News

Sun Jun 11, 2006 6:05 am (PST)
Church Desecrated in Israel.

The Orthodox Christian Church in the predominantly Jewish town Migdal Ha'emek (a former Palestinian village of Majdal near Nazareth) was attacked, its icons vandalised and the tombs of priests desecrated. The church was built in 19th century but lost its worshippers in 1948, when the Jews expelled the Christian population of the Palestinian village Majdal and repopulated it with new immigrants. However, last year the church was repaired and the services recommenced as many of new Russian immigrants increasingly turn to Christ. The church priest and worshippers received many threats from the local Jewish community led by Rabbi Grossman. The church was attacked a few times in the past, and Israeli media reported on it, but the recent pogrom is a new step on the scale of anti-Christian violence.

While every graffiti on a wall of a synagogue anywhere in the world receives full (and justified) coverage and condemnation of the US President and of the UN Secretary General, the desecration of an Orthodox Church in the Jewish state attracted little publicity, and was not condemned by the Jewish leaders, said Archbishop Theodosios Atallah Hanna, a leading Palestinian cleric of the Orthodox Church, in a statement condemning the attack. Archbishop Atallah called upon the Jewish religious and civil leaders to dissociate themselves from the pogrom and bring the vandals to justice. The worshippers have little doubt that anti-Christian instigations of Rabbi Grossman are connected to the assault, as he was on record of demanding the church to cease its services "in the land of Jews" as he put it. The church is not connected to electric grid and has no running water, the city did not even allow to put up a fence or guard. The Israeli authorities are too lenient to desecrators of Christian shrines, said the Archbishop.

Characteristically, the Haaretz newspaper carried recently an article Jews for Jesus are Evil, containing threats towards the immigrants who converted to the Christian faith.

For Photos go to http://newsru.co.il/israel/09jun2006/temple.html