Meeting Palestine’s local Christians

The Rev Jeremy Tear (Photo source: Jeremy Tear)

The Rev Jeremy Tear of St Paul’s Church, Macclesfield, went on a CMS Sabbatical to the Holy Land, where the witness of the Christian faithful moved him deeply.

In November 2006, I was privileged to take part in a 200-strong international gathering of Christians from all parts of the world for a conference on “The Forgotten Faithful — a Window into the Life and Witness of Christians in the Holy Land”.

‘Banksy’ artwork on the 'security Wall' at north Bethlehem (Photo source: Jeremy Tear)

Organised by Sabeel, an ecumenical Palestinian liberation theology centre in Jerusalem and a CMS partner, it gave an unparalleled insight into the social, theological and political realities faced by the followers of Jesus in the Land of the Holy One from the first to the 21st century.

It was an amazing experience to be addressed, for example, by the archbishops of the Orthodox, Armenian, Coptic, Syrian and Latin churches within the one evening — quite a show of unity, despite their differences!

But in addition to many stimulating lectures, one of the highlights for me was the opportunity to converse, and share worship, with many local Christians.  Approximately 300 attended at least a part of the conference, while I met others in their home towns of Birzeit and Aboud in the West Bank, and El-Jish on the Lebanese border.

The 'security' Wall entrance to Bethlehem (Photo source: Jeremy Tear)

Being a Christian in Israel/Palestine today is not an easy calling, particularly if you live in the Gaza Strip or the West Bank.  Daily hardships there include the need to get permits to travel (which may or may not be granted), facing humiliating delays at check-points and the ‘security’ Wall, and suffering economically as a result of the EU’s policy of withholding aid to their democratically elected government.

The clear message, with which I was commissioned, was to tell others, when I returned home, of their struggles and to invite others to share fellowship with them too.

So do please consider visiting the Holy Land — it was safe for me as a foreigner to do so — but if you do go, spend some time meeting and talking to the ‘living stones’, the Palestinian inhabitants, and Israelis, as well as seeing the ‘old stones’, the biblical sites.

I did have the opportunity to join a procession on the Via Dolorosa, to enter the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, to visit the Galilee, which were also great priviledges and included many sacred moments, but to visit the Holy Land and to meet the Christians there somehow makes 2,000 years of faithful witness a living reality.

Finally, if you are thinking of going, go sooner rather than later.  Christian emigration from Palestine is happening at a frightening rate because of the Israeli occupation, and the real fear is that it may soon just turn into a Christian ‘theme park’ of historic sites with no living presence of the faithful.

For further information about Sabeel, visit www.sabeel.org.