tradiotional site
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the traditional site of the tomb of Jesus
of Nazareth, and regarded by many as the holiest relic in the whole of
Christendom, has once again become the unwelcome theatre of an
unsightly brawl between two brotherly Christian denominations.
Though
not
a
stranger
to
such
flagrant
eruptions,
the
extent
of
the
violence
this
time
repelled
every
one
who
witnessed
the
drama
as
graphically
captured
videos
streamed
it
on
world TV.
Relations
among
the
three
guardians
of
the
Holy
Places
in
and
around
Jerusalem,
the
Latin
Custodia
and
the
Greek
and
Armenian
Patriarchates,
are
governed
by
a
"status
quo"
that
relies
in
turn
on
edicts
issued
by
the
Ottoman
sultans
who
ruled
the
land
for
over
5
centuries.
The
guardians
enjoy
exclusive
proprietary
rights,
guaranteed
by
Sultan
Abdul
Majid,
under
the
"status
quo"
arrangement
which
encapsulates
the
final
and
most
important
pledge,
his
"firman",
which
he
made
over
150
years
ago,
and
which
"defines,
regulates
and
maintains, without change" these rights, according to Jerusalem church sources.
This
declaration
officially
established
the
principle
of
"Status
Quo"
(i.e.
existing
"as
is"
condition)
in
the
Holy
Places,
which
defines,
regulates
and
maintains,
without
change,
the
proprietary
rights
in
the
Holy
Places
granted
exclusively
to
the
three
major
Christian,
thus
making
the
Armenian
Church
equal
in
stature
to
the
Catholic
and
Greek
Orthodox
Churches
despite its relatively small size, the sources said.
With
these
edicts,
or
"firman"s,
spelling
out
in
general
terms,
the
rights
and
privileges
to
be
enjoyed
by
each
Christian
denomination,
any
departure
would
inevitably
result
in
confrontation,
and
if
not
controlled
or
resolved,
the
issue
would
spell
out
into
a
major
confrontation.
The
"status
quo"
covers
every
aspect
of
the
ownership
and
maintenance
of
the
Holy
Places,
including
such
seemingly
innocuous
activities
as
the
number
of
floor
tiles
each
denomination
can
lawfully
sweep.
Sweep
one
more
outside
your
jurisdiction,
and
you
have
committed an unforgivable breach.
One
side-effect
of
the
status
quo
is
the
paralysis
it
imposes
on
some
aspects
of
governance
and
maintenance:
take,
for
instance,
the
case
of
the
ladder
placed
on
a
ledge
at
the
entrance
to
the
church.
It
has
been
lying
there
untouched
for
decades
because
of
the
inability of the guardians to decide who had the right to access it.
The
three
guardians
endeavor
to
keep
relations
among
the
various
Christian
churches
harmonious, but it is a daunting task because of territorial jealousies, church sources say.
The
issue
this
time
was
whether
the
Greek
Patriarchate
had
the
right
to
place
one
of
its
priests
inside
the
Edicule,
the
vestibule
outside
the
entryway
to
the
tomb,
during
a
procession
conducted
by
the
Armenian
Orthodox
church
on
the
occasion
of
the
marking
of
the discovery of the cross on which Jesus was crucified.
Citing
an
1829
firman,
which
stipulated
that
"no
interference
or
interventions
should
ever
be
allowed
to
occur
in
respect
of
the
celebration
of
mass
and
other
processions
of
the
[Armenian]
community,"
the
Armenian
Patriarchate
charged
the
Greeks
with
gross
violation
of its old rights.
"Despite
several
written
protests,"
the
Patriarchate
said
in
a
statement,
"numerous
attempts
to
peacefully
resolve
this
conflict
at
Status
Quo
Committee
meetings,
and
despite
the
most
recent
negotiations"
with
the
Christian
Affairs
Department
of
the
[Israeli]
Interior
Ministry,
as
well
as
Jerusalem's
Old
City
police
commander,
the
Greeks
again
disrupted
an
Armenian
solemn procession, by placing a monk within the edicule.
Outraged,
Armenian
priests
tried
to
physically
prevent
the
Greek
from
entering
the
edicule.
But
dozens
of
Greek
monks
who
had
gathered
prior
to
the
commencement
of
the
procession,
came
to
the
aid
of
their
compatriot,
and
"forcibly
attempted
to
enter
the
edicule," the Armenian Patriarchate said.
Israeli
police
had
to
intervene,
forming
a
barrier
between
the
two
warring
sides,
but
could
not
prevent
the
Greeks
from
attacking
the
Armenian
priests
and
seminarians,
resulting
in bloody scuffles, according to the Patriarchate.
One Armenian monk was briefly retained before being released.
"The
presence
of
a
Greek
monk
inside
the
edicule
is
a
serious
violation
of
the
status
quo
governing
the
Holy
Places,
over
which
the
Armenians,
Latins
and
Greek
Orthodox
share
equal
rights of custodianship, "the Armenian Patriarchate said.
"The
Armenian
Patriarchate
has
made
its
position
clear
that
on
the
feast
of
the
holy
cross,"
which
falls
on
the
fist
Sunday
of
Great
Lent,
Palm
Sunday
and
Holy
Fire
Saturday
(marking
the
resurrection
of
Jesus),
when
they
are
in
procession
of
the
Holy
Tomb,
the
Greeks should refrain from placing their monk inside the edicule," it added.
This was something the Greeks were evidently unwilling to concede.
And
not
until
such
time
as
the
message
of
peace,
mercy
and
love
that
Jesus
of
Nazareth
preached
two
thousand
years
ago,
does
finally
overwhelm
the
heart
and
mind
of
those
who
follow
him
in
Jerusalem,
and
they
acknowledge
their
common
bond
in
Christ's
lovingkindness, will conflict be banned from Christendom's holiest shrine.
(November 11, 2008)