Palestinian Christian leaders in Bethlehem will forgo all Christmas festivities this year in solidarity with Gaza

essentialsaltes · Nov 29, 2023

Why Christmas is canceled in Bethlehem

Palestinian Christian leaders across denominations in the West Bank city decided last week that they will forgo all festivities this year as a mark of solidarity with their brethren in Gaza. There will be no public celebrations, no twinkling Christmas lights and no decorated tree in Manger Square — not as long, they say, as a state of war reigns over the embattled Gaza Strip, and the majority of its residents cope with Israeli bombardments, the devastation of their homes and a spiraling humanitarian crisis.

“This is madness,” Munther Isaac, pastor of Bethlehem’s Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church, told me. “This has become a genocide with 1.7 million people displaced.”

On Tuesday afternoon, the delegation [of Palestinian Christian leaders] went to the White House and delivered a letter [supporting a full-scale cease-fire] for President Biden signed by the leaders of the Christian community in Bethlehem, including Isaac’s Protestant denomination and his Orthodox, Armenian and Catholic counterparts.

There are roughly fewer than 1,000 Christians in Gaza, who have lived there without much problem despite the de facto takeover of the territory in 2007 by Hamas. But Israeli airstrikes destroyed or damaged almost all the community’s homes in Gaza City while also hitting Gaza’s oldest active church, where some were sheltering. “The vast majority of the Christian community in Gaza are now homeless,” Isaac said.

The delegation’s members condemned Hamas’s actions and deplored its killing of innocent civilians and abduction of hostages. But “[Y]ou cannot just ... give a green light for Israel to do what it’s doing right now, which goes way beyond, which is a revenge campaign.”

Jack Sara, president of Bethlehem Bible College, pointed to how the plight of Palestinian Christians doesn’t seem to be heard by many U.S. evangelicals, who see in muscular Jewish supremacy over the Holy Land a pathway for their own messianic vision.

dzheremi · Dec 5, 2023

This is 100% the right move. Yes, it is unfortunate, but it is necessary. Although our community is tiny in the Holy Land, we in the Coptic Orthodox Church have actually been barred under the last two popes (the present one, HH Pope Tawadros II, and his predecessor, HH Pope Shenouda III) from visiting the Holy Land, out of solidarity with the Palestinians more generally. This is one of the decisions that led to HH Pope Shenouda III being called in some of the more progressive Egyptian media outlets "the Pope of the Arabs", which is pretty odd for a Coptic leader.

Anyway, if only more of the dominant Christian confessions in the U.S. were made aware of this situation. It's from 2007 (so obviously does not deal with the latest conflict), but here is the Melkite Catholic Archbishop of Galilee, HG Elias Chacour, giving a talk in English about how life is for Palestinian Christians and how American Christians can understand the situation through the eyes of someone who is from there, if anyone who reads this thread may be curious about that. It is given at something called the Presbyterian Global Fellowship Conference.

ralliann · Dec 5, 2023

dzheremi said:
This is 100% the right move. Yes, it is unfortunate, but it is necessary. Although our community is tiny in the Holy Land, we in the Coptic Orthodox Church have actually been barred under the last two popes (the present one, HH Pope Tawadros II, and his predecessor, HH Pope Shenouda III) from visiting the Holy Land, out of solidarity with the Palestinians more generally. This is one of the decisions that led to HH Pope Shenouda III being called in some of the more progressive Egyptian media outlets "the Pope of the Arabs", which is pretty odd for a Coptic leader.

Anyway, if only more of the dominant Christian confessions in the U.S. were made aware of this situation. It's from 2007 (so obviously does not deal with the latest conflict), but here is the Melkite Catholic Archbishop of Galilee, HG Elias Chacour, giving a talk in English about how life is for Palestinian Christians and how American Christians can understand the situation through the eyes of someone who is from there, if anyone who reads this thread may be curious about that. It is given at something called the Presbyterian Global Fellowship Conference.

The lastest conflict is because Israel was attacked aND WOMEN AND CHILDREN WERE BURNT ALIVE AND BRUTALLY RAPED. tHIS LOOKS LIKE IT WAS CONTINUING FOR THOSE THEY HELD CAPTIVE AS WELL.

DaisyDay · Dec 10, 2023

ralliann said:
The lastest conflict is because Israel was attacked aND WOMEN AND CHILDREN WERE BURNT ALIVE AND BRUTALLY RAPED. tHIS LOOKS LIKE IT WAS CONTINUING FOR THOSE THEY HELD CAPTIVE AS WELL.

Why was Israel attacked?

dzheremi · Dec 10, 2023

ralliann said:
The lastest conflict is because Israel was attacked aND WOMEN AND CHILDREN WERE BURNT ALIVE AND BRUTALLY RAPED. tHIS LOOKS LIKE IT WAS CONTINUING FOR THOSE THEY HELD CAPTIVE AS WELL.

Why are you yelling in response to what I've posted? Nothing in that post is effectively countered by yelling. HG Elias Chacour is in favor of peace between Israel and Palestine, and considers himself a citizen of both countries.

rambot · Dec 10, 2023

ralliann said:
The lastest conflict is because Israel was attacked aND WOMEN AND CHILDREN WERE BURNT ALIVE AND BRUTALLY RAPED. tHIS LOOKS LIKE IT WAS CONTINUING FOR THOSE THEY HELD CAPTIVE AS WELL.

It just doesn't matter at all why Israel does what it does for some people.
There is no disproportionate response.

ralliann · Dec 10, 2023

dzheremi said:
Why are you yelling in response to what I've posted? Nothing in that post is effectively countered by yelling. HG Elias Chacour is in favor of peace between Israel and Palestine, and considers himself a citizen of both countries.

Peace is not gonna happen with Hamas, and that ideolgy.

ralliann · Dec 10, 2023

DaisyDay said:
Why was Israel attacked?

Because Hamas and those that support them want to destroy Israel. From the river to the sea. They are not looking for peace with Israel, only their demise.

DaisyDay · Dec 10, 2023

ralliann said:
Because Hamas and those that support them want to destroy Israel. From the river to the sea. They are not looking for peace with Israel, only their demise.

Or because of decades of suppression, blockades, farms being put into no-go zones, having no control of their own country's water and electricity, having their money confiscated, schools shuttered, etc. resulted in a desperate attack. Now they're getting genocided.

Do you think they thought the attack would result in Israel's demise?

mindlight · Dec 10, 2023

essentialsaltes said:
Why Christmas is canceled in Bethlehem
Palestinian Christian leaders across denominations in the West Bank city decided last week that they will forgo all festivities this year as a mark of solidarity with their brethren in Gaza. There will be no public celebrations, no twinkling Christmas lights and no decorated tree in Manger Square — not as long, they say, as a state of war reigns over the embattled Gaza Strip, and the majority of its residents cope with Israeli bombardments, the devastation of their homes and a spiraling humanitarian crisis.

“This is madness,” Munther Isaac, pastor of Bethlehem’s Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church, told me. “This has become a genocide with 1.7 million people displaced.”

On Tuesday afternoon, the delegation [of Palestinian Christian leaders] went to the White House and delivered a letter [supporting a full-scale cease-fire] for President Biden signed by the leaders of the Christian community in Bethlehem, including Isaac’s Protestant denomination and his Orthodox, Armenian and Catholic counterparts.

There are roughly fewer than 1,000 Christians in Gaza, who have lived there without much problem despite the de facto takeover of the territory in 2007 by Hamas. But Israeli airstrikes destroyed or damaged almost all the community’s homes in Gaza City while also hitting Gaza’s oldest active church, where some were sheltering. “The vast majority of the Christian community in Gaza are now homeless,” Isaac said.

The delegation’s members condemned Hamas’s actions and deplored its killing of innocent civilians and abduction of hostages. But “[Y]ou cannot just ... give a green light for Israel to do what it’s doing right now, which goes way beyond, which is a revenge campaign.”

Jack Sara, president of Bethlehem Bible College, pointed to how the plight of Palestinian Christians doesn’t seem to be heard by many U.S. evangelicals, who see in muscular Jewish supremacy over the Holy Land a pathway for their own messianic vision.

The celebration of Christ's birth is something we just do as Christians. Tying it to wars or perceived injustices is pure nonsense and a pandering to worldly concerns.

dzheremi · Dec 10, 2023

ralliann said:
Peace is not gonna happen with Hamas, and that ideolgy.

Yeah. That's why I posted a video of the thoughts and observations of a Palestinian Christian leader, because that's what this thread is about: Palestinian Christians' responses to the Israel-Palestine situation. It's not about Hamas. Hamas are not a Palestinian Christian organization, and they don't represent the interests, goals, or ethics of Palestinian Christians. Even Palestinian Christians or people of Christian background involved in armed struggle against Israel (e.g., George Habash) did not do so within Hamas or Hamas-led organizations; they founded their own (in Habash's case, the PFLP, which is a communist/Marxist-Leninist organization -- about as far away from Islamism as something can be).

rambot · Dec 10, 2023

ralliann said:
Because Hamas and those that support them want to destroy Israel. From the river to the sea. They are not looking for peace with Israel, only their demise.

Incorrect.

Try looking into how Israel treat Palestinians.

Unless of course you don't care how Israel treats Palestinians.

I'm sure you wouldn't be the first.

essentialsaltes · Dec 10, 2023

mindlight said:
The celebration of Christ's birth is something we just do as Christians.

And these Christians will still do so, privately.

Tying it to wars or perceived injustices is pure nonsense and a pandering to worldly concerns.

Honestly, in Bethlehem, a lot of what they do is primarily to pander to tourists.

ralliann · Dec 10, 2023

DaisyDay said:
Or because of decades of suppression, blockades, farms being put into no-go zones, having no control of their own country's water and electricity, having their money confiscated, schools shuttered, etc. resulted in a desperate attack. Now they're getting genocided.

Do you think they thought the attack would result in Israel's demise?

the fact that they came right out and said we will do it again and again yes. They do not want to live in peace. that has caused all this.

ralliann · Dec 10, 2023

rambot said:
Incorrect.

Try looking into how Israel treat Palestinians.

Unless of course you don't care how Israel treats Palestinians.

I'm sure you wouldn't be the first.

How Israel treats Palestinians, is a result of refusing to live in peace with Israel. Pretend otherwise is just encouraging more of these attempts to eliminate Israel from the river to the sea.

ralliann · Dec 10, 2023

dzheremi said:
Yeah. That's why I posted a video of the thoughts and observations of a Palestinian Christian leader, because that's what this thread is about: Palestinian Christians' responses to the Israel-Palestine situation. It's not about Hamas. Hamas are not a Palestinian Christian organization, and they don't represent the interests, goals, or ethics of Palestinian Christians. Even Palestinian Christians or people of Christian background involved in armed struggle against Israel (e.g., George Habash) did not do so within Hamas or Hamas-led organizations; they founded their own (in Habash's case, the PFLP, which is a communist/Marxist-Leninist organization -- about as far away from Islamism as something can be).

He is an antisemite.

ralliann · Dec 10, 2023

mindlight said:
The celebration of Christ's birth is something we just do as Christians. Tying it to wars or perceived injustices is pure nonsense and a pandering to worldly concerns.

Ah, let em do how they are gonna do. They support Hamas.

dzheremi · Dec 10, 2023

ralliann said:
He is an antisemite.

So is everyone who is against whatever the secular state of Israel does, according to Israeli propaganda. Ho hum.

rambot · Dec 10, 2023

dzheremi said:
So is everyone who is against whatever the secular state of Israel does, according to Israeli propaganda. Ho hum.

Yeah. It starts to lose its meaning.

Pommer · Dec 10, 2023

rambot said:
Yeah. It starts to lose its meaning.

If something “happens”, like, say, a war! (Or volcano, or hurricane, whatever), then some folks assign this “something happening” to there being “good guys” and “bad guys” to pick from and do so.

All else stems from this choice they many don’t even know they’ve made.

Only one side can be “good” and coincidentally usually the one that these folks pick.

After that it’s pure tribalism and subtlety and nuance are out-the-window!

Palestinian Christian leaders in Bethlehem will forgo all Christmas festivities this year in solidarity with Gaza

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