On 16 November, on the occasion of the Canonisation of the Martyrs of Damascus in Rome, the Custody of the Holy Land organised a symposium at St Saviour's Monastery in Jerusalem. The meeting aimed to pay homage to those who, with the sacrifice of their lives, have borne witness to the truth and the Christian faith.

The Church in the Holy Land is celebrating the canonisation of the eleven martyrs of Damascus. This weekend, the Franciscan community and the Maronite Catholic community gathered in prayer of thanksgiving for this gift of holiness.

On Sunday, 20 October, in St Peter's Square, the Pope canonised St Emanuel Ruiz and companions, martyrs of Damascus. They were eight Friars Minor, seven Spanish and one Austrian, and three lay people, blood brothers and Maronite Catholics. Being ‘creative in love and persevering in trials’, Pope Francis said in his homily, ‘this is the heart of holiness’, even today, in a Middle East in flames.