Current Situation and Future Prospects | Annual Symposium in Memory of Daniel Rosing, Founding Director of The Rossig Center for Education and Dialogue
In the fast changing reality of the last few years, the Christian communities in Jerusalem have faced both old and new challenges – the changing political climate on both sides of the conflict, the return of Christian pilgrimage and tourism, property management and real estate issues, relationships between religious leaders and local communities, the relationship with the state, and economic challenges after the Covid-19 crisis.
In this conference, we will discuss the recent events that have affected and continue to affect the churches and Christian communities in Jerusalem: the ordination of the first female pastor in Jerusalem and the status of Palestinian women in the church; The impact of the death and funeral of the journalist Shireen Abu Akleh on Palestinian Christian society, burning real estate issues, Israeli policy toward the churches in the past, present, and more.
The conference will be opened by the venerable Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who will share with us how the churches deal with the complex reality in Jerusalem, including inter-religious tensions, violence against church members and property damage (recently, the Protestant cemetery on Mount Zion was desecrated).).