---

Palestinian Christians are
losing their holy land

As I considered how to make a plea for peace with liberty and justice for all in the Holy Land once trod by Jesus Christ, I initially favored a "Christian scold" approach. I believe that there is ample precedent for this in Jesus' own words and actions as recorded in the New Testament. Its antecedent, the Old Testament, is replete with cries of righteous indignation, where prophet after prophet sought to bring God's people back to a proper relationship with him.

In the end I decided to issue a plea from my heart, which is troubled beyond adequate expression by the plight of Palestinian Christians, many of whom have roots that go back centuries, indeed with direct lines to the original followers of Jesus. They suffer, along with their Muslim brethren, under the rule of Israel.

Whether it be in the state of Israel or the occupied Palestinian territories, Christians are trapped in a miasma of discriminatory rules and practices that threaten their continued existence as a vibrant minority community in the land so sacred to them.

Consider that 60 years ago about one in four residents of Palestine were Christians. Today that ratio has dwindled to less than one in 50, and it continues to fall. Imagine in the not-so-distant future a "Holy" Land without Christians. What would Jesus say?

What do today's Palestinian Christians say? Whatever the denomination -- and they are many and varied -- I believe there is consensus that Israel's territory must not be expanded further. Some 78 percent of historical Palestine was given to Israel by United Nations decree after World War II. The remaining 22 percent has been under military occupation by Israel since 1967. It must be vacated now to end Israel's determination to force all Christians and Muslims from the land that is holy to all three great Abrahamic faiths.

Let me share the words of two Palestinian Christians, my dear friends in Christ and in this life. One is the retired director of the Jerusalem International YMCA, and the other a retired educator and YWCA executive. Their messages to me have been these:

» "The injustice inflicted on the Palestinians is a moral responsibility that needs to be redressed by the bodies who supported, and continue to support, that injustice. Both Muslim and Christian Palestinians are struggling together for justice, peace and liberation."

» "At times we feel that (Christians who have visited the Holy Land multiple times) do not take the time to seek out the local Christian people (and) have become callous to the agony of Christians."

» "I often worry at the deteriorating fabric of society in Israel. I truly believe that we need Israel as a neighbor to the Palestinian state within secure and recognized boundaries. The occupation has corrupted the state of mind of so many Israelis, which may leave a society bankrupt. People of good will everywhere must warn Israel of (its) potential bankruptcy if the occupation does not end."

» "(Israel's) so-called 'security fence' ... is an evil barrier that will exacerbate the dehumanization of a whole population."

In another e-mail note, my friends described the ordeal of a blind woman, a Presbyterian elder who had to wait three hours for a permit to travel four miles from her home to worship in Jerusalem.

My friends tell me the barrier Israel is building to control passage through its borders is "a fence of shame for every God-fearing country and people across the globe. Every hilltop on the Palestinian territory is dotted with (Israeli) settlements and caravans. This is causing more and more hatred and fear."

I call for Christians everywhere to speak out for a 21st-century Holy Land of peaceful coexistence for all its residents.

---