Israel has long worked hard to portray itself as a guardian of religious plurality and freedom, especially when it comes to the Christian Palestinian population in Palestine. It is no secret that Palestine holds immense importance to many religions, and the facade of tolerance would go a long way towards cultivating a progressive image.
The problem with all of this, of course, is that Israel is an ethnocracy clearly built to leverage one group over all else. All of this talk of tolerance and equality goes out the window when you actually look into the de facto and de jure discrimination that form the basis of Israeli society [You can read more about this here].
Naturally, this has not stopped advocates of Israel of projecting this discrimination onto the Palestinians themselves, claiming that Palestinian Christians are oppressed by their Muslim neighbors and the Palestinian Authority. They point to the dwindling Christian population of the West Bank as proof of this assertion. Let us take a deeper look at the claims and see if there is any evidence to support these accusations.
First, it is worth mentioning that throughout its history, Israel has cared very little about the different religions or sects of Palestinians, only that they were in the way of its expansionist colonial project [You can read more here]. Bombs and bullets don’t tend to discriminate, neither do sweeping campaigns of ethnic cleansing that resulted in the destruction and depopulation of approximately 600 Palestinian villages.
Perhaps one of the more striking stories of Palestinian Christian and Muslim solidarity comes from the story of the village of Mujaydil, Pappe writes that:
“The village of Mujaydil had 2000 inhabitants, most of whom fled to Nazareth before the soldiers reached their houses. For some reason the army left these intact. In 1950, after the intervention of the Pope in Rome, the Christians were offered the opportunity to move back but refused to do so without their Muslim neighbours.“
As a response, Israel razed half the village and burnt down one of its two mosques. Many Palestinians were shot in an attempt to return to Al-Mujaydil to tend to their crops, eventually people stopped trying due to so many deaths. Today the village has been wiped off the map, with a forest growing on top of it. The only evidence of Palestinian life are the remains of a damaged monastery and church that remain to tell the story.
The idea that Israel is some grand protector of Christians in Palestine can be so easily dispelled by simply talking to an actual Palestinian Christian. I’m certain that the Palestinian Christian refugees all over the world would have a good laugh at the notion.
With this context out of the way, let us return to the original question regarding Palestinian Christians leaving Palestine: What are the reasons? Is it as claimed that Christians feel discriminated against? Are their Muslim neighbors harassing them? Do they feel like they simply don’t have a place in Palestinian society?
There have been multiple studies on this phenomenon, and Dr. Rev. Mitri Raheb has become a specialist in this topic. From his review of recent studies, in addition to those done over the last 20 years, he came to the following conclusions on why Palestinian Christians opted to emigrate:
- 32.6% opted to emigrate due to the loss of freedom and absence of safety amidst the occupation.
- 26.4% left because of the deteriorating economic conditions.
- 19.7% emigrated due to political unrest, especially during the second Intifada.
- 0.3% were motivated to leave for religious purposes. This percentage is so small that it dismisses as irrelevant the premise of religion as a main cause for emigration.
In a completely unsurprising turn of events, the number one reason for Palestinian Christians emigrating is the Israeli occupation. Just one look at how Bethlehem has been turned into a militarized Ghetto will reveal the inhumane treatment of Palestinians and the tremendous harm they endure every single day.
As a matter of fact, the majority of Palestinian Christians (62%) believe that Israel’s end goal is to expel them from their homeland. Given Israel’s track record, who can argue otherwise? 83% of Palestinian Christians are worried about settlers, and 73% are worried about the continued occupation of their lands.
Studies show that Palestinian Christians actually feel safer on average than their Muslim neighbors. The overwhelming majority said that they do not suffer from discrimination when dealing with people and society. Almost all (92%) reported feeling comfortable discussing their religion with a Muslim friend. This sounds nothing like the hostile and discriminatory society that advocates of Israel describe.
The point of these numbers is not to paint an unrealistic or rosy picture of Palestinian society. Of course, there exists prejudice, like in every society on earth. The same study also revealed that there are many aspects that need improving to make Palestine a more inclusive society, such as the Palestinian Basic Law as well as elements of social conservatism. The point is to refute Israeli claims of Palestinian backwardness and intolerance, and to reject it positioning itself as the savior of Palestinian Christians. Especially when Israeli society is sustained by and replete with racism towards all kinds of Palestinians, for example being spat on by Israelis is a staple of Christian Palestinian Clergy life in Jerusalem.
A further aspect that often goes unappreciated is that a considerable portion of support for Israel around the world comes from Evangelical and Christian Zionists, who believe that an Israeli state is crucial to trigger Armageddon. Pandering to these groups has been rather profitable, and there are entire faithwashing organizations dedicated to strengthening these ties [You can read more about this here]. Naturally, these Christian Zionists care nothing for the plight of Palestinian Christians, or even for Jewish Israelis, as they simply see them as a means towards the end days, where they will be forced to convert to Christianity or die.
At the end of the day, Israel does not -and never has- cared about the plight of Palestinian Christians further than being able to use them in its Hasbara efforts. The framing of Palestinian society as backwards and intolerant has long been a staple of Israeli claims, but as the numbers show, Israel was in fact the main cause for the emigration of Palestinian Christians.
Palestinian Christians are an integral part of our culture and identity, they have provided our society with some of our most brilliant intellectuals, and some of our fiercest resistance fighters. We must strongly combat their erasure, no matter the source, and confidently declare that these divide and conquer tactics will not erode our unity.
- Decolonize Palestine, Faithwashing. [Link]
- Sabella, Bernard. “Palestinian Christians: Realities and Hopes.” Studies in Church History 36, 2000: 373-397.
- Sabella, Bernard. My Friend and Neighbor, This Week in Palestine, 2013.
- Sakakini, Khalil al. Such am I, Oh World, Diaries of Khalil al Sakakini, 1990.
- Raheb, M. Palestinian Christians: Emigration, Displacement and Diaspora. Bethlehem: Diyar Publishers, 2017.
- Raheb, Mitri. “Sailing through troubled waters: Palestinian Christians in the Holy Land.” Dialog 41.2, 2002: 97-102.
- Raheb, Mitri. I am a Palestinian Christian. Fortress Press, 1995.