Custody of the Holy Land
PRESS RELEASE
The Good Friday Collection 2026:
Help hope, by giving.
Help hope, by making peace grow.
Help hope, by returning to the Holy Land.
The war is over but there is not yet peace.
Our brothers and sisters who live in the Holy Land are starting to live again, despite pain, fear and poverty. Everything is lacking, starting with work. Even just stopping to listen to those who no longer have a voice is a rare gesture of giving and of love.
For eight centuries, the Custody of the Holy Land, entrusted to the Franciscan Friars, continues its service in the presence of the holy places so dear to Christians, and in walking with the sisters and brothers who dwell in the places where the Lord of Life, Jesus Christ, walked among the people.
The Custos of the Holy Land, Br. Francesco Ielpo, writes: “The last few years have been particularly arduous for Christian communities in the Middle East. War has brought death, destruction and fear, not only to Gaza, but also to the West Bank, Israel, Lebanon and Syria. Added to the suffering caused by the conflict is the long absence of pilgrims, which has exacerbated an already deep economic and employment crisis. Many Christian families, who earned their livelihood from the Holy Places and activities related to pilgrimages, are now in great difficulty”. Pilgrimages to the Holy Land can now resume. The Custos explains: "These shrines are the shrines of all Christianity, and here we friars of the Custody of the Holy Land, but I dare say the whole local Church, the whole Church of this land, await you, wait for you. We are truly eager to welcome you back with open arms, because the pilgrimage is truly a life-changing experience, it is the experience of authentic encounter”.
How can we help the Holy Land
As we approach Easter, the cry for help of our sisters and brothers of the Holy Land is becoming more pressing. The Church has made available to everyone a tool, the Good Friday Collection, a day that commemorates the Passion of the Lord, this year on Friday 3 April, to provide practical help to the people and their lives in the holy places. The Collection was established at the behest of a Pope, Saint Paul VI, who proposed it to the episcopate, clergy and faithful throughout the world in his Apostolic Exhortation Nobis in Animo of March 1974. The Collection was established with the intention of strengthening the bond between Christians throughout the world and the Holy Places, and is one of the official collections of the Catholic Church.
This collection is the main source of support for the activities and life that take place around the Holy Places. The offerings collected by parish communities and bishops are transferred, through the Franciscan friars who are Commissioners of the Holy Land, to the Custody of the Holy Land. These funds are used to preserve the sacred sites and to support the local Christian communities, often referred to as the “living stones” of this region.
Why donate to the Good Friday Collection?
On 27 August 2025, Pope Leo XIV said during the General Audience: “Last Friday we accompanied our brothers and sisters who are suffering because of wars, with prayer and fasting. I once again issue a strong appeal to the parties involved as well as to the international community, so that an end may be put to the conflict in the Holy Land, which has caused so much terror, destruction, and death”. Custos Br. Ielpo emphasises: “Fasting and the Papal Collection for the Holy Land become a concrete gesture of ecclesial communion and solidarity with the Mother Church of Jerusalem. Through this collection, it is possible to support schools, parishes, charitable works, social projects and emergency interventions, keeping the Christian presence alive in the places where Christianity was born”.
What does it mean to donate to the Good Friday Collection?
Not only aid, although there is a great need for it. However, it is not enough just to deal with the emergency: we need to sow seeds for the future, and this is only possible with an educational intent. The Custos writes: “Today more than ever, it is urgent to rebuild, not only buildings and infrastructure, but also relationships, trust and hope. This path necessarily passes through education: through schools, young people, families, places where a culture of encounter, dialogue and peace can flourish. Supporting education means investing in the future of the Holy Land and in the role of Christian communities as a leaven of reconciliation in a society marked by divisions and deep wounds”.
What and who does the Good Friday Collection help?
630 homes for families in need; 15 schools with 12,000 students; 1,100 jobs; 270 missionaries; 55 shrines; 6 pilgrim houses; 5 homes for the sick and orphans; 3 academic institutions: this is the Custody of the Holy Land. The territories that benefit in various ways from the support provided by the Collection are as follows: Jerusalem, Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Turkey, Iran and Iraq.
The Franciscan friars are committed to the custody of the Holy Places, such as the Basilicas of the Holy Sepulchre, the Annunciation and the Nativity, and dozens of other shrines, which represent an inestimable heritage for the Christian world.
The Custos of the Holy Land, Br. Francesco Ielpo, launches an appeal for the collection on Good Friday, 3 April 2026: “On Good Friday, as we contemplate the Crucifix, we ask you not to forget the Holy Land, to remember in prayer and concrete charity those who continue to live and bear witness to the Gospel in the Places of Redemption. Your closeness is a precious sign of hope and fraternity: help us to give hope and sow peace!”
https://www.collettavenerdisanto.it
Press Office
Antonello Sacchi
+39 348 899 96 78
pressoffice@elenagrazini.it
Custodia Terrae Sanctae
Italian Delegation
Via Matteo Boiardo 16, 00185 ROMA
donazioni.italia@custodia.org
