Bethlehem Christians Whistling in the Dark
Charles Johnson
Sun Feb 5, 2006 at 11:57 am PST • Views: 213
Bethlehem Christians fear for future under Hamas.
BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AFP) - The shrinking Christian population of Bethlehem is struggling to conceal its fears for the future after the victory for Islamists of Hamas in the Palestinian general election.
The blue skies of a perfect Sunday morning in the birthplace of Jesus Christ failed to lift the gloom among the congregation attending mass at the Church of the Nativity in the centre of the West Bank’s “little town” which now has many representatives from the radical Islamist group in parliament as Christians.Franciscan father Amjad Sabbara was putting on a brave face as he greeted the congregation at the doors of the church which was the scene of an infamous 38-day Israeli army siege in April 2002. [An “infamous Israeli army siege” that was prompted by the takeover of the church by armed Palestinian terrorists. But don’t expect AFP to tell you that. —ed.]
“It’s the result of the democratic process. There is nothing to worry about. We’re waiting to see their projects,” he told AFP. “We have relations with Hamas: They tell us that they are going to respect all the religions. In Bethlehem, we are a good number, half of the population. We have a special status: the Christ is born here. I’m sure they are going to respect that.”
That’s just sad.
Frank says: