...One of the holiest sites in Christianity, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, is located in Jerusalem yet authorisation is not given to everybody who applies. Those under 35 are refused, which could mean that a husband is granted permission to leave, but his wife is not. Ironically, Christians from across the world can travel to visit the birthplace of Jesus and the site where he was resurrected. Members of the community at home still celebrate during the festive period. They decorate their houses with a Christmas tree - a symbol of joy - pray together and visit their family and friends. Its peace and love during this time, says Tarazi. These days there are roughly 1,300 Christians, made up of 350 families, living within a population of around 1.8 million in Gaza. The majority are Greek Orthodox; there are a few hundred from the Latin Church and very few Baptists. During the 1948 Nakba up to 50,000 Christians were forced from their homes in Palestine, some settled in Gaza. Those I have spoken to agree that because of the siege the economy in the Strip is dire and so unemployment among graduates is rife; limited job prospects ultimately mean marriage and family life are hard, so people seek to leave in search of greater opportunities. One pastor, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told MEMO: There is a siege from the sky, from the land, from the sea. Most of the people cannot use the Israeli border. The Egyptian border is closed most of the time. Usually when people ask what it is like to live in Gaza I say Ive never been in a prison, but I live in one. The pastor left the Strip in 2007 to live in Jordan with his wife. Now he travels back and forth working with Christian refugees in Amman, many of whom have fled ISIS, and with members of the community who are still in Gaza. This year, he has travelled to Gaza five times, though the journey is not easy thanks to the complicated web of Israeli settlements, road blocks and military zones that have been put in place across Palestine. His journey home begins by navigating the Jordanian and Israeli authorities, waiting up to three hours for special permission in Jericho, before making his way towards the Erez Crossing. On the border of Gaza he is then checked by Hamas. Once, he tells me, he left Jordan at 7am and arrived at his family house in Gaza at half past midnight. The challenge for us as Christians, by the grace of God, we are able to forgive because we experienced Gods forgiveness. The challenge for us as Evangelical Christians, as a pastor, is how to keep your mind and your heart pure and to live by the spirit of forgiveness and not to let hatred rule in your life, he says. Yet the pastor points out that it is not only the siege that is a threat to the community. In Gaza we live between two fires: the fire of Israeli occupation on one hand and also the fire of the militants on the other hand and these two things put pressure on the Christians in general. The Israeli government, and to some extent the international news, maintain that the ruling party in Gaza, Hamas, put pressure on Christians, which is what is ultimately forcing them to leave. Some media outlets suggest that Hamas and Islamism are making life intolerable, whereas actually it is mainly occupation, says Jeremy Moodey, chief executive of Embrace the Middle East. Tarazi of YMCA points out that the Christmas period in Gaza is different to how it was under Yasser Arafat. There was once a Christmas tree in the centre, lit by Arafats wife, and delegates would come from the West Bank to visit the church. But despite the fact that this no longer happens, he is keen to point out that Hamas does not put pressure on the Christian community. We are a conservative community here so they dont touch us, they respect us. The respect is even greater after the last event. By the last event Tarazi is referring to the role the church played in harbouring families during the latest war on Gaza in which over 2,000 died. Each church provided shelter for approximately 700-800 people, offering food, drink and medicine to both Christian and Muslim families. It was marked by the Islamic movement in Gaza as one of the greatest acts of support that has ever been done by the church in Gaza during difficult times, says Tarazi, adding: This was the credit that was given to the Christian community. ...
Posted on: Thu, 01 Jan 2015 05:28:08 +0000
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