New constraints squeeze churches in Holy Land
Christian churches in the Holy Land are facing an unprecedented crisis that some say is jeopardizing their future, including their capacity to maintain the faith's holy sites and charitable institutions and to educate clergy.
The churches' difficulties have been building over the past three years as the Israeli government has failed to renew visas or residence permits for hundreds of religious workers, and has begun sending tax bills to charitable groups that have long had tax-exempt status, some since the Ottoman Empire. At the same time, the separation wall being built in Jerusalem and on the West Bank is slicing through religious facilities, in some cases taking land and blocking pilgrimage routes.
"All indications point to the fact that the church is slowly but surely being strangled," says an official at the Latin Patriarchate, the Roman Catholic Church's regional office in Jerusalem, which serves Israel, the Palestinian territories, Jordan, and Cyprus.
So great is the concern that Vatican diplomats have spoken out bluntly and Americans have sought US help. Bishop Wilton Gregory, president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, recently sent a letter to President Bush calling this "the most difficult situation in living memory for the Church in the Holy Land."
Israeli officials have said over several months that the visa problem is a bureaucratic issue, requiring new guidelines for security purposes. But to some church officials it looks like a concerted effort to make life difficult for Christians and Christian institutions.The majority of local Christians in the Holy Land are Arabic-speaking. The Catholic church has a different perspective from Israel on the peace process, including its desire for a special status for Jerusalem and the holy sites. Others worry there could be an aim to reduce the overall Christian presence.
"This is tough, tough politics," suggests a religious observer with experience in the region, who asked not to be named.
No resolution on the visa issue has occurred despite high-level meetings over several months. Israeli officials now say it should come in a matter of weeks, after review by a special committee.
"It's a purely bureaucratic problem, and we are fully aware of the urgency," says Jonathan Peled, the Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman. "The prime minister and foreign minister have promised to engage to bring the issue to a speedy conclusion."
But with many religious workers, including longtime residents, now without legal papers and unable to travel outside Israel even in emergencies, church officials say they will only be convinced by action.
"In the Catholic world there is a growing view that Israel has deliberately framed a policy to hurt the Church," the Rev. David Jaeger, a representative of the Holy See, told the Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz earlier this month.
The visa problem first arose three years ago, and seemed connected to bureaucrats of the ultra-Orthodox Shas Party. The party later headed the Interior Ministry, promoting a broad exclusion of foreigners, including Jews, says the Rev. Drew Christiansen, Middle East policy adviser to the US bishops conference. Many expected the problem to disappear when a secular party minister was appointed, he adds, but it has escalated. A three-month civil service strike last fall added to the delay.
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