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A few words on Palestine’s Christians

Santa gives gifts to a Christian family in Bethlehem

With the words ‘Israel’ and ‘Palestine’ often taken to be synonymous with ‘Jews’ and ‘Muslims’ in our media, it’s easy to forget that Palestine, the birthplace of Jesus, has been home to a large and vibrant Christian community, with its rich religious and spiritual traditions, since the founding of the faith.

Palestinian Christians are often the descendants of some of the oldest Christian communities in the world; and their diversity is clear with Roman Catholics, Greek Catholics, Armenian Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox, Syrian Orthodox, Copts, Episcopalians, Lutherans, Maronites and other Protestant denominations worshiping in Palestine alongside the Greek Orthodox majority.

However today it is thought that only 2.4% of the population of Palestine are Christian.  This is not, as some commentators have attempted to argue, the result of Islamic Fundamentalism, or Christians being forced out of their homeland as a result of the pressures imposed on them by their Muslim neighbours. Rather, in many respects Palestine shines as the region’s beacon of harmony between Muslims and Christians. 

 
This year, as every year, Christians will gather for Christmas Eve Mass at St. Catherine Church which sits next to the Church of Nativity and which encloses the very spot on which Jesus is believed to have been born. Local parishioners will gather alongside Christian pilgrims and will be joined as well by some of their Muslim brothers and sisters to celebrate the birth of Christ and to pray for peace in the Holy Land. 
As the world’s media centres on the holy town this Christmas Eve, Bethlehem will once again serve as a beacon of light and signal of Muslim-Christian tolerance amidst a troubled conflict. 
Original Source: One Community Many Voices Blog. Reproduced by permission of our friend and supporter, Faith Matters
BySCEME

A Letter from the Team

To our Friends, Partners, and Supporters and to each of you who we may not yet have met, we’d like to wish you a relaxing and meaningful festive season and a Happy New Year!
2012 has been a fantastic and beautifully busy year for us. We have been working hard to contribute towards the creation of an environment in which gender equality, freedom and social justice are not a dream but a reality. Spurred on by your help, advice, commitment and good will, we’ve continued in our efforts to raise awareness and spur action to tackle the trafficking and exploitation of women and girls across the region. We’ve been able to work with some of the most inspiring of young women, who remain committed to their education and that of their children in some of the most difficult of circumstances. We’re so encouraged to see these young mothers blossom and feel honoured to have been able to have played a small part in supporting them to realise their own brilliance.
2013 is a year of new challenges and new opportunities. We look forward to continuing our work to provide the most basic of education to young women across the Middle East and North Africa; and with your support are preparing to roll out our programme of work to enable young refugees to access effective and sensitive sexual and reproductive healthcare and education. With the support of some of the most committed and incredible volunteers across the world, we are still striving to shine a light on the realities of trafficking across the region and look forward to releasing further research pieces and resources for activists and organisations throughout the year. We’re also full of excitement for our programme of upcoming youth exchanges to facilitate active youth participation, beginning with our work to connect youth from Algeria and the United Kingdom this Spring.
Your support means the world to us. Thank you for being on this journey with us, we look forward to many more years of action to protect and promote the rights of women and young people, refugees and migrants, and those from impoverished backgrounds throughout the Middle East and North Africa.
We wish you a 2013 filled with peace, joy, and meaning, 
 
With all of our best wishes,
The Team at SCEME

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