Jerusalem Center for
Jewish-Christian Relations (JCJCR)
PREPARING THE WAY FOR
A NEW JEWISH-CHRISTIAN RELATION
IN THE HOLY LAND
A STATEGIC PROGRAM PLAN
FOR JCJCR
May 2004
1
Strategic Program Plan
Jerusalem Center for Jewish-Christian Relations (JCJCR)
INTRODUCTION
This document, the product of six months of discussions with more than 300 Jews and
Christians throughout the Holy Land, outlines JCJCR’s strategic plan for the next 3-5 years.
Among those consulted were Christian and Jewish religious and communal leaders,
congregational clergy, scholars and educators, civil rights and peace activists, government
officials and political leaders. Two major consultations where held. The first brought together
30 Jewish and Christian educators from Galilee for two days of consultations on local JewishChristian relations. The second involved high ranking included representatives of all the
historic Churches in the Holy Land, among them eight bishops, and representatives of more
than a dozen Jewish organizations working for human rights, social justice and co-existence in
Israel.
The plan identifies needs and opportunities for improving and sustaining relations among Jews
and Christians in Israel/the Holy Land/Palestine both by combating existing negative
stereotypes and by drawing on shared religious and cultural values so that Jewish and
Christian participants in JCJCR’s programs might become more effective agents of peace in the
Holy Land and the region. It defines JCJCR’s strategic focus and the four high priority
education and program areas that JCJCR will develop, and for which JCJCR is seeking support.
The four areas are:
1. SPECIALIZED ENCOUNTER GROUPS





Strengthening dialogue of life
Encouraging cultural dialogue
Promoting dialogue of social action
Supporting theological or doctrinal dialogue
Facilitating religious or contemplative dialogue
2. EDUCATOINAL PROGRAMS





Providing tailor-made courses for selected Jewish and Christian audiences
Conducting seminars for government, security and educational officials
Organizing conferences on selected topics
Sponsoring lectures for the general public
Developing relevant educational materials
3. INFORMATION SERVICES


Creating an extensive data base
Developing a trilingual web site
4. RESEARCH AND REPORTING



Monitoring and reporting on incidents of defamation and desecration
Issuing a regular newsletter
Supporting and publishing relevant research on Jewish-Christian relations
2
Many observers, both locally and abroad, feel that there has been deterioration in JewishChristian relations in the Holy Land in recent years, especially in the relations between official
bodies and the local Churches and church institutions. In a recent letter addressed to the
Ambassador of Israel to the United States, Cardinal William Keelor and Bishop John Ricard
expressed the alarming view that the deterioration of relations and the multiplication of
problems "have created the most difficult situation in living memory for the Church in the Holy
Land." Many local Christians feel there is widespread ignorance of their particular historic
experience and growing insensitivity to their present situation. Now, more than ever, there is
an urgent need to systematically explore the issues and substantively confront the challenges
that arise from the unprecedented encounter of a sovereign Jewish majority and ancient
Christian minorities in the Holy Land today.
I. OVERVIEW OF CHRISTIAN AND JEWISH SOCIETIES IN THE HOLY LAND
Both the Jewish and Christian societies in the Holy Land are characterized by considerable
diversity and important differences that must be carefully considered in any attempt to
promote better Jewish-Christian understanding and relations.
The Christian population today includes members of the historic Christian communities
(roughly 175,000 persons), a few thousand Hebrew Christians (or Messianic Jews), expatriate
Christians (including several thousand foreign clergy and religious) living and working in the
country for shorter or longer periods, recent immigrants (estimates of the number of practicing
and potential Christians among them range from 10,000 to 100,000), and foreign workers
(among whom are as many as 200,000 persons with Christian backgrounds).
At the beginning of the 19th century, the vast majority of indigenous Christians in the Holy
Land were Orthodox, mainly Greek Orthodox with smaller numbers of Armenian, Syrian, Coptic
and Ethiopian Orthodox. Today, roughly 75 per cent of the Christians in the Holy Land are
Catholics who belong either to the Latin Church or to one of the “Uniate” or Eastern Catholic
Churches, most especially the Greek (Melkite) Catholic Church, which is now the largest single
Christian community in the State of Israel. Only a few thousand indigenous Christians belong
to Protestant Churches. The majority of the Christians among foreign workers are Catholics,
while the majority of Christians among the new immigrants are of Orthodox background.
Roughly 50,000 indigenous Christians live in the Jerusalem area (including Bethlehem, Beit
Jala, Beit Sahour and Ramala). The vast majority of the remaining roughly 125,000 local
Christians live in Galilee, some in mixed cities like Haifa (where they are a majority in the local
Arab population) or Nazareth (were they are being overtaken by Muslims in terms of
numbers), some in mixed villages (alongside Muslims or Druze or both), and some in
exclusively or dominantly Christian villages (such as Fassuta, Meilliya, Eilaboun, or Kfar Yasif).
Christians among the immigrants and foreign workers are dispersed throughout the country
and interact almost exclusively with the Jewish population, as do the small Hebrew-speaking
Christian groups in various places throughout the country.
Most indigenous Christians share a common Arab culture and the Arabic language, and many
emphasize a Palestinian national identity. At the same time, local Arab Christian society and
culture have been heavily influenced by strong links with the Christian West, and especially by
the scores of Christian schools and social welfare agencies that Western Christian bodies
established in the Holy Land in the course of the last century and a half. Note foreign personal
to this day
3
Divisions within the Jewish population of the country spring from cultural differences linked to
the country of origin, from differences in religious practice, and from strong disagreement over
ideological and political issues. Today, roughly half of Israeli-Jewish society has its
background in the Arab Muslim lands of the Middle East and North Africa (Sephardim), while
the other half (Ashkenazim) hails from Western Christian lands. Generally, only the firstgeneration immigrants among the Sephardim speak Arabic. Roughly 40 per cent of the
Ashkenazim (or 20 per cent of the total Jewish population) are relatively recent immigrants
from the former Soviet Union and are Russian-speaking.
With regard to the religious-secular divide, approximately 10 per cent of Israeli Jews are UltraOrthodox and send their children to private schools in which only religious subjects are
studied. Another 20 per cent send their children to state religious schools, which combine
religious and secular studies. Some 50 per cent of the remaining two-thirds of the IsraeliJewish population observe some traditional Jewish practices.
Politically, Israeli-Jewish society is split equally between “Right” and “Left”, but over the past
30 years there have been significant swings of the political pendulum, often as a consequence
of major developments regarding security. Since the beginning of the “Second Intifada” in
October 2000 and the multitude of terror attacks, Israeli Jewish society has been largely
overtaken by a siege mentality and a consequent major shift to the Right. The siege mentality
has been enhanced also by the influx into the country of a large number of non-Jewish
immigrants and foreign workers in the 1990s; in the eyes of some circles, they are
undermining the Jewish identity of the State of Israel.
II. THE UNIQUE AND CHALLENGING SETTING OF THE HOLY LAND TODAY
The encounter of Jews and Christians in the Holy Land today is unique in several respects that
must be taken into account in any attempt to promote better Jewish-Christian relations in the
country.
It involves a young modern-day Jewish nation state in the ancient homeland of the Jewish
people on the one hand, and on the other venerable local Churches and ecclesiastical
institutions whose history in the Holy Land stretches back to the earliest centuries of
Christianity. In the circumstances, the matter of relations between the Government and the
local Churches has a major impact on the relations of Jews and Christians in the country in
general.
Most significantly, for the first time in two millennia, an empowered Jewish majority comes
face to face with Christian communities who share with Jews a long history as minorities.
Relations are often confused by the fact that the local Christian minorities are closely linked by
religion with Christian majorities that, in other lands and times, persecuted the Jewish minority
in their midst.
The encounter of Jews and Christians in the Holy Land today is also complicated by the fact
that most local Christians are linked by language and culture with the vast Arab world and
most closely with the Palestinian people, with which the Jewish State is in conflict. The
national identity of the majority of Christians in the Holy Land is locked in conflict with the
national identity of the majority of Israeli Jews.
Although Jews and Christians in the Holy Land share the same Hebrew Bible (or Old
Testament), the political circumstances in which they live often cause them to read the Bible in
4
the land of the Bible in very different ways. On the other hand, unlike many of their Muslim
counterparts in the Holy Land, most local Christians share with large segments of the Israeli
Jewish population a basic Western orientation and an attraction for Western culture and
values.
It must be noted that Jews and Christians in the Holy land do not share a common mother
tongue. Most Arab Christians within the State of Israel speak fluent Hebrew, unlike their coreligionists in the Jerusalem area. Language itself thus becomes a complicating factor in
developing programs to promote Jewish-Christian relations.
III. THE LIMITS OF EXISTING FORUMS FOR JEWISH-CHRISTAIN RELATIONS
During the past forty years, a number of interfaith groups have nurtured a fruitful dialogue
between Jews and Christians in Israel. Among organizations of special note are the Israel
Interfaith Association (1957), Jerusalem Rainbow Group (1965), Ecumenical Theological
Research Fraternity (1966), Interreligious Coordinating Council in Israel (1991), Elijah School
(1996), and the recently founded Interfaith Encounter Association (2001). Numerous Christian
institutions and organizations in the country have made a major contribution to deepening
understanding of Jews and Judaism among Christians from abroad, and several Jewish
institutions of higher learning offer Christians scholars and clergy further opportunities for
interfaith discovery.
Despite the impressive array of interfaith undertakings, there are still no fixed frameworks or
forums for constructive encounter that involves representatives of the broader Israeli-Jewish
society and members of the diverse indigenous Christian communities in the Holy Land, who
are mainly of Eastern origin. Participants in existing interfaith activities are drawn almost
exclusively from a small circle of Jews of Western, especially Anglo-Saxon, origin and from a
somewhat larger group of expatriate Christians from various Western countries. The fruits of
the dialogue have attracted attention in the West, but have had little impact on the local
scene. Attempts to draw local Christians and a broader representation of Israeli-Jewish
society into established interfaith circles have for the most part been unsuccessful.
Relations with the local Christian communities have in fact been formally conducted until now
largely by official bodies, and especially by special divisions within the Ministry for Religious
Affairs and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Deterioration ……. Officials who had an
understanding disapprearing and no one with training to replace them
To date, no body, whether official or otherwise has taken up the issue of the new immigrants
and the foreign workers who are Christians. The State has assisted or allowed their entry into
the country for political or economic reasons, but at best ignores and at worst resents their
special needs and concerns as Christians, thus leaving them in a kind of religious-cultural
limbo.
IV. THE NEED
See first paragraph of ICCI
Include the need to strengthen Arab Christian identity
Need to be sensitive to Arab Christian concerns about what will Muslims say
5
Need to motivate the Jewish majority, which is both indifferent like any majority and also
biased against Christians.
Make note of the historical wounds coming from the relations with Christians and not Muslims.
Make note about dealing with the smallest minority.
Make note that we are in many ways starting from scratch.
V. JCJCR’S STATEGIC FOCUS
Model on the ICCI paper, taking para one and two more or less as they are and adding my
emphasis on combating prejudice and on the need to put JC relations on the map.
Take up here the issue of initially focusing only on the relations with the indigenous Christians,
but recognizing the need to study the matter of relations with the other segments of the
Christian presence.
VI. PRIORITY AREAS
SEE ABOVE AND ADD THE ELABORATION ON
1. TYPES OF ENCOUNTER GROUPS AND THEIR IMPORTANCE OF EACH AND THE
POPULATIONS TO BE INVOLVED. Stress the importance of specialized groups.
2. EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS WITH WHICH EMPHASIS FOR JEWS AND WHICH FOR
CHRISTIANS…. STRESS THE NEED TO IMPACT ON GOVERNMENT AND ON THE PRESS. In
This context mention the consultation in Nes Ammim which focused mainly on the educational
programs.
3. CHRISTIANS AND JEWS BOTH COMPUTER LITERATE,….. TO CREATE A CENTRAL
ADDRESS FOR INFORMATION ON THE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITIES . mention attempt to
involve both Jewish and Christian companies and schools if possible.
4. IN MENTIONING THE MONITORING, MENTION THE MEETING IN TANTUR AND NOTING
THE PARTICIPANTS. On research mention HU and BU
VII. CONCLUSION
6