CHRISTIANS THRONG ISRAEL'S CAPITAL, JERUSALEM:

Tens of thousands of Christian pilgrims are expected to arrive in the country over the Christmas holiday, capping a record-breaking year that included 3.5 million tourists. Tourism Minister Yariv Levin expressed pride in the record numbers of annual visitors. "Israel invites the faithful from all religions to pray, worship and visit all the holy sites in Israel in freedom and security,” he said. "I am proud to announce that this year we have broken all previous records for incoming tourism, and are set to end 2017 with a record 3.5 million tourists – half a million more than the previous record.” According to the ministry’s statistics, more than half of the 2.9 million tourists in 2016 were Christian. The most visited sites by Christians included the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jewish Quarter, Western Wall, Via Dolorosa, Mount of Olives, Capernaum, Church of the Annunciation and City of David. (J.Post) Pray for the joy and safety of Israel’s visitors during this very busy and blessed holiday season.