. The Museum of the  Studium Biblicum Franciscanum is an archaeological museum and presents priceless findings from the excavations carried out by the fathers of […]

The list of interventions made thank to the contributions by private donors and friends who, almost daily, decide to support, even with a small offer, the Custody of the Holy Land projects in favour of the local Christian community, keeps growing. Ettore Soranzo, engineer responsible for the restoration activities in Old Jerusalem coordinated by Ibrahim […]

Civil service in the Holy Land: thank to the collaboration with the University of Bari, ATS pro Terra Sancta and the Custody can also welcome in their offices in Jerusalem young volunteers who will serve there for one year within the framework of the cultural activities and the promotion of the artistic heritage conservation of […]

We publish part of the message by Father Luke, a Franciscan friar working in Rhodes who has recently welcomed some qualified volunteers who will help him design a new website to tell about the Christian and Franciscan presence on the island. Lent/Easter, 2011. This year’s Christmas celebrations were beautiful. The high level music events involved […]

On the occasion of the Holy Easter, the Stella Nova Chorus, made of children from a Milan school (10 years of age and above) e some of their parents and teachers, came to Jerusalem upon invitation by Father Armando Pierucci, founder of the Magnificat Institute of Jerusalem. 71 people among choir members and their escorts […]

A friar alone in command.  That was the title of the article on “L’osservatore Romano” (The Roman Observer) about Father Luke, a Franciscan friar who has been living in Rhodes for 5 years now. He takes care of all the Latin parishes on the island. He celebrates about 10 masses a week for the 3000 […]

“MOM”, or Magnificat Open Music: the teachers and pupils of the Magnificat Institute of Jerusalem will be playing together in concerts on the first four Tuesdays of May at the Convent of St. Saviour at 6 p.m. (in the Immaculata Hall on 3rd and 20th May, in the church of St. Saviour on 17th and […]

You can become a “Friend of pro Terra Sancta” with a small contribution and help the Christian presence in the Holy Land by supporting the numerous projects of the Franciscans of the Custody of the Holy Land. With a minimum annual donation of 33 euros, the Friends of pro terra Sancta will receive directly at […]

The Custody of the Holy Land and ATS pro Terra Sancta are very happy to announce their first collaboration with the Australian travel agency Harvest Pilgrimages. One of our primary goals here at ATS is to spread news about the Holy Land to people from all over the world. The Holy Land is full of […]

Report for 2010 of the projects completed by the Custody of the Holy Land of the Order of Friars Minor The Custody of the Holy Land continues incessantly its path for the protection and preservation of the Holy Places in Jesus’ Land. I. HOLY PLACES – PILGRIMS 1. Ain Karem – Sanctuary of St. John […]

Letter sent by Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for Eastern Churches, on the occasion of the Good Friday Collection that supports the Church in the Holy Land: Your Excellency, Remembering the Good Friday Collection means recalling a commitment that dates back to apostolic times. St Paul testifies to it in his Letter to […]

“Remembering the Good Friday Collection means recalling a commitment that dates back to Apostolic times. St Paul testifies to it in his Letter to the Christians of Galatia: ‘they would have us remember the poor, which very thing I was eager to do’ (2:10). And he reasserted this to the brethren of Corinth (1 Co […]

On 14th of April at Birzeit University and then on the 15th in Sebastia itself, the Sebastia Conference will be held; an event which we hope will advance the current projects in Sebastia and attract the attention and interest of scholars, especially Palestinians, and other experts in the field. The conference has been organized by […]

Visit www.custodia.org to see the new official website of the Custody of the Holy Land.  The Franciscans of the Holy Land have launched this remodeled version of their site, allowing friends and followers of the Holy Land to keep in touch in the simplest of ways.  Scrolling through images and enjoying the posted videos, followers […]

Restore, renovate and preserve the housing of the Old City of Jerusalem, thereby guaranteeing to the Christians who live there healthy and safe living environments: “Jerusalem, Stones of Memory” is a wide-ranging project launched by the Custody of the Holy Land and supported by ATS pro Terra Sancta to preserve the presence of those who […]

The following paragraphs contain tales of families and elderly members of Bethlehem’s community.  The Franciscan Social Service Office are committed to providing care for these people on a daily basis helped by the support of ATS pro Terra Sancta and their two projects dedicated to the birthplace of Jesus Christ: “Bethlehem and the children of […]

How your contributions are being spent: an interview with Ettore Soranzo, an engineer with the Custody of the Holy Land An ambitious and long-term project for the complete renovation of an additional 400 housing units located within the Old City of Jerusalem: Jerusalem, Stones of Memory, an initiative launched by the Custody of the Holy […]

A place, situated in the heart of the Old City of Jerusalem, where Christians, Jews and Muslims meet one another in the name of music: this is the Magnificat Institute, the music school of the Custody of the Holy Land, where children of various nationalities and ethnic groups learn and practice music together. The school […]

Friday 25 February, at 10.00 in Pius X hall at the Catholic University of Milan, marks the beginning of the conference entitled “Sebastia, the fruits of history and the memory of John the Baptist”. The aim of the conference, whose participants will include the President of the Catholic University, Professor Lorenzo Ornaghi, and the Custos […]