Jerusalem, February 26, 2018
Photo: catholicherald.co.uk The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is closed to visitors for the second day in a row today. The church, the holiest point in Christianity, encompasses both the sites of Golgotha where Christ was crucified, and His tomb where He resurrected from the dead on Pascha Sunday. The Holy Sepulchre is usually a worldwide pilgrim and tourist attraction.
The decision to close the church was made by His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate, the Roman Catholic Custos of the Holy Land Francesco Patton, and Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem Nourhan Mannougian in response to “scandalous collection notices and orders of seizure of Church assets, properties and bank accounts for alleged debts of punitive municipal taxes,” reports the site of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem.
The message also notes that the decision was in concert “with all Heads of Churches in the Holy Land.” The site of the Russian Spiritual Mission in Jerusalem reports that the church was officially closed at 12:30 PM on Sunday, with Pat. Theophilos reading out the statement jointly-prepared by the Orthodox, Armenian, and Catholic Churches.
The church is to remain closed for an indefinite period of time, Igumen Nikon (Golovko), the Secretary of the Russian Spiritual Mission told TASS. He also stated that this is the first time in history, “as far as we can remember,” that the Sepulchre has been closed.
The message states that this move by the city of Jerusalem violates the long-standing status quo which guarantees “the rights and privileges of the Churches,” and which is seen as “an attempt to weaken the Christian presence in Jerusalem.” However, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat has stated that the churches of Jerusalem owe more than $180 million, and “We will no longer demand the residents of Jerusalem to bear this burden and subsidize this huge debt,” reports RIA-Novosti.
The various Christian denominations in the Holy Land are required by city authorities to pay municipal taxes on all real estate, such as hotels, and commercial and office premises, except the churches themselves. The authorities have already begun to arrest some church accounts. Historically, Churches were not taxed at all, but between 2003 and 2006, Israel legislated for a tightening of tax policies, although the Churches were able to legally lock the implementation of these regulations, according to the Russian Spiritual Mission.
“Whether there is a political or religious motivation here is hard to say, but what is happening is wrong and offensive,” said Archimandrite Immanuel (Atadzhanyan) of the Armenian confession in Jerusalem. “Throughout its history, for example, during the Ottoman Empire, Christian Churches in the Holy Land were oppressed and many lost their property… What is happening now is happening in a period of democratization, freedom of speech, and the internet. It is ugly, bad, and incorrect in regard to the churches,” he stated.
However, MK Rachel Azaria (Kulanu), who initiated the given legislation, has said she “understands that the church is being pressured, but their land will remain theirs—no one wants to take it from them ever. My bill is about what happens when the rights are sold to a third party,” reports The Jerusalem Post.
The bill is intended, she explains, to stop lands currently under lease to churches from being sold to private investors. “The low price at which entire neighborhoods were sold shows that it was a speculative deal. In this situation, the Patriarchate is irrelevant, because its land sold to private builders,” she said.
The future is thus uncertain for residents who are living on Church properties. “The greatest victims in this are those impoverished families who will go without food and housing, as well as the children who will be unable to attend school,” the statement from the Churches reads.
“May the Holy Spirit answer our prayers and bring a resolution to this historic Crisis in our Holy City,” the statement concludes.
Read the entire statement at the site of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem.
