Bethlehem: lock put back in Basilica of the Nativity
by Arieh Cohen
AsiaNews.it, Italy
Sept 7 2006
The lock had been stolen and replaced in summer of 2002 by some Greek
Orthodox monks, who thus effectively prevented access to Catholics
and Armenians. Now the "common" one has been restored in its place.
This is thanks to the Palestinian Authority and the new patriarch
Theophilos, and there are hopes that it is a sign of things to come.
Jerusalem (AsiaNews) – The Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land
yesterday published the following statement: "On Saturday, 2 September,
2006, by prior arrangement, the lock was put back in the Main Door of
the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem – which had been illegally
removed from it in the spring or summer of 2002. Present were the
representatives of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem,
the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, and the Armenian Orthodox
Patriarchate of Jerusalem, as well as those of the Palestinian
Authority.
"The Custody expresses its appreciation for the decision of the present
Greek Orthodox Patriarch, His Beatitude Theophilos, of letting the
lock be re-installed, as well as for the firm and principled role
of the Palestinian Authority, which carried out in this matter the
obligation assumed in Article 4 of the ‘Basic Agreement between the
Holy See and the P.L.O.’
"It is the fervent hope of the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land that
henceforth the internationally recognised legal regime of Status Quo,
in those Christian Holy Places to which it applies, will be respected
and observed by all, and that the conduct of all who have part in
governing these Shrines will thus be wrothy of their uniquely sacred
character. Bethlehem is, after all, precisely the birthplace of the
Prince of Peace.
Thus has come to a satisfactory end one of the most serious challenges
to the Holy Places in recent times.
It all started when some Greek Orthodox monks stole the lock on the
main door of the Basilica of the Nativity, and replaced it with a lock
of their own, thus rendering useless the keys held, respectively, by
the Catholic and the Armenian Churches. The theft was discovered on 20
August 2002, and both the Catholic and the Armenian Churches protested
to then Greek Orthodox Patriarch, to no effect. It was pointed out to
the Patriarch that the theft and clandestine substitution of the lock
was a grave violation of the legal regime of Status Quo, threatening
the entire arrangement, by which the three communities (Greek Orthodox,
Catholic, Armenian) share the use of the Shrine. To no avail.
The Churches then addressed a solemn appeal to the Palestinian
Authority, which administers the Bethlehem area, and which has an
obligation under international law, and also specifically under the
Holy See’s "Basic Agreement" with the Palestinians (15 February 2000)
to enforce the legal regime at the Shrine.
The commission appointed by the late Palestinian President Arafat to
see to this, decided already in December 2003 that the stolen lock
should be restored. However, until last Saturday, that decision was
waiting to be carried out.
The well known vicissitudes of the Palestinian territories in the
meantime must have had an important part in delaying by so much
the actual implementation of the decision. However, the passage of
time has also meant that the violently anti-Catholic Greek Orthodox
Patriarch Irineos was meanwhile deposed by his own Synod, for other
misconduct, and Theophilos elected in his place. This made it easier
for the Palestinian Authority to ensure observance of its treaty
with the Catholic Church without resorting to coercive means (which,
at a certain point, if matters were still unresolved, it would have
had both the right and the duty to do).
Indeed, in the end, Patriarch Theophilos himself appears to have taken
the initiative to return the lock, although no doubt thanks, at least
in part, to the constant encouragement from the Palestinian Authority.
The happy resolution of this affair, after more than four years,
is significant for a number of reasons: It will encourage Catholics
(and Armenians) everywhere to support even more emphatically the
right of the Greek Orthodox to religious freedom in electing their
own leaders; in fact, the Government of Israel is still refusing to
"recognise" the canonical election of Theophilos.
There can be little doubt that Theophilos himself has been counting on
such increased support in reversing his predecessor’s anti-Catholic
policy, and finally agreeing to the demand – by the Churches and the
Palestinian government – to return the lock peacefully.
The Palestinian Authority, for its part, has gained merit by
recognising in this case its obligations concerning the Holy Places,
under the ‘Basic Agreement’ with the Holy See, and has thereby given
a positive signal concerning the prospects of the Catholic Church in
reference to the future Palestinian republic.
A "fervent hope" is indeed appropriate that both the more more
eirenic approach of Patriarch Theophilos (so unlike the conduct of his
ironically named discredited predecessor Irineos…) to the Catholic
Church, and the "firm and principled role" of the Palestinian Authority
in relation to its treaty with the Catholic Church, will be consistent
characteristics of times to come.
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