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Free short video and
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"No! These are my guests, and this is my house!" The admonition is
delivered to Israeli soldiers attempting to stop a group of
Palestinian women crossing the grounds of a monastery. The messenger
is Father Claudio Ghilardi, a Passionist priest from Italy. His
message is clear: at least as far as the monastery grounds are
concerned, he will not permit the harassment of Palestinians by
soldiers. The soldiers desist as long as Father
Claudio is present. The Palestinians continue on their way,
attempting to cross the monastery and reach Jerusalem on the other
side. The continuation of their journey depends on whether soldiers
are waiting at the exit, but at least they were able to get this
far, thanks to Father Claudio's intervention.
Father Claudio cuts an elegant figure in his long black robe and
matching black beret. He seems weary on this particular day,
however. He relates how he has been chasing Israeli border police
off the grounds and dealing with soldiers all morning. The source of
his weariness can be seen looming in the distance; it is Israel's
"separation wall." An ugly concrete behemoth standing about 30 feet
(nine metres) tall, dwarfing the much smaller
but more aesthetically pleasing stone monastery walls, the
"separation wall" stands poised to invade, as the two gaping holes
in the monastery wall attest. For now, work has stopped only a few
feet from the monastery grounds, thanks in part to the interventions
of both the Italian
consul and the Vatican apostolic nuncio, but much damage has already
been done.
And Father Claudio does
not think that this reprieve will last for very long.
"This is not a barrier,"
he exclaims. "This is a border. Why don't they speak the truth?"
The Santa Marta dei Padri Passionisti monastery is located at the
confluence of East Jerusalem, Abu Dis and Al-Izariyyeh (Bethany),
the latter the biblical home of the sisters Mary and Martha and
their brother Lazarus.
It seems that the
Israeli authorities want to build their wall right through the
monastery grounds, in contravention of the 1997 agreement between
the State of Israel and the Vatican respecting ecclesiastical
property.
Not only will the people
of Bethany, Abu Dis and parts of East Jerusalem be cut from the
rest of Jerusalem economically, but the 2,000 Christians living in
the vicinity of the monastery will lose their spiritual centre as
well.
Father Claudio's church, named for St Martha, is now empty. The
faithful are not allowed to come to the church because it is
situated on the Jerusalem side of the grounds. They can enter the
monastery on the Bethany side but are not allowed, when soldiers or
police are present, to approach the Jerusalem side where they could
conceivably exit. Many of the
Christians who used to fill the church come from the bordering towns
of Abu Dis and
Bethany, and most lack the permits to enter Jerusalem. Due to these
conditions, Father Claudio celebrates mass where they are allowed to
go in a church belonging to the neighbouring Comboni sisters'
convent on the Bethany side.
The monastery forms the
centre of a Catholic "complex" that includes three nearby convents.
The Sisters of Charity run an orphanage for 45 children; the Comboni
Sisters have a school for 38 elementary-aged students; and the
Sisters of Notre Dame de Douleurs in Abu Dis have a rest home for 74
elderly Bedouins. The convents and the people they serve will be cut
off
from each other and from Father Claudio.
On top of all the religious and property issues, there is the matter
of the archaeological importance of the grounds. The monastery is
the site of some large cisterns dating back to Roman times and 12
large tombs belonging to members of the early Jewish-Christian
community, with inscriptions in Aramaic. Some of these finds have
been disturbed or damaged by the activities surrounding the
construction of the wall. "When they came,
they damaged these sites," Father Claudio says. "The government does
not respect the history of this land – a history that is important
to the Jewish people as well."
Much has been said by the Israeli government about its need for a
wall to stop terrorist attacks within its pre-1967 borders. Much has
been written criticizing the placement of the wall in some places
deep within the West Bank, de facto annexing much Palestinian land.
Israel has stated that the "separation fence" or "barrier," as the
government prefers to call
it, is necessary to separate Israelis from Palestinians.
Even if one accepts the
government's argument that the wall is necessary for Israel's
security, most Palestinians can't understand why it has to go
through this area. "There are no Jews here. It's not going to
separate Jews from Palestinians. It will separate Palestinians from
Palestinians,"comments Emad, who currently holds a Jerusalem ID and
can make the
short walk to get to work, but will be unable to do so if the wall
through
the monastery is completed.
And what will the wall do to the dwindling Christian community in
the Holy Land? Christians once made up a thriving and healthy 10-15%
of the Palestinian population. They now are officially only 2%, and
some say that the actual figure is closer to 1%. Building a wall
right through the monastery, separating Christians from their church
and community
services, will only cause the further exodus of Christians from the
Holy Land.
"We have lived here for over 100 years, under Turkish, British,
Jordanian and now Israeli governments, and no one ever tried to stop
the people from coming to pray. This wall will stop people from
coming to church to pray.
Why? It is scandalous,"
protests Father Claudio.
Israel has denied charges that it is trying to force the churches
out, but its recent policy denying most visa applications for clergy
and lay church workers, making it difficult if not impossible for
the churches to continue their work, will also cause erosion in the
Christian community here.
Despite difficulties, Father Claudio vows to stay Driving along the
eastern slope of the Mount of Olives on our way to see Father
Claudio, we pass Beit Fage (Bethpage), where Jesus stopped to eat
some figs on his way into Jerusalem. It is from here that Christians
begin their Holy Week celebrations on Palm Sunday, following in the
footsteps of Christ as he descended from the top of the Mount of
Olives and into the Old City of Jerusalem. Soon, Bethpage will be
cut off from many of the Christian communities outside Jerusalem
because of the wall, making the Palm Sunday procession an endangered
tradition for the local population.
Upon arriving in the area known locally as "Bawabe," we can
immediately see part of Father Claudio's problem. A temporary
concrete wall blocks the road that used to connect East Jerusalem
with Bethany. There is a small opening where, today, a soldier is
checking IDs.
This wall runs
perpendicular with the monastery, meaning that part of the
property is on what would be the Jerusalem side of the wall and
part on the other side. The wall is
covered with graffiti: "Love God, love people;" "Peace comes by
agreement not separation;" and "God leads us to peace." Going
towards Bethany and Abu Dis is not a problem, and the soldier pays
us no mind, nor does he pay any mind to the Palestinian students
crossing on their way to Al Quds University or the many other
Palestinians going in that direction. But he checks all the IDs
of the Palestinians coming into Jerusalem. Those without the blue
Jerusalem ID or the proper permits are not allowed passage.
There is a sea of taxis and mini-vans that serve as shared taxis
here, on both sides of the Bawabe wall. There are also makeshift
stands selling everything from fruit and vegetables to shoes and
t-shirts. These entrepreneurs try to take advantage of the foot
traffic Israel has
created with its plethora of checkpoints; it is a booming cottage
industry of sorts in an area that has an unemployment rate of 60%
or higher. We make our way through the crowd, to enter the seeming
oasis of peace and tranquility that is the Santa Marta dei Padri
Passionisti monastery.
The grounds are actually a beehive of activity. There are soldiers
all over the place attempting to stop Palestinians, and Father
Claudio is intervening on behalf of his "guests." Members of the
Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI)
are acting as witnesses and advocates.
All this in a
beautiful pastoral field dotted with olive, almond and pine trees
that, at this moment, is simply pandemonium.
Mostly, the Palestinians trying to cross are people who work in
Jerusalem but don't have the proper permits. There are also people
crossing to get medical attention, since facilities in some parts
of the West Bank are few and far between. This morning, Father
Claudio was woken up at 4 a.m.
by the sounds of tear
gas being fired by border police in what is essentially his back
yard. Soldiers have been maintaining a constant presence on the
grounds, and recently, the border police have started making
regular appearances as well.
"These people help me when the soldiers are in the area," Father
Claudio says, referring to the Ecumenical Accompaniers. Alexandra
Rigby-Smith, an accompanier from Sweden, was working at the
monastery today. "Many of the people were scared," she said.
"We tried to help them get past the soldiers so they could go to
work, the hospital, university, to see family, etc.
One Bedouin woman was
shaking, she was so nervous We were able to get some people
through, but one pregnant woman, who was on her way to the doctor,
was refused a pass. That was very frustrating."
Father Claudio tells us that a few months ago, soldiers found
explosives on one of the Palestinians crossing the monastery. But
he doesn't see that as a reason for collectively punishing the
entire community. One of the soldiers tells a member of our group
that the Palestinians dug a tunnel below the monastery grounds to
bring explosives into Jerusalem. We inspected the "tunnel", and
there is definitely an opening large enough for a
person to get through, but not much more.
For Father Claudio, it is hardly surprising that people try any way
to get to the other side where they can find work: "The father of
one family know with eight children hasn't worked in one month. I
help them spiritually and I give them some food. Much more than
that, I cannot do."
But Father Claudio does do much more. People see the monastery as a
safe haven. The sick come to him and he takes them to the hospital
in his car, using his status to get around the closures. He has had
to rush women in labour to the hospital as well. Were it not for
him, these women would have had to deliver their babies at home, a
situation that adds to the
infant mortality rate in Palestine. The people call him "abuna" -
our father - even if they are not Christian.
But even Father Claudio is not always able to circumvent the
authorities, and he's not immune from the troubles either. He shows
us a scar on his arm. "This was a gift from the army," he tells
us. "They fired tear gas and it hit me right here."
Father Claudio takes us around the monastery on an impromptu tour,
pointing to buildings owned by the Latin Catholic, Armenian
Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Anglican Churches. Some of the
buildings are used as low-cost housing for local Palestinian
Christians. The wall will separate all of these community centres.
All the while our group
is walking along a dirt path between the rows of olive trees,
Palestinians are scurrying by us in the other direction trying to
cross. Soldiers are stopping them and the ecumenical accompaniers
are advocating for them. When Father Claudio comes by, he tells the
soldiers not to bother the Palestinians and, curiously, they
listen without argument.
Of course, he can't intervene on behalf of every Palestinian who
tries to cross and he can't be present at all times.
"This wall doesn't
respect the human rights of the Palestinian people," Father Claudio
says. "It doesn't respect private property because the Israeli
government takes the land to build it. It is not the land of the
government, it is the land of poor people. What more do they want
from these people?"
Father Claudio gets some help with the many caretaking chores from
another Italian priest from Abu Dis. Otherwise, he is essentially
alone, but it was not always this way. Before the outbreak of the
current Intifada in 2000, there were five priests living in the
monastery with him. They all left because of the fear and
uncertainty caused by the situation. When asked if he will be
forced to leave as well, he replies defiantly: "The only way I
will leave is if they kill me. This is my home. These people are my
family."
Our tour ended at Father
Claudio's church, where the absence of worshippers is symbolic of
the disappearing presence of Christians in the Holy Land.
Located just a few hundred metres away is the traditional site where
the Gospel tells us Jesus called into the tomb of Lazarus and
brought him back from the dead. If the wall is completed, it may
take a miracle of a similar magnitude to bring back the Christian
community here.
Larry Fata, a Catholic teacher and journalist from USA is managing
editor and communication officer of the EAPPI.
A free
short movie (3 min., 50 Mb) featuring Father Claudio is available
at: www.eappi.org
> News & Updates > Catholic monastery could be divided by wall or
click on this Link
Free high resolution photos are available at:
http://wcc-coe.org/wcc/what/international/palestine/abu-dis-photos.html
Media contact in Jerusalem: Cathy Nichols, Phone +972 2 628 9402
The Ecumenical
Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI) was
launched in August 2002. Ecumenical accompaniers monitor and report
violations of human rights and international humanitarian law,
support acts of non-violent resistance alongside local Christian and
Muslim Palestinians and Israeli peace activists, offer protection
through non-violent presence, engage in public policy advocacy, and
stand in solidarity with the churches and all those struggling
against the occupation. The programme is co-ordinated by the World
Council of Churches.
Website:
www.eappi.org
For more information contact: Media Relations Office
tel: (+41 22) 791 64 21 / (+41 22) 791 61 53 e-mail:media@wcc-coe.org
http://www.wcc-coe.org
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