In their annual Easter message, the patriarchs and heads of churches in Jerusalem called on Israel to secure safety, access and religious freedom for Christians in the Holy Land during Easter. ‘As we have all seen in recent months, escalating violence has engulfed the Holy Land. Local Christians in particular have increasingly suffered adversities,’ they said. ‘For over the past year, some of our churches, funeral processions, and places of public gathering have become targets of attack; some of our holy sites and cemeteries have been desecrated; and some of our ancient liturgies, such as the Palm Sunday Procession and the Holy Fire Ceremony, have been closed off to thousands of worshipers. This is in spite of our agreements to cooperate with the governing (Israeli) authorities, and to accommodate any reasonable requests that they might present,’ said the church leaders in their message making reference to scores of attacks by Jewish fanatics against churches and Christians in Jerusalem. ‘While we will persevere in these good-faith efforts, we ask the overseeing officials to work cooperatively and collaboratively with us, even as we call upon international community and local residents of goodwill to advocate on our behalf, in order to help secure the safety, access, and religious freedom of the resident Christian community and the millions of Christian pilgrims annually visiting the Holy Land-as well as the maintenance of the religious Status Quo,’ added the church leaders.
Source: Palestine News & Information Agency