peace and "celebrate Jesus birth" about 2,000 years ago, the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ) said Wednesday December 25.
In winter temperatures, a choir and miniature orchestra braved the cold to sing about the hope of Christ and his light "at a time when security concerns and economic uncertainty are keeping residents on edge", said ICEJ, which sponsored the event on Christmas eve.
Beleaguered residents of weary Jerusalem apparently filtered through the square and many stopped to participate or at least listen.
CHRISTMAS SPIRIT
"People are very sad. You can see there is no Christmas spirit," the ICEJ News Service quoted Anahid Aslanian, an Armenian Christian, as saying. "Here with this caroling I felt a little bit of Christmas," said Aslanian, who now lives in Istanbul, Turkey.
She said the concert, down the street from the scene of a number of terror attacks within the last year, gave "people the push to go back to their family and give them happiness and joy."
MUSIC SOUND
Residents, who often heard the sound of bombings and gunfire, now "stopped and listened to the music and participated in the candle lighting," the ICEJ News Service noted.
"It was a nice atmosphere," said Meir Altshuler, a Jewish Israeli. "I believe that if this causes those people to feel better, it is fine." Chuck King, ICEJ worship director and organizer of the event, said the evening was charged with a "unique" atmosphere.
"I especially appreciated the way the evening ended with prayer for the peace of Jerusalem," King was quoted as saying by the ICEJ News Service. "That makes our gathering here significant," he added.
The outdoor concert, in front of City Hall, was followed by another one in west Jerusalem, the ICEJ News Service reported.
