US Secretary of State John Kerry has recently proposed a
number of controversial topics, in talks with the Palestinian leadership. One official said, "Kerry's recent ideas
focus on handing over parts of Jerusalem to the Palestinian National Authority
and that Jordan will have the jurisdiction on holy sites and places in the
city."
Not a good idea, especially if it entails handing over
Jewish and Christian places of worship. Why is this so, I hear you say. Well,
just look at the way that the main mosque in Jerusalem is managed, (very shoddily),
as such, it would not bode well for other non-Muslim places of worship.
“In 1948, when the Jordanian government occupied Judea and
Samaria, the Al-Aqsa Mosque was placed under the Jordanian Waqf Ministry, which
oversees Islamic sites. In 1967, when Israel won the Six-Day-War and regained
control over Jerusalem, it did not take control of Al-Aqsa. Instead, Israel
transferred control of the mosque to the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf [trust],
an independent religious body to oversee the Islamic holy sites there.”
In the article, a member of the mosque is asked about the
very poor condition of the building, he replied "Look at the donation boxes here; they
collect an average of one million shekels ($284,000) per month. We have no clue
where that money goes...The poor and the needy never get any of it."
Another member of the mosque said: "The wrongdoers are
from our own folks, son. We are the ones who have destroyed Al-Aqsa... I have
worked with the Jordanians, with the Jews, and the Palestinians, I have seen
them all, and I know what is really happening."
The decayed state of the mosque is not a recent event, it
has been so for well over a century. That’s not the end of the story, it has to be remembered
that Jordan is a predominantly Islamic
state, with approximately 97% Muslim population. Although Jordan does have
an indigenous Christian minority, (2%), it is tiny compared to 1950, when it
consisted of 30% of the population.
The words of a Jordanian son of an ex-priest, sharply sums the
situation in which these Christians find themselves:
"You know, coexisting with Muslims is difficult,"
he says, choosing his words so as to convey truth but not offend. It is the way
of conversation here, to let nuance reach the heart. "Muslims don't accept
others. They want everyone like them. We show them friendship. They don't show
outward hostility, but you feel it inside your soul."
It remains to be seen the viability of Mr Kerry's proposals or how they could pan out. Given the widespread mistrust and continued intolerance of Christians, it is very hard to swallow the "suggestion" to hand over control to Muslims of Jewish & Christian places of worship and holy sites.
Back to Jerusalem, the day to day lives of Palestinians isn't a rosy one either, at best it is comparable to the situation that the Jordanian Christians, at worst, threats to their livelihoods. The picture of persecution is the same across the region. " They are all embarking down the same path as Palestinian Christians, as
one of the participants from Jerusalem exclaimed. He spoke in a tone
marked by a mix of desolation and sadness, “Only around 40,000
Christians remain in our country. In Gaza, where Sharia has prevailed
for several years now, there are only 1,300 Christians. Even in
Jerusalem, the city of the resurrection of Jesus and the cradle of
Christianity, there are no more than 4,000 Christians.”
The irony is not lost on me: the Israeli Christians and Muslims are the freest in the Middle East by any standard of measure. Let's hope that this remains the case, along with ownership and control of the Jewish & Christians religious places.
References:
http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/10/eastern-christians-and-the-arab-spring.html
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