Sacred Jerusalem church shut after dispute with Israeli authorities

Pilgrims and journalists gather in the yard of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalems Old City Pic PTIHoly Sepulchre the sacred church in Jerusalem was on Sunday shut after a dispute between Christian leaders in the holy land and Israeli authorities over the future of multiple churchowned properties and lands that Christians say should be protected by international lawThe move at the site that each day draws thousands to the place where Christians believe Jesus was crucified buried and later resurrected comes after the Jerusalem municipality began collecting taxes on church properties in the cityAccording to the municipality the churches owe more than 185 million on certain properties used for commercial purposesThe closure is a response to proposed legislation that could block the churches from making commercial deals with investors on land they leased longterm to the Israeli government nearly 70 years ago The Washington Post reportedIn front of the churchs bolted wooden doors the leaders of the Greek Orthodox Catholic and Armenian churches in a media briefing said Israel was waging a systematic campaign against the churches and the Christian community in the Holy Land in flagrant violation of the existing status quoRecently this systematic and offensive campaign has reached an unprecedented level as the Jerusalem municipality issued scandalous collection notices and orders of the seizure of Church assets properties and the bank accounts for alleged debts of punitive municipal taxes the church leaders saidThe leaders said the step breached agreements and international obligations by Israel towards the church and it seems as an attempt to weaken the Christian presence in JerusalemThe closing of the churchs doors comes after US President Donald Trump decided to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy cityLocal Muslims and Christians have said that such a move could upset the religious balance in Jerusalem a city holy to all three religionsPalestine has said the formal recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital and transferring the embassy there makes it impossible for the US to be a fair broker in any future peace process between Ramallah and Tel AvivTrump on December 6 lauded Israel for building a country where Jews Muslims and Christians and people of all faiths are free to live and worship according to their conscience and beliefsThe latest dispute between church leaders and Israeli lawmakers appears to be a litmus test for thatThe Israeli parliament on Sunday agreed to hold off discussing the legislation to ease tensions with the church leaders and find a compromisePalestine Liberation Organisation Secretary General Saeb Erekat however said the dispute showed the dramatic reality of the Palestinian people in Jerusalem and particularly of our churchesMost of the Christians in Jerusalem Israel and the West Bank are of Palestinian heritageIts time for Trump and his administration to realise the consequences of their encouragement for the Israeli policies of occupation and exclusivity in Jerusalem Erekat saidJerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said the new taxation policies would not affect the churches and would cover only properties belonging to church authorities that are used for commercial purposesIn Jerusalem all are equal under the law Christians Muslims and Jews alike The Church of the Holy Sepulchre as is the case for all of Jerusalems churches synagogues and mosques is exempt from municipal taxes Barkat said in a statement adding hotels and office spaces owned by various churches are not exempt from municipal taxes regardless of their ownershipRachel Azaria the Israeli lawmaker behind the legislation said her bill was not designed to take away property belonging to religious institutions but focused on large tracts of land leased by church authorities to Israel after the states creation in 1948Several years ago it was revealed that the land upon which hundreds of residential apartment blocks and national institutions sit was sold by the Greek Orthodox Church in milliondollar commercial deals to private developers If approved by parliament the law will confiscate the lands sold by the church in private deals and prevent similar transactions in the futureThis is not about religion this is about money said Fleur HassanNahoum a member of the Jerusalem City Council who helped draft the legislation The church is trying to profit in the millions on the backs of thousands of Jerusalem residents who might lose their homesGreek Orthodox Church leaders in Jerusalem also have been at odds with their own followers who have accused Patriarch Theophilos III of selling off church property without their consentTheophilos in an earlier interview had said that he had no choice but to sell or lease land held by the church to finance its daytoday business in Israel and the Palestinian territories as well as in Jordan and Qatar all areas under his jurisdictionCatch 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