Please scroll down for photographs of Bethlehem and The Church of the Nativity
Your support of the Bethlehem Catholic artisans below will help
provide income to the Bethlehem
artisans. Bethlehem Bible
Artists is managed by a Franciscan priest from The Church of the Nativity.
Bethlehem Olive Wood Supplies
Bethlehem Bible Artists
Catholic ear, nose and throat surgeon,
Victor Batarseh, is Mayor of Bethlehem.
Mayor Batarseh has held dual U. S. citizenship for 20 years, once living
in Sacramento, California. He has three children, all living in the
U. S. Mayor Batarseh had a clinic in Bethlehem which he closed
upon becoming mayor. Mayor Batarseh is a
socialist, and his top priorities are to build a slaughterhouse in
Bethlehem, fix the streets of Bethlehem for tourism, and build a library
in Bethlehem. Mayor Batarseh is only the third mayor of Bethlehem in
three decades. By law, 8 of Bethlehem's
15 council members must be Christian including Bethlehem's mayor and
deputy mayor.
OliveAid, an organization affiliated
with the Friends of Bethlehem
University and started by three Catholics, Roy Putt, Robert Benson and
Stephen Ballard, is replacing olive trees destroyed by Israel to build
settlements and a wall on Catholic Palestinian land. "The
response we have had from the UK Catholic community particularly in the
Southwark diocese has been fantastic and has enabled us to plant over
1,225 last season. We are now negotiating for additional saplings thanks
to the generosity of OliveAid supporters, and we need to attract
additional funds quickly. We are already negotiating for a further three
sites in non-conflict areas which will give us the capacity to plant up to
5,000 this season," said OliveAid Trustee Stephen Ballard.
Debbie Hill/CNS
Mr. Francis Morat lights a candle at
Saint Catherine Church in Bethlehem
Israel is building a wall through the homes and
land of Catholics in Bethlehem and The Holy Land separating the Way of the
Cross and is confiscating Catholic Church property, including land used by
a Catholic orphanage, and is denying the Church's right to a court hearing
to challenge the taking of Catholic Church property.
Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor of the
Archdiocese of Westminster: "How sad it is that Christians in Bethlehem feel compelled to leave the land
of their birth for foreign lands on account of the political situation in
the Holy Land. How tragic that as a result of all the violence perpetrated
there, the little town of Christ's birth is corralled, blocked in by a
wall and checkpoints. Borders have been redrawn, families have been
separated, and ancient landmarks have been lost to the town. Commerce and
tourism have been decimated, unemployment has led to an exodus of
citizens, most of them Christians."
"This wall must not exist," said Father Michel Sabbah,
the retired Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem referring to the wall which
Israel built separating Jerusalem from Bethlehem. Father Sabbah said
the wall has made Bethlehem an "immense prison."
Getting from here to there in The Holy Land
Travel restriction in Bethlehem
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, upon
visiting Bethlehem in the Holy Land,
said the concrete wall surrounding Bethlehem
will not bring peace. President Sarkozy said of Jerusalem,
"It's a holy city for three faiths; Jews, Christians and
Muslims. Can Jerusalem be for one side and not the other? I
don't think so."
Archbishop Fouad Twal, Latin
Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and President of Bethlehem
University: "My jurisdiction is Palestine, Israel and Jordan, and I
feel a deep sense of responsibility toward people in all of those
countries. Permits. They need a permit to get into and out of Bethlehem,
to go to work, to go to Jerusalem to pray, to go to the airport or the
hospital or to Bethlehem University. Our priests cannot make a
spiritual retreat because they cannot get around the country."
Nativity Housing Project in Bethlehem is a 52-unit complex sponsored by
the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem in which each family pays $10,000 to
$15,000 as a down payment and $250-$350 a month for 15 to 20 years and
then owns the apartment. The land was donated by the Deutsch Order
and the Sisters of the Annunciation. Mortgages are not a part of
Palestinian society so families that were chosen are those Catholics who
would not be able to purchase a house outright. "It's a new life for
us."
Saint Jerome lived
in Bethlehem for the last 34 years of
his life.
Since 1618 the popes have dedicated Good
Friday to prayer and almsgiving to the Catholic community in The Holy
Land.
We wish to thank Father Issa of The
Church of the Nativity and Father
Labib Kobti for permission to use photographs in this section.
Copyright © 1999 Bethlehem.org
Pope John Paul II
Olive Branch
Copyright © 1999 Bethlehem.org
Bethlehem Skyline
Copyright © 2001 Bethlehem.org
Bethlehem Mountainside
Copyright © 2001 Bethlehem.org
The Church of the Nativity
Copyright © 2001 Bethlehem.org
The
Church of the Nativity
Door of Humility
The Church
of the Nativity Christmas Pilgrims
The Church of the Nativity
Procession
Copyright © 2001 Bethlehem.org
The Church of the Nativity Creche
Copyright © 2001 Bethlehem.org
The Church of the Nativity
Birthplace of the Baby Jesus
Copyright © 2001 Bethlehem.org
Inside The Church of the Nativity
Copyright © 2001 Bethlehem.org
Cloister
Copyright © 2001 Bethlehem.org
Grotto of Milk
(Where the First Family rested)
Copyright
© 2003 Bethlehem University
Bethlehem University
30th Anniversary Celebration
October 3, 2003
New President of Bethlehem University
Getting a Master's Degree in Bethlehem Isn't
Easy
Replica of The Church of the Nativity
Handcarved from olive wood by Catholic
Bethlehem artisans
24" x 24" U.S.
$1,400
Admin@bibleartists.com
Salesians in Bethlehem
What a Catholic Christmas gift!
National Geographic Bethlehem
United Nations Report on Bethlehem
Franciscan
Foundation for The Holy Land
