MILWAUKEE — 33 people from two Kenosha Catholic parishes are currently in the Middle East as a deadly war between Israel and Hamas unfolds, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee says.
In a statement released Monday morning, the archdiocese said the group is "on pilgrimage to the Holy Land," and includes two pastors.
None of the parishioners are in Israel itself. The group made it to Jordan, just east of Israel, by Monday morning.
“I’m asking all Catholics and people of goodwill to join me in praying for an end to the violence in Israel, for the souls of all those who have been killed, and for their families. We are also praying for the safe return of those who are in the area on pilgrimages to the Holy Land, including some from Archdiocese of Milwaukee parishes," Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki said in the statement.
The two pastors on the trip were identified by the archdiocese as Fr. Roman Stikel, pastor of St. Mary Catholic Church, and Fr. Carlos Florez, from St. Mark’s Parish.
Fr. Roman sent an audio recording Monday morning that stated:
"I’m calling you from the border in Jordan. I want everybody to know that all the pilgrims are safe. We made it out of Israel this morning. It was quite an adventure to get across the border in Jordan. Took a very long time, but we all made it and we’re all safe. We’re looking forward to a quiet night at our hotel this evening. It’s been quite an adventure. I want everybody to know that we’re perfectly safe. We might have a little program here in Jordan for a day or two and then we’ll make our way back home."
"They were at least 50 miles by aircraft away from there. They did hear the rockets etc. At no time were they in jeopardy," Kris Meeker, business manager at St. Mark Parish in Kenosha said.
Meeker said this was the first pilgrimage that the churches planned to the Holy Land. She added that the group has been checking in regularly and that Fr. Carlos sent an email Friday to say everyone was safe.
"They're going to stay in Jordan until I think Friday. Everything is good. Everyone is in high spirits and doing well," Meeker stated.
Israel’s military ordered a complete siege on the Gaza Strip on Monday, halting deliveries of food, fuel and supplies to its 2.3 million people as it pounded the Hamas-ruled territory with waves of airstrikes in retaliation for the militants’ bloody weekend incursion.
More than two days after Hamas launched its surprise attack, the Israeli military said it had largely gained control in its southern towns where it had been battling Hamas gunmen. Israel’s vaunted military and intelligence apparatus was caught completely off guard by Hamas, resulting in heavy battles in its streets for the first time in decades.
Israeli tanks and drones were deployed to guard breaches in the Gaza border fence to prevent new incursions. Thousands of Israelis were evacuated from more than a dozen towns near Gaza, and the military summoned 300,000 reservists — a massive mobilization in a short time.
The moves, along with Israel’s formal declaration of war on Sunday, pointed to Israel increasingly shifting to the offensive against Hamas, threatening greater destruction in the densely populated, impoverished Gaza Strip.
Israel and Hamas have had repeated conflicts in past years, often sparked by tensions around a Jerusalem holy site. This time, the context has become potentially more explosive, and both sides talk of shattering with violence a years-long Israeli-Palestinian deadlock left by the moribund peace process.
The Associated Press' Josef Federman and Issam Adwan contributed to this report.
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