At a time when the hearts of the children of Gaza are suffering under the weight of war and its pain, the voices of a million children around the world have joined together. Together in response to the call of His Holiness Pope Francis and the worldwide initiative the mission of Aid to the Church in Need, they prayed the Holy Rosary together for peace. Around 300 children from the Holy Land School gathered in the Holy City of Jerusalem. To raise their prayers and supplications for a just and global peace in their land and throughout the world. Their prayers mingled with tears of hope as they touched hearts seeking mercy and peace. It is a message to spread love and solidarity towards every child who suffers, and every little heart in which fear and hope beat together. Br IBRAHIM FALTAS, ofm Vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land The children here prayed for the children of Gaza who are under the rubble. For the orphaned children of Gaza, for the children who are dying of hunger, thirst, cold or heat. They have prayed for all the children of the world. They prayed for the children of Lebanon, for the children of the West Bank and for every child in the world who suffers the scourge of war, destruction, hatred and revenge. Student at the Terra Sancta School in Jerusalem Today we have come here to Church, from the Holy Land primary and high school, to pray the Holy Rosary and ask God to give us peace. Especially for the children of Lebanon and the children of Gaza, who are suffering so much because of the war. They have been deprived of their schools and homes, and are left in the middle of the street. We ask God to give us peace and that the war stops. From Jerusalem ‘the capital of peace’ we ask God for the gift of peace for the whole world. Student at the Terra Sancta School in Jerusalem We ask the Virgin Mary to help them, to return them to their homes and schools. We hope that peace will prevail throughout the world. Here, where pain is intense and worries heavy, prayer lights the way to hope and opens doors of light and peace. And as Father Ibrahim Faltas, deputy custos of the Holy Land, said in his speech: Prayer is a force that overcomes borders and barriers, a force that raises hands and opens hearts. So that the Holy Land remains a symbol of faith and courage. It is where hope is born, in every prayer and in the hope that peace will be renewed. Student at the Terra Sancta School in Jerusalem ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God’. Jesus Christ commanded us to cherish peace and seek to bring it about in our country, especially in Palestine. And even in the school hymn we sing every morning, we say: ‘The land of my homeland is the light of dawn where we shall always live for the land of peace. I promise, I promise, your love is my soul, a pride that remains above pride.’ And with this hymn we pray for peace. Student at the Terra Sancta School in Jerusalem God created us in His image and likeness and gave us His attributes, including love and peace. Therefore, all the countries of the world must enjoy God's peace and love, and all must live in love, especially here in the Middle East and in our country, Palestine. Therefore, we invoke the Virgin Mary to intercede for peace to descend upon us, and to accept our prayers for peace to be realised and for love to spread throughout the world. During His Holiness Pope Francis' appeal to the children of the world to pray for peace, he expressed his concern about what is happening in the Middle East and renewed his call for an immediate ceasefire, because war is a loss for all. Br IBRAHIM FALTAS, ofm Vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land I trust that the Virgin Mary will listen to these children, because their hearts are pure and white. Their hearts are innocent, and they have prayed with all their hearts. We hope that the Blessed Virgin Mary will listen to our prayers and intercede for us so that the desired peace may be realised.