The Catholic Church Struggles in Bethlehem Amongst Hamas Terrors
Catholic Church STRUGGLES Amidst Hamas Turmoil
The growing hostility between Judaism and Islam, the two predominant faiths in the Bethlehem, West Bank area, is often brought to light by the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian territories.
But the continuing conflict and its social and political fallout pose a danger to further stifle the already diminishing Christian population on both sides of the shattered Holy Land.
Speaking with Christian leaders who are struggling to preserve their religion in the face of challenges to its very survival from the political, economic, and violent spheres, Fox News Digital went around Israel and the Palestinian territories.
In Israel and the Palestinian territories, the total population, including Christians of all faiths, is barely 2%. In the area, Arabs make up around 75% of the Christian population, and they typically follow apostolic, old churches like the Greek Orthodox, Coptic, and Catholic ones.
The path that Jesus Christ traveled throughout the Biblical story may be seen when contemporary geopolitical boundaries are superimposed over the globe, demonstrating that the messiah’s conception, life, death, and resurrection are not limited to Israel or the Palestinian territories.
Christians in the Holy Land do not solely support any government, even though they may own Israeli or Palestinian passports. Furthermore, neither government shows much support for the Christian evangelizing effort or for the maintenance of holy places within its boundaries.
The Catholic Church, the biggest religion in the Holy Land, has diverse opinions among its civilian leaders and priests about the conflict and the church’s future. However, everyone agrees that the existing state of affairs cannot last much longer without seriously endangering Christian testimony in the place where Jesus once lived.
Israeli families who were displaced by the tragedy have been housed at the Magdala Hotel since Hamas’ slaughter on October 7 of last year. Kelly now sees the Christian mission in the Holy Land from a broader angle than just analyzing institutions and demography, thanks to her work providing sanctuary for war victims.
“Usually, the narratives focus on the heart of a certain group, a certain subsection of humanity under a particular category,” Kelly said to Fox News Digital. “And what happens actually in Magdala, before anything religious happens, is the appeal to the human dignity as such, that we are all made in the image and likeness of the Almighty.”
Long-growing expectations that extremism and terrorist occupancy of large swathes of Palestinian land were gradually being moderated and brought under control were destroyed by the slaughter and the Israeli government’s retaliatory actions.
Many individuals were awakened to the fact that things were out of hand on October 7. Kelly said, “There’s a lot of deep hurt, frustration, and disappointment as a result.” “Therefore, you encounter individuals who are carrying this load regardless of their history or place of origin. Their hopes for the future are dashed by it. Thus, [that’s] most likely one of the larger ministries.
Kelly’s daily activities include overseeing the Magdala Hotel, giving visitors tours of the archeological excavations, celebrating Mass in the on-site church, and generally helping those in need.
