Document
The Executive Committee of the World Council of Churches, meeting by video conference on 20-24 July 2020, takes note of the outcome of legal proceedings in the District Court of Jerusalem concerning the Greek Orthodox Church’s ownership of the Jaffa Gate properties.
The Executive Committee expresses its prayerful solidarity with the Heads of the Churches and Christian Communities in Jerusalem in their efforts to address the implications of this decision. The outcome of these proceedings concerning properties at the entrance of the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem carries a significance far beyond a mere property dispute, impacting the Christian presence in Jerusalem and the Status Quo arrangements in the Holy Land more broadly.
Accordingly, we join with the Heads of the Churches and Christian Communities in Jerusalem in appealing to the government of Israel to act in order to safeguard the integrity of the Christian heritage and patrimony in the Old City, as well as the Holy Sites and the rights of the residents of the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem.
World Council of Churches
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Video Conference
20-24 July 2020