British monarch says it was a ‘lifelong wish’ to visit the Church of the Nativity “Some years ago, I was able to fulfill a lifelong wish to visit Bethlehem and the Church of the Nativity,” said Charles of his 2020 visit to Israel “It meant more to me than I can possibly express, to stand on that spot where as the Bible tells us, the light that has come into the world was born,” he said.
The British monarch has long had ties to the region — his grandmother sheltered Jews during the Holocaust and is interred at the Russian Orthodox Church of St. Mary Magdalene, just outside Jerusalem’s Old City.
Charles added that “while Christmas is of course a Christian celebration, the power of light overcoming darkness is celebrated across the boundaries of faith and belief. So whatever faith you have, or whether you have none, it is in this life-giving light and with the true humility that lies in our service to others, that I believe we can find hope for the future.”