October 20, 1999
Proposed mosque in
Nazareth brings Christian outcry
___JERUSALEM (RNS)--In an unprecedented appeal, the heads of the major Christian church denominations in the Holy Land have written Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak expressing opposition to Muslim proposals to construct a large mosque directly in front of Nazareth's Church of the Basilica.
___The Christian leaders asked Barak to take "urgent steps" to resolve the dispute.
___"We believe that the place currently proposed for the building of a mosque, besides being a government-owned property, is not compatible with the larger vision of peace and harmony amongst all the faith communities in Nazareth," the letter said. It was signed by the patriarchs of the Greek Orthodox, Armenian and Latin church in the Holy Land, as well as by the Vatican's official representative.
___The land sits directly along Nazareth's main thoroughfare in front of the Church of the Basilica, one of the most important Christian sites in the Holy Land. Christian tradition holds that the angel Gabriel announced the birth of Jesus to Mary at the site.
___The empty land parcel, in state custody since the 19th century Turkish Ottoman period, had been slated for development as a public plaza as part of Nazareth's urban renovations for the year 2000. But local Muslim activists seized the property nearly two years ago.
___The activists erected a large tent mosque on the site and refused to move out, demanding a multi-story mosque be constructed on the land.
___Last Easter, a festering dispute exploded in violent Muslim-Christian clashes in Nazareth. Both Muslims and Christians now fear violence could again erupt as Christmas nears, and the sectarian tensions could spread to other mixed Muslim-Christian communities, such as Bethlehem.
___The joint letter by Christian church leaders to Barak on the conflict is a highly unusual display of unity in a community marked by centuries of internal rivalry. Even more unusual is the fact that the signed and sealed document, dated Sept. 11, has now been made public.
___An Israeli government panel decided Oct. 13 that the mosque and a pilgrims' plaza are to be constructed side-by-side. Israeli Minister of the Interior Shlomo Ben Ami said the proposal would "honor the desire of Muslims to create a mosque and also the desire of the city of Nazareth for a millennial plaza."
___But rather than becoming a hoped-for symbol of Christian-Muslim friendship, the construction plan could inflame new Muslim-Christian tensions in the Holy Land and trigger a diplomatic crisis between Israel and the Vatican on the eve of the millennium.
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