An edifice beset by unedifying rivalry

The Church of the Holy Sepuchre in Jerusalem is purported to be the place where Jesus Christ was buried. The site of the tomb is covered by an edicule or shrine, erected beneath the dome of the basilica.




The Church is divided between various Christian churches in terms of an arrangement, or firman, drawn up during the rule of the Ottoman Turks over the Holy Land. Fiercely-guarded prerogatives of each church are the subject of heated debate, and there have been actual battles between devotees of different churches over perceived slights and insults. Some recent examples:

On a hot summer day in 2002, the Coptic monk who is stationed on the roof to express Coptic claims to the Ethiopian territory there moved his chair from its agreed spot into the shade. This was interpreted as a hostile move by the Ethiopians, and eleven were hospitalized after the resulting fracas.

In another incident in 2004 during Orthodox celebrations of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, a door to the Franciscan chapel was left open. This was taken as a sign of disrespect by the Orthodox and a fistfight broke out. Some people were arrested, but no one was seriously injured.

The most recent of these incidents occurred on April 20, 2008 (Palm Sunday), where a brawl broke out due to a Greek monk being ejected from the building by a rival faction. Police were called to the scene but were also attacked by the enraged brawlers.

Another demonstration of denominational intransigence is the famous 'immovable ladder'. It was put up to aid with repairs over the main entrance to the Basilica before 1852, when the current firman took effect. Since the denominations haven't been able to agree on who should take it down, it's still there! It can be seen in this photograph from 1885 (ringed in red - click the picture for a larger view):




and in this picture from 2005, 120 years later:




This denominational wrangling is now threatening the fabric of the church, according to a BBC report.

A recent survey says that part of the complex, a rooftop monastery, is in urgent need of repair, but work is being held up by a long-running dispute between two Christian sects who claim ownership of the site.

. . .

The Deir al-Sultan monastery was built on part of the main church roof more than 1,000 years ago.

The modest collection of small rooms has been occupied by monks from the Ethiopian Orthodox Church since 1808.

But a recent engineering report by an Israeli institute found that the monastery and part of the roof were "not in a good condition" and that parts of the structure "could collapse, endangering human life".

Ownership of the monastery, however, is hotly disputed between the Ethiopians and the Egyptian Coptic Church, and the dispute is holding up much-needed repair work.

Although the Ethiopian monks have lived there for more than 200 years, after losing many of their rights within the main church, the Copts were in overall control of the monastery.

From a vantage point overlooking the disputed monastery, I discussed the "situation" with Father Antonias el-Orshalamy, General Secretary to the Coptic Church in Jerusalem.

"The Ethiopians were always there as our guests, but then they wanted to take control," says Father Antonias - referring to the night in 1970 when Coptic monks were all attending midnight prayers in the main Sepulchre church.

With the help of Israeli police, the locks in the Deir al Sultan monastery were changed and the keys given to the Ethiopians.

Subsequent Israeli court rulings, ordering that control be handed back to the Copts, have effectively been ignored - drawing accusations that Israel has shown political bias in favouring the Ethiopians over the (Egyptian) Copts.

Whatever the political and religious arguments, the Ethiopians remain in control of the ancient monastery and refuse to budge.

They will not entertain any suggestion that the Copts should have any say over repairs to the monastery and rooftop courtyard.

In that vein, no one from the Ethiopian Church would speak to us.

. . .

Father Jerome Murphy O'Connor is a professor at the Ecole Biblique in Jerusalem.

"The whole spectacle is unedifying and totally un-Christian in nature", says the affable Irish priest, who has witnessed all sorts of church disagreements during his 40 years in the city.

"I'm not hopeful - either for peace in the Middle East or for peace in the Holy Sepulchre," laughs Father O'Connor.

The impact of age and of so many pilgrims visiting the rooftop monastery and the Sepulchre Church is taking its toll.

While the main church is said to be structurally sound, many parts of the roof in particular are in need of extensive repair.

The Israeli government says it will pay for the work to be carried out if the Copts and Ethiopians can resolve their differences. But after decades of hostility neither side is rushing to compromise.

Personally, I'm disgusted by the lack of Christian principles displayed by all sides. I seem to recall Jesus driving the money-changers out of the Temple. Perhaps it's time someone did the same to all the churches, denominations and sects bickering over the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Maybe it should be run by a single, unified, non-sectarian management authority, perhaps affiliated with no church or religious denomination at all. Such an authority couldn't handle matters any worse than the present idiots, after all!

This is the sort of nonsense, like Fred Phelps of the Westboro Baptist Church, or Jim & Tammy Bakker and their PTL Club and Heritage USA theme park, that gives Christianity a bad name.

Peter