Since World War II, most Christian denominations have abandoned the intense anti-Jewish preaching that for so long permeated European churches in the weeks leading up to Easter. Yet among Palestinian clergy, and those in the West eager to give them a platform, this ugly tradition persists. Enia Krivine and Shannon Walsh write:
Christians are flourishing in Israel, yet before Easter, some members of the clergy exploited the period of heightened religious emotion to level false accusations of systemic oppression against Israel. Meanwhile, others spread conspiracy theories that mirror the blood-libel sermons taught about the Jews during Holy Week in previous centuries. The Palestinian archbishop Atallah Hanna, of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, has called for a Palestinian state “from the river to the sea”—meaning a state that replaces Israel, and described Zionism as diabolical and having no connection to God’s word and the Holy Books.
Some Christian religious leaders in Israel have expressed concerns that the Christian community in the Holy Land is dwindling. While this may be true in the Palestinian territories, the Christian population inside of Israel proper has been steadily growing since 1950. Moreover, according to a study by the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics, Christian citizens of Israel had lower unemployment rates than their Jewish counterparts, are more likely to pursue a higher education, and Christian women disproportionately seek advanced degrees in Israel.
While there has been an alarming uptick in crime targeting Christian clergy and holy sites over the past couple of years in Israel, accusations of a systemic attempt by the Israeli government or the Jewish Israeli majority to eradicate the Christians of Israel is misinformed at best, and deceitful at worst. These attacks have been perpetrated by fringe actors, both Muslim and Jewish, who seek to undermine the pluralistic nature of the state of Israel—a core value enshrined in Israeli law.
Read more on Algemeiner: https://www.algemeiner.com/2023/04/10/members-of-the-clergy-politicize-holy-week-in-the-holy-land/