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Public Statement

The One-Year Anniversary of October 7, 2023 – A Prayerful Reflection for Peace & Healing

Catholic Charities is proud of our partnerships in the mission of providing help and creating hope for our vulnerable neighbors.   

One year after October 7, 2023, in the midst of the Jewish high holy days, our prayers, thoughts and solidarity remain with our Jewish neighbors with whom we have often partnered. We do not forget. 

Tragically, a year later, hostages remain in captivity, there is no peace. Violence, war and killing have spread, and expanded in ways unimaginable only a short time ago – killing both guilty and innocent. The prospect of cease-fire and peace changes every day and often seems beyond reach. Neither Israelis, Palestinians, nor their neighbors are safe. It is unacceptable to ignore or lightly dismiss this suffering as inevitable collateral damage.  Our prayers and solidarity are also with the Palestinian people, especially in Gaza, undeniably experiencing a humanitarian crisis and displacement brought on by this war.

Last year, in the summer of 2023, I visited the Ayda refugee camp in Bethlehem with an interfaith clergy group; one of many refugee camp neighborhoods where millions of Palestinians live – an ongoing tragic result of the unresolved issue of the failure to establish a Palestinian state.  The plight of refugees, asylum seekers and other displaced persons fleeing for their lives intensely touches the heart of Catholic Charities in New York.  We have helped to resettle thousands in New York from Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Our Catholic faith calls us to solidarity.  We are pro-Israeli. We are pro-Palestinian.  We are anti-terror, anti-war and anti-violence.  We deplore humanitarian crises and suffering brought on by indiscriminate actions – even in just wars.  We abhor rhetoric that dehumanizes and makes enemies of entire peoples. We lament the suffering of too many. 

We call upon the leaders in our country to be contributors to a just peace, and we call on our sisters and brothers in other countries to do the same of their leaders. As we call upon our leaders to act, each of us as individuals needs to commit to building solidarity daily in our own individual spheres by the way we speak and act with our own family, friends, and colleagues. Catholic Charities re-commits to our responsibility to build a just and compassionate society.

With gratitude, 

Msgr. Kevin Sullivan 
Executive Director 

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