AhlulBayt News Agency: Senior Christian leaders in occupied al-Quds have warned that “Christian Zionism” and outside agendas are fracturing Christian unity in the Holy Land and undermining their authority.
In a joint statement released on Saturday, the church leaders singled out political actors linked to the Israeli regime and issued a warning against outside interference threatening the future of Christianity, not only in the Holy Land but across the wider West Asia region.
They cautioned against the actions of some individuals in the Israeli-occupied lands promoting damaging ideologies such as “Christian Zionism,” saying such efforts “mislead the public, sow confusion, and harm the unity of our flock.”
The patriarchs said they were also “deeply concerned” that those promoting these agendas have been “welcomed at official levels both locally and internationally.”
They also called such engagement an interference in the internal life of the churches and a disregard for the pastoral authority vested in al-Quds’ church leadership.
The developments come as a powerful current of evangelical Christianity and right-wing supporters of President Donald Trump in the United States continue to shape political and financial support for Israel, drawing increasing concern from church leaders in occupied al-Quds.
Analysts say these beliefs translate into donations and political backing for Israel’s settlement enterprise, entrenching occupation while marginalizing Palestinian Christians and undermining the historic churches of the Holy Land.
The warning also comes amid growing concern among Palestinian Christians that Israeli policies are accelerating the decline of one of the world’s oldest Christian communities.
A recent report by a committee of senior Palestinian church bodies called for an urgent need to protect Christian communities and places of worship throughout the West Bank, where settler attacks increasingly target churches, people, and properties.
On Wednesday, the report condemned Israeli restrictions that prevent teachers from the occupied West Bank from reaching schools in occupied East al-Quds, warning that Christian education is under direct attack.
The committee warned that the targeting of Christian schools forms part of a broader Israeli policy aimed at undermining Palestinian education and eroding the Palestinian Christian presence in the occupied al-Quds.
It said the measures are designed to exhaust teachers and students alike, weaken community life and entrench Israeli control over the city at the expense of its Indigenous Christian population.
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