Living as a Christian in the West Bank

Occupation, violence, and feelings of being forgotten, reign supreme for Christians in the West Bank, according to the General Secretary of the East Jerusalem Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA).

Peter Nasir, a partner of Embrace the Middle East in his role with the East Jerusalem YMCA, lives in Jerusalem, and told en of the difficulties of life living in the West Bank, where residents are subject to occupying Israeli forces.

He revealed that violence persists between locals and settlers who divide the land, of how residents must pass through checkpoints and gates which separate towns and villages, and of how roads are often closed at short notice by the army, sometimes without much apparent reason.

While much of normal life carries on within the restrictions set by those who occupy the region, such as attendance at schools, cafes and work, years of occupation have “taken their toll” on the church.

He said: “When I got married, there were 200 Anglicans left in Jerusalem. On holidays we don’t fill up half the church that as a child I remember [being] full, with extra chairs needed. When I had my twins, I joked that my family makes up 2% of the church. Sadly, that percentage continues to grow as more and more of my community buckle under the enormous weight of oppression and inequality, and go looking for a better life in strange lands.”

Nasir called on the wider church to support Christians in the West Bank, saying: “As the natives of the land of the Bible, we know to pray for peace and the redemption of misguided souls. Without the local Christian presence in the holy land, the churches will become museums for pilgrimage, no longer churches, for a church is where two people meet in the name of God, not in the building.”