Holy Land

Mission TODAY

Vol. XVI

No. 8

SEPTEMBER 2004

World Mission Archives

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Vital Task

MISSION OF FORGIVENESS

Caught between two peoples at war, the Catholic community in the Holy Land has been experiencing a slow but unceasing Diaspora.

Eighty years ago, Catholics were still at 9.6% of the population; today they are less than 2%, that is about 160,000 with Israel and the Palestinian Territories put together. With normal demographic growth, the Catholics of Jerusalem – 30,000 in 1948 - should by now be 100,000. Instead, they are only 7000.

Since 1948, the Catholics who have left the Holy Land are 234,000. Political instability is the main reason for this migration. However, other factors too are at play. According to Sobhy Makhoul, a Catholic who is theology professor at the University of Bethlehem, the main problem is that “the Catholics of the Holy Land are not fully aware of their mission and need to recover the profound meaning of their presence in that Land”. For those who remain, therefore, a change of mentality is necessary.

Easy way out?

Muslims who decide to migrate are far less in number: their sense of belonging is stronger than that of the Christians. Muslims believe that it is their very presence that gives an Islamic character to the Holy Land. Of course, Catholics - like all Palestinians - have to endure frequent violence, the isolation of the Palestinian Territories, and the curfew. In addition, they must also face the sacrifices that being a Christian minority in a Muslim or Jewish environment imposes on them.

Under these circumstances they mostly opt for the easiest way out: migration. Indeed, a similar remark can be made also for Catholics in Lebanon, in Syria, and in Iraq. For example in Iraq, Catholics are only 3%, but they make up a quarter of all those who left the country in the last 13 years.

Getting no better

The situation is not getting any better. For example, in Bethlehem, the greatest majority of Catholics works in activities related to tourism and pilgrimages. Since September 2000, when the “Intifada” broke out once again, pilgrims have decreased by 95%. Many Catholics thus became unemployed. Those who were able to migrate did so, while others are making preparations to do the same. Those who cannot leave are in miserable conditions.

Double challenge

The present situation thus presents a twofold challenge. On the one hand, provision must be made for the survival of these brothers and sisters in the faith. On the other, migration is becoming more and more like an hemorrhage that requires decisive measures both in terms of aid from the universal Church and in terms of a change of mentality on the part of the Catholics of the Holy Land.

“I cannot accept – remarks Mr. Makhoul – that, after two millennia, there are only a few Christians left in the Land of Jesus. I am convinced that the Lord has given us a mission to carry out in this land. And this mission is to smooth the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians, to reconcile the Muslims and the Jews. Only the Christians can do this, because what prevents peace from happening is obstinate hatred and lack of forgiveness. There cannot be true peace without forgiveness; at the most any attempt at peace would remain a dead letter”.

Initiatives

In order to convince the local Catholics to remain and become aware of their mission, Mr. Makhoul and other collaborators have promoted a project to help hundreds of artisans in the region of Bethlehem to market their products abroad: “Pilgrims cannot come to us? Well, we go to them!” he exclaims.

At the cultural level, other initiatives are taken to involve Christians in initiatives of peace. For example, school textbooks of history or religious education written by Christians try to present facts in an objective way and insist on the value of forgiveness, while the textbooks written by Israeli or Palestinians seem to aim at fostering hatred and division.

Finally, the Catholics in the Holy Land feel much support from those missionaries or lay people who come to work with the local Catholic community. Still, these are only a minority, as many others are only present in the Holy Land because of biblical studies or because of the attraction they feel for the Land of Jesus. Recently, however, the French bishops have proposed as a concrete act of solidarity with the Christians in the Holy Land that volunteers offer one or two years of their lives to collaborate in development projects in the Holy Land.<WM