Issues of Concern

I. Christian Institutions

Christian institutions are a vital part of the Holy Land's development, providing a safety net for the communities they serve. These institutions have been a beacon of tolerance and faith for people from all walks of life. In addition, the Jewish, Christian and Muslim communities have benefited from the valuable services provided by these institutions, receiving health, education and employment opportunities.

Christian institutions have faced a variety of challenges as a result of the unresolved Israeli-Palestinian conflict that seriously jeopardizes their ability to function and deliver services. These problems include, but are not limited to, their economic and legal status; the route of the barrier; the separation of Jerusalem from Christian towns and villages, including Bethlehem in the West Bank; religious extremism and a decline in religious freedom. These issues and additional ones are discussed further in this document.

• Economic status: Since 2002, the Israeli administration has been ordering certain Christian institutions to pay years of municipal property and employee taxes. This is a departure from the previous situation where these institutions had traditionally been exempt from paying such taxes. United Nations Security Council Resolution 181 of 29 November, 1947, mandating the creation of the Jewish state, stipulates that no taxes are to be levied on religious institutions. Since the reversal of this long-standing policy by the Israeli government, Christian institutions are increasingly becoming more vulnerable as they are placed under pressure to pay exorbitant amounts in back taxes, which would ultimately lead to the end of their services. The United States government should persuade Israel to protect the tax-exempt status of the Christian institutions in the Holy Land by informing the Israeli government about American concerns over any Israeli tax policy that seeks to collect money from these vulnerable institutions.
• The Holy See: The Fundamental Agreement is an historic international treaty signed by the Holy See and the State of Israel that established diplomatic relations between the two parties. The Agreement, signed by both parties in 1993 and entered into force in 1994 mandates a comprehensive agreement on all outstanding claims concerning economic and property status matters within two years. In August of 2003, under the Israeli Foreign Minister, negotiations were brought to a standstill. In response to pressure by the U.S. Congress and the Administration, Israel returned to the negotiating table, but little progress has been made. Thirteen years have passed since the treaty has been entered into force and Israel was recognized, but the Agreement has not been finalized and ratified by the Israeli Knesset, making it impossible for church institutions to uphold the provisions of the Agreement in Israeli courts. The Fundamental Agreement states that: "…The Holy See and the State of Israel will negotiate in good faith a comprehensive agreement, containing solutions acceptable to both Parties, on unclear, unsettled and disputed issues, concerning property, economic and fiscal matters relating to the Catholic Church generally, or to specific Catholic Communities or institutions." It is vital that there be a comprehensive settlement of all outstanding claims so that various agreements may be written into Israeli law, permitting the Church access to due process in Israel's democratic government, allowing Christian institutions to focus on serving the communities they serve. A constructive approach would include the designation by the Israeli Prime-Minister of a member of his office to oversee the process of negotiations. This action should ensure that there is a team in place that is empowered, allocating sufficient time to negotiate an agreement.

• Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem: The majority of Christians in the Holy Land are Greek Orthodox. The Patriarchate of Jerusalem shares the responsibility with other major Christian denominations in managing important Christian Holy Sites. Church law requires that the Patriarch be recognized by Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem was elected by the Holy Synod in August 2005, to replace the deposed Irineos I. Israel has refused to recognize the validity of his election and recognize him as Patriarch. Irineos' support for selling Church - owned land to Israeli settlers and development companies created a controversy within the Church and amongst Arab Orthodox Christians who viewed these lands as part of a future Palestinian State. In addition, the land's legal status is "occupied" and the Patriarch's policy is not to sell "occupied land". Israel should take constructive steps to recognize the current Patriarch. Not doing so jeopardizes the status of Orthodox Christians living in the Holy Land and the functioning of their institutions. For example, bank accounts are frozen and it cannot conduct legal matters.

II. Settlements and Route of the Barrier in the West Bank

http://www.btselem.org/index.asp
http://www.fmep.org/
http://www.peacenow.org/

The security barrier in the West Bank was constructed as a mechanism to decrease suicide bombers from entering Israel. The idea of a separation barrier has its roots in Israel's Labor party, which sought to physically separate from Palestinians in the absence of a negotiated peace. Today's barrier is not the same one. It is an approximately 450-kilometer barrier that seriously deviates from the approximately 200-kilometer Green Line that defines Israel proper and the occupied West Bank. In addition, it does not effectively separate Israelis from Palestinians, as almost a quarter of a million Palestinians are on the western side of the barrier (Israeli side). The controversy over the separation barrier does not resolve around its concept, but rather on the route as proposed by the Israel Ministry of Defense. The White House has expressed its concerns with the route of the barrier and has identified over a dozen locations that could be changed to make life easier for Palestinians without jeopardizing Israel's legitimate security interests. It should be noted that in several cases the routing has been changed by Israel's high court, which has recognized the route's political implications. Unfortunately, it is not common or easily accessible for Palestinians to learn how to navigate the Israeli legal system to address their concerns.

The barrier has been a difficult issue for Palestinians and Israelis. Specifically, its impact is irreversibly damaging the dwindling Christian community. The route of the barrier will divide Bethlehem from Jerusalem, which threatens to stifle Christian life by preventing access to holy sites, places of prayer and contiguity of the Christian population with its spiritual, cultural and economic lifeline. Furthermore, the construction of the barrier on the Mount of Olives is altering the role of Christian institutions by converting them into places of military confrontation.

• Bethlehem Governorate: The Bethlehem Governorate stretches from the south of East Jerusalem to the Hebron District in the South and the Dead Sea to the East. After Israel occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank in 1967, Israel confiscated and expropriated thousands of dunums of land in the Jerusalem and Bethlehem area. Part of this land was used to create Israel's unilateral extension of Jerusalem's municipal boundaries. Today, Bethlehem is home to approximately 27 Israeli settlements and there are plans to build more. The settlements and the barrier completely encircle the Christian triangle of Bethlehem, Beit Jala and Beit Sahour (Shepherd's Field). This has created an untenable situation for the Bethlehemite community as housing and land shortages prohibit the expansion and natural growth of the indigenous community. A case in point is the Har Homa settlement that seals Bethlehem from Jerusalem. Fifty percent of the land is privately owned Christian land that was confiscated by Israel from the town of Beit Sahour in 1995. The barrier, settlements and bypass roads for Israeli settlers throughout the rest of the West Bank have led to an encroachment of rural Palestinians into urban centers like Bethlehem, further adding to the problem of housing shortages and fueling local tensions. In several isolated incidents, this has resulted in takeovers of Christian homes by fellow Palestinians. The barrier has completely altered the economic stability of the city that is entirely dependent on agriculture and tourism. The barrier continues to take valuable land from Palestinian farmers and businesses are closing down. It is true that the second intifada and the continuing conflict between Israel and Palestine contributed to the dwindling numbers of tourists, but nothing has been as damaging to the Behtlehemite community as the construction of the barrier. Efforts should be made to preserve the indigenous character of Bethlehem. Both the Israeli and Palestinian governments should take constructive steps to protect the embattled Christian community. The Palestinian government should make every effort wherever possible to make sure that Christian landowners are not intimidated by land takeovers by other Palestinians. Israel should stop the confiscation of land and uprooting of olive trees. The United States should hold Israel accountable to its international obligations and demand that there be a total cessation of settlement activities in the Bethlehem governorate.
• Aboud: The story of Aboud is another illustration of how the barrier is making life difficult for the remaining Christians in the West Bank. Aboud is a small village northwest of Jerusalem near Ramallah and is six kilometers from the Green Line, Israel's internationally recognized border. The Christian history of Aboud dates back to when Jesus and the Holy Family passed through Aboud enroute from the Galilee to Jerusalem. There are remains of nine ancient churches dating back to the early centuries and visited by pilgrims from all over the world. Today, Aboud is home to approximately 2200 people, half of which are Christian. In the 1980's land was confiscated from Aboud without any compensation for the construction of two settlements. In 2005, the Israeli military issued additional orders for the confiscation of land without compensation to build the barrier. The route of the barrier will confiscate around 1000 acres of land, leaving the settlements ample space to expand. The consequences for Aboud have been catastrophic. Thousands of olive trees have been uprooted with no adequate compensation. Many of these trees are over a thousand years old and are a part of the town's Christian heritage. More importantly, they are a major source of income for Aboud's families. One olive tree produces up to $200 of profit per season. The Israeli government's offer to buy or compensate each destroyed tree for $15.00 is not an equitable solution. In addition, the barrier will strengthen Israel's control of the water supply. Aboud sits on the Western Aquifer, one of the main sources of water for the area. The Israelis also control a small water reservoir on the east side (Aboud side) of the barrier. While this may appear to give control of the water to the residents of Aboud, it does not. The reservoir is surrounded with a high chain link fence topped with barbed wire. It is always locked and only Israeli officials and settlers have the keys. It is seldom accessible to the people of the village. The Israelis ration the water in Aboud during the summer months while the settlements enjoy a 100% flow of water year round. In 2005, Aboud was supplied with 52,650 cubic meters. This means that approximately fifty-eight liters per capita per day were available to Aboud's residents, which is less than half the amount suggested by the World Health Organization (100 liters). These circumstances have made life unbearable and the residents of Aboud and many are contemplating emigration since they cannot sustain their families any longer. It is important that the United States compel Israel to ensure that the security barrier being constructed is one for legitimate security needs, rather than for annexing territory, and that genuine efforts are made to spare Palestinian communities - including the embattled Christian communities of the West Bank - disproportionate and unnecessary harm.

III. Jerusalem and Religious Freedom

Jerusalem is a universal city sacred to the three monotheistic faiths: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The coexistence of these three narratives represents Jerusalem's multicultural identity, which is the foundation of the stability of the city, if not the entire region. Maintaining the Holy City's indigenous layers and multicultural identity is critical to preserving the declining pluralistic nature of the Holy Land's many fabrics. The currently routed barrier in Jerusalem - which severs the Christian narrative of the Nativity, Crucifiction and Resurrection, encloses 200,000 Palestinians on the Jerusalem side of the barrier and obstructs the faithful from their places of worship, shatters the Christian community and the identity of the city.

The U.S. Department of State's Annual Report on International Religious Freedom documents the destabilizing impact which the construction of the separation barrier is having on its inhabitants. According to the State Department report, the barrier blocks the annual procession on Palm Sunday from Bethpage into Jerusalem in commemoration of when Jesus began his triumphant entry into Jerusalem.

• The Old City and the Holy Basin: With the active and tacit support of certain elements within the Israeli government, Jewish fundamentalists have been colonizing the non-Jewish parts of the Holy City. Their activities include intensive settling of the Christian and Muslim quarters of the Old City. They have recently expanded their activities to other areas sacred to Christians such as the Mount of Olives. Many of the historic and archeological sites in the Old City have been transferred by the Israeli governmental authorities to these extremist settlers. These settlers are opposed to the peace process and their behavior fuels extremism within the Jewish and Muslim communities, turning a negotiable territorial conflict into a religious war with global implications. For up to date and detailed info on this subject matter please visit the following website: http://www.ir-amim.org.il/eng/. Israeli governments have traditionally treated the complexity of Jerusalem with respect and responsibility. It would be helpful if the United States Government committed itself to working with the Israeli government to end support for and prevent the establishment of new realities on the ground, especially the expansion of Maale Adumim, which complicate a negotiated solution over Jerusalem, destroy its multicultural identity and fuel extremism and political instability. The fact that the barrier is to be lined with settlements discloses political goals irreversible in nature. These developments conflict with President Bush's repeated statements that the barrier being erected by Israel should be a security rather than a political barrier.

IV. Religious Extremism and Interfaith Relations

The changing Palestinian political landscape has garnered much attention on the status of minorities, particularly the status of Palestinian Christians. Historically, there are no indigenous hatreds between Christians and Muslims in the Holy Land. Palestinian Christians have been an integral part of the Palestinian national movement and their suffering is a shared suffering with all Palestinians. However, in the current environment, they are increasingly finding themselves caught in the middle of a bipolar situation between Islamic and Jewish extremism. It is this divide that is undermining the pluralistic character of Palestinian society. The roots of this extremism lay in the unresolved Israeli-Palestinian conflict that is perpetuating the polarization of the Holy Land's communities. Prior to the Oslo peace process that created the Palestinian Authority and brought Arafat to the peace table, the majority of Palestinians were secular in their ideological orientation and faced less Israeli restrictions. However, under the guise of the peace process in the 1990's, Palestinian daily lives became more difficult as Israel consolidated its physical occupation in the then 'Occupied Palestinian Territories'. The number of settlers doubled, checkpoints increased and a deteriorating economic situation gave rise to an environment that was conducive to the support and growth of Islamic extremism. Palestinian support for Islamic movements grew as a reaction to the failed promises and hopes of the peace process and the corruption of the PLO under the leadership of Yasser Arafat and the Fatah party. In the 2006, parliamentary elections, Palestinians voted Hamas, an armed Islamic movement into political power. It is unclear in what direction things are heading when it comes to the treatment of Christians. While, Hamas and the Palestinian Authority has expressed public support for protecting them like any other Palestinian, the reality is rule of law is weak and Christians are just as vulnerable as any other Palestinian in the civil strife between various Palestinian political factions vying for power.

• Attacks on Christian Churches: After the 2006 lecture given by Pope Benedict the XVI in a German university that fomented anger in the Muslim world because of comments made about the Prophet Muhammed, Christians and their places of worship were attacked throughout the region. Palestine was not exempt from this and several attacks against Christian Churches in the West Bank and Gaza took place. While, the attacks were condemned by Palestinian officials, there is a growing sense of vulnerability by the dwindling Christian community as they are targeted and identified as belonging to or representing the ideas of the West/Christiandom. The United States should work to establish an independent Palestinian state as the surest way to quell extremism and promote pluralism. Arming opposing political factions is not productive and only leads to more animosity. The United States should make an effort to direct foreign assistance to the Palestinians in the area of rule of law promotion and programs to help increase stability. This should include training police forces and human rights education for security services.