August 13, 2021

Purchase of St. Joseph statue assists economically challenged in Holy Land

Two of the hand-carved statues of St. Joseph that are available through the St. Joseph Project are pictured above. (Submitted photo)

Two of the hand-carved statues of St. Joseph that are available through the St. Joseph Project are pictured above. (Submitted photo)

Special to The Criterion

In honor of the Year of St. Joseph, the organization Christians of the Holy Land has begun an initiative with a two-fold purpose: to celebrate the patron saint of the universal Church, and to help Christians in the Holy Land earn much-needed revenue in a very challenging time.

Known as the St. Joseph Project, the initiative gives Catholics and people of faith throughout the world the opportunity to purchase hand-carved, olive wood statues of St. Joseph with the child Jesus to support the Christian community in the Holy Land, which is enduring ongoing trials, including religious persecution, a lack of human rights and economic hardships, among other things.

Rami M. Qumsieh, founder of Christians of the Holy Land, noted that the majority of Christians live in and around Bethlehem, and 80 percent of them work directly in pilgrimage-related businesses. He added there have been no pilgrimages since March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The hand-carved statues are available in two sizes: 9-inch St. Joseph statues are $90, and 11-inch St. Joseph statues sell for $120 each. There is a flat $20 shipping fee per statue.

To purchase a statue online, go to holylanddirect.com/shop. Credit cards are accepted. Those wishing to pay by check are asked to send their payment and include their name, e-mail address, street address, city, state and Zip code to: Christians of the Holy Land, 301 Camino Gardens Blvd., Suite #103, Boca Raton, FL 3342. Make checks payable to “Christians of the Holy Land.” The deadline to order statues is Sept. 15 to help ensure arrival before Christmas. 

“Thank you for helping our Christian community in the Holy Land,” said Qumsieh. “Truly these are very hard times for our faithful in Bethlehem.” †

Local site Links: