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Greetings, World of Faith readers.

This week, we look at the worries facing Christians in the West Bank even with the new agreement to pause fighting in Gaza. Violence continues to disrupt peaceful worship worldwide. And Pope Leo XIV announces plans for his first big papal trip.

Young Jewish men attend a vigil for the victims of the attack on a synagogue in  Manchester, England. (AP Photo/Ian Hodgson)

TEST OF FAITH

Fear and vigilance rise as attacks on houses of worship intensify

Statistically, attending a weekly worship service is a remarkably safe thing to do. Yet recent high-profile deadly attacks have intensified anxiety and outright fear among clergy and worshippers worldwide. Just in the past six weeks there have been attacks on a synagogue in Manchester, England; a Michigan congregation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; and a Catholic church in the United States hosting a Mass for school children. Read more:

Why this matters:

• Security measures have been bolstered at many houses of worship, and congregants placed on alert. Yet the key question lingers: Can believers feel safe — and at peace — continuing to worship together in what many of them call their sanctuary? 
  
  
• In Germany, many synagogues have been surrounded by barriers and guarded by heavily armed police. In the United States, most synagogues — and many non-Jewish houses of worship — employ layered security strategies. These can involve guards, cameras, and various systems for controlling access.
  
  
• While some Christian pastors in the U.S. encourage congregants to bring firearms to church as an extra security measure, numerous denominations and individual houses of worship forbid this. 

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• Manchester synagogue attacker pledged allegiance to Islamic State group, police say 
• Fundraiser for family of Michigan church gunman raises more than $275,000 
• Minnesota's political divide stalls gun control efforts after deadly church shooting
• A grim list: Some notable attacks on houses of worship around the world in recent years 

PAPAL TRAVELS 

Pope Leo XIV to visit Turkey and Lebanon next month on first foreign trip 

Leo says his first foreign trip as pope will provide a historic opportunity to promote Christian unity while bringing a message of peace and hope to Lebanon’s long-suffering people and the broader Middle East. He will travel first to Turkey from Nov. 27-30, then Lebanon from Nov. 30 to Dec. 2. Read more. 

Why this matters:

• The trip to Turkey will include a pilgrimage to Iznik to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicea, Christianity’s first ecumenical council. 
  
  

• The anniversary is an important moment in Catholic-Orthodox relations, since the 325 A.D. Nicea meeting predates the schisms that divided Christianity’s East from West and is accepted by Catholic and Orthodox churches alike.
  
  

• The trip will give the first American pope a chance to speak in broad terms about peace in the Middle East and the plight of Christians there. 

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• Pope urges news agencies to stand as bulwark against lies, manipulation and post-truths 
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WEST BANK CHRISTIANS

The West Bank's dwindling Palestinian Christian communities continue to struggle amid violence

The relatively small Palestinian Christian community in the West Bank yearns for independence and peace for their part of the Holy Land. But hope feels increasingly remote as they struggle with the threats of violence from Jewish settlers, the mounting restrictions on movement imposed by Israel, and the fear that Islamist radicalization will grow. Even news of a peace deal over the war in Gaza didn't assuage those urgent concerns. Read more

Why this matters:

• The West Bank is the area between Israel and Jordan that Israel occupied in the 1967 war and that Palestinians want for a future state, together with east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. Israel seized them from Jordan and Egypt in that war. 
  
  

• Christians account for between 1%-2% of the West Bank’s roughly 3 million residents, the vast majority of them Muslim. Across the wider Middle East, the Christian population has steadily declined as people have fled conflict and attacks. 
  
  

• Israeli military operations in the West Bank have expanded to respond to what the army calls an increasing militant threat. Palestinians say uninvolved civilians have been caught up in the raids and blame the army for not defending them from near-daily violence by settlers. 

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

• Catholic leader calls on Christians to help build bridges in the Gaza conflict 
• Hundreds of evangelical Christians in Jerusalem to show support for Israel cheer the peace push 
• How American views on Israel and antisemitism have changed since Oct. 7 

• The West Bank's dwindling Palestinian Christian communities, in photos