The Custody of the Holy Land is a custodian priory of the Order of Friars Minor in Jerusalem, founded as the Province of the Holy Land in 1217 by Saint Francis of Assisi, who had also founded the Franciscan Order in 1209. In 1342, the Franciscans were declared by two papal bulls as the official custodians of the Holy Places in the name of the Catholic Church.
The Custody headquarters are located in the Monastery of Saint Saviour, a 16th-century Franciscan monastery near the New Gate in the Old City of Jerusalem. The office can bestow—only to those entering its office—the Jerusalem Pilgrim's Cross upon deserving Catholic visitors to the city.
The mission of the Custody of the Holy Land is to guard "the grace of the Holy Places" of the Holy Land and the rest of the Middle East, "sanctified by the presence of Jesus", as well as pilgrims visiting them, on behalf of the Catholic Church.
At the request of the Holy See and with the approval of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Canadian Commissariat helps to care for these Christian brothers and sisters and for the holy places. Normally this is accomplished by means of the solidarity shown by the men and women of our Canadian Church who contribute generously to a Good Friday collection taken for the needs of the Holy Land.
By means of what is normally a Good Friday collection, taken up in Canada and throughout the Catholic world, the Franciscan friars in the Holy Land with the help of other religious congregations and organizations are able to maintain shrines, continue their social and educational works, sustain the diminishing Christian population, and help the poor.
Saint Paul frequently mentions the generosity of the different Christian communities who help other churches in their need. The Good Friday Collection is in keeping with that spirit. Since the 12th century, Christians from the west have been present in and have helped care for the churches of the Holy Land. In 1342, Pope Clement VI entrusted the care of these churches to the Franciscans; and a century later, in 1421, Pope Martin V permitted the establishment of Commissariats throughout the then-known western world to appeal for the needs of Christians and the holy places. And ever since Pope Leo XIII’s declaration of “Collecta pro Locis Sanctis” on December 26, 1877, up to our present day, the Holy See has consistently supported that need.