Draconian Laws: The people in Gaza are being forsaken by world governments, who watch as they are deliberately starved and as more and more war crimes are committed against them. Photograph: Ahmed Dader — Gaza, March 2025
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For as long as we have been travelling to Palestine, we have heard Palestinians describe their experience as being like living through the Longest Good Friday.

Christian tradition says that one of the last things Jesus called out as he was being crucified on the cross was, “My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?”

The people in Gaza are being forsaken by world governments who watch as they are deliberately starved and as more and more war crimes are committed against them. In many countries, those who are standing up for Palestinian rights and calling for justice, now find themselves having draconian laws implemented against them. 

At the start of the war, we decided not to write poems or reflections based on what was occurring — not because we felt there was no place for them — but because we wanted to showcase Palestinian writers, and books such as Exhausted On The Cross by Najwan Darwish.

I wrote this over 10 years ago — it appears in our book, ‘Words of Hope’.

A Meditation for Good Friday
Chris Rose

The events of Good Friday remind us
That we are called to stand in solidarity with:

Those who are abandoned
Betrayed and disowned

Those who are labelled as disloyal,
Blasphemous or subversive
Because they call for justice, peace and compassion
The victims of show trials
Of political fixes and of leaders too weak to lead

Those who are mocked
Spat on and beaten
Those who are condemned by public opinion
And against whom retribution is required

Those too weak to carry their cross
Who cry out in despair and shame
“My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?”

Good Friday reminds us:
Each time we support someone in need,
Each time we stand up for an ideal,
Each time we speak out against injustice,
We stop people from knowing what it means to be forsaken

At this time, we must continue to do all we can to stop the people of Gaza from being forsaken. Next weekend is Run the Wall (25th-27th April). It is a very simple act of solidarity that everyone can join. In many ways, it has never felt more important.