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Palestinian
Christians
Palestinian Christians
have roots, which strike, deep from the early church. Worldwide,
Palestinian Christians
number 400,000 or 6.7 % of a total Palestinian population of 6
million. 51,000 of these
400,000 Palestinian Christians live in the West Bank and the Gaza
strip, while there are
114,000 Palestinian Christians in Israel. The indigenous Christian
population of the Holy
Land numbers 165,000 or 41.3% of all Palestinian Christians
worldwide. The
Christians of the West Bank and the Gaza strip are only 2.9% of the
entire
Palestinian population
in the occupied Territories.
In 1948, as a result of
the creation of the State of Israel, over 714,000 Palestinian became
refugees. 7% or 50,000
of these refugees were Christians, and they made up 35% of all
Christians who lived in
Palestine prior to May 15, 1948.
At present, Christians
have undergone the same measures and processes, which arise
from the occupation.
The Intifada, as a popular uprising, saw Christians and Muslims
engaged in an effort to
end the occupation and achieve independence. The records of
young imprisoned and
martyred are other indications of the attachment to, and identity
with
Palestine and its cause.
In addition, the active involvement and participation of Palestinian
Christians in all
aspects of life in the country is itself a testimony to the love
they harbor for their country and their
fellow Palestinians.
Socio-economic
characteristics of Christians
Education
Palestinians pride
themselves on their educational achievements. It is through this
that they
were able to
rehabilitate their lives and bring up their families.
At present 541,000
Palestinian students are engaged in over 1,700 educational
institutions
in the West Bank and
Gaza Strip, 30.7 per cent of the entire population are at school.
Among Palestinian
Christians, education has been valued for the sense of security,
which it
imparted to the
educated, through acquiring foreign languages and qualification for
employment.
Palestinian Christians
have on average 11.2 years of education per person. The
percentage of Christians
with a secondary certificate, or higher qualification, is almost
twice
the percentage in the
general population, while the percentage of Christians with an
academic degree is close
to three times the general percentage.
Employment and
occupational prospects
Palestinian Christians
tend to predominate in the sector of public services, which includes
such areas as education,
health, and tourism.
This is particularly so
in the central area of the West Bank where over 47.4 per cent of
employed Christians work
in public services, in comparison to 26.3 per cent of the general
population.
Almost 55 per cent of
employed Palestinian Christians work in academic, technical,
managerial and clerical
jobs. By way of contrast, only 20 per cent of employed Palestinians
work in these
occupations. In industry: General population: 37 %, Christians: 21%
Unemployment is a
challenge to the Christian community, more than 10 per cent of the
community aged 65 years
and above are suffering from this phenomenon.
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