The Christian Communities of Jerusalem and the Holy Land

The Christian presence in Jerusalem has always been diverse and cosmopolitan, encompassing numerous churches representative of ecclesiastical traditions older than many nation states and ethnic groups. Indeed, the city's various Christian communities are administered by three Patriarchs, five Catholic patriarchal vicars, four archbishops and two Protestant bishops. From the end of the Crusader period onwards, these communities have come under the rule of numerous political entities, from the Ottoman Empire through to the British Mandatory Administration and the modern states of Jordan and Israel. The complex interaction of religion and politics, and the involvement of Christians in politics, has been a constant theme in the religious culture of Jerusalem. The essays collected here provide a comprehensive historical, religious and political survey of the Christian communities of modern Jerusalem. Individual essays deal with topics ranging from church-state relations to women missionaries and various expressions of Eastern and Western Christian presence and, taken as a whole, offer a fascinating overview of Christianity in the Holy Land at the beginning of a new century.

"This well-conceived collection of eight essays on various aspects of Christian history and communal life in Jerusalem and Israel is a valuable contribution to a wider understanding of a very complex and problematic political context...I would have no hesitation in recommending the book to anyone interested in Eastern Christianity and the Holy Land. It contains a wealth of information that is not, to my knowledge, to be found in any other study currently available." Robert B. Betts, University of Balamand for The Catholic Historical Review, Washington, D. C.