Palestinian Catholics on Easter

On Easter, many North American Evangelical Western Protestants flew into Jerusalem to visit the Holy Sepulchre, the Mount of Olives and other religious sites. Zionist authorities welcomed them with open arms. In part, this was due to fundamentalist Protestants’ support for the Zionist state. However, a more ancient Christian community, a community whose faith dates to the time of the Bible, was not allowed to enter the holy sites of Jerusalem. Palestinian Catholics and Eastern Orthodox believers were denied permits to enter Jerusalem and were prohibited from taking part in the festivities. 

Palestinian Christians are a people that no one talks about. They are a silent minority. Most of them are Catholic or Eastern Orthodox, and most identify as Palestinians. They make up close to seven percent of the Palestinian population. And it was with them that Palestinian nationalism took root. Under the British Mandate they flourished, with many attending Western universities. Their unique outlook on the world was admired by in the West and in the East.  But with the advent of a Zionist state and the rise of Islamism in Palestine, they lost most of their power. Western Protestant Zionists saw them as an embarrassment, and Pan-Arabism took over the Palestinian national movement.

During the 1980s, Western fundamentalist Protestants allied with the Zionist movement in return for the right to visit holy sites. So far, this pact has worked. But Western Protestants ignore who this agreement hurts: Palestinian Catholics.

Without the protections of Western powers, the Palestinians Catholics have been oppressed by the Zionist authorities in Jerusalem. In fact, videos taken on Palm Sunday showed one of the worst examples of this oppression thus far. A group of Palestinians Catholics had met for Palm Sunday. They had palms in their hands and shouted "Hosanna.” As they prayed, Zionist military entered and beat up several men.

For the most part there were few reports of the event. A video of it was put on Twitter, and a few pro-Palestinian sites and Eastern Orthodox media organizations covered the news story. A video is available on the Twitter page of the Quds News Network. New laws allow the Zionist authorities to seize Catholic as well Eastern Rite churches and sell them to developers, a move that Palestinians protested. But Western Protestant leaders remain silent as Palestinian Catholics are oppressed. 

Why are Western ministers so silent when Palestinian Catholics suffer oppression? Palestinians Catholics refuse to reject their Palestinian identity in return for Western help. They refuse to oppose their Palestinian brother and sisters of all faiths. And they are proud to be Palestinian. So for the Western protestant establishment they are not reliable. 

So what does the future hold for this population? Many have fled their homes in Palestine for Europe. But many more have stayed to help fight for Palestine. In the next years they will, along with Palestinian Muslims, suffer oppression. But let us hope that they keep fighting with the hope that one day their nation will be free.