FROM THE ANGLICAN COMMUNION NEWS SERVICE:


Earlier this week, Brother Vincent Malcolm, the Principal of Bethlehem 
University spoke to a small gathering in London. Sue Plater was there, and 
drew the following comments out of her notes:

'The mood in Bethlehem is very somber, when usually it is very festive, 
especially just now with the feastdays that end Ramadan. Although it has 
been declared that Christmas has been cancelled, the Franciscans have 
responded to say that festivities may have been cancelled but the spiritual 
meaning of Christmas will still be remembered, and cannot be removed even by 
the Israeli army.

During this time of curfew, we strive to maintain some academic life. We are 
changing the way we teach from the more traditional methods of lectures and 
seminars, to a system that supports students working
at home. When the curfew is lifted for five hours, we usually get notice the 
day before. We announce on TV and in the papers what academic timetable we 
will run, and allowing for one hour’s travelling through checkpoints each 
way for all students and teachers to cram in three hours of work. It is so 
important for the students to meet together - the social value is as 
important as the academic learning, and both are targeted by preventing the 
students from reaching University. The staff and students are all heroic and 
courageous to continue coming through checkpoints, with all the humiliation 
that can entail, to try to keep Palestinian education going. We tell them 
that the Israeli Government wants them to remain ignorant, and
understanding that encourages them to keep going. When they do arrive, there 
is a feeling that the University (which is the biggest employer in 
Bethlehem) is an island of stability in a sea of turmoil.

The Israeli Government is sensitive to media opinion in the West (although 
it sees that it is getting away with so much without criticism), so we ask 
for support in highlighting our plight. We ask you to help us provide some 
hope to our Palestinian students (who are both Muslim and Christian - around 
68% Muslim and 32% Christian in this traditionally Christian area of the 
West Bank), by showing your solidarity with us in our suffering.'

Our suggested action is introduced by a letter from Afif Safieh, the 
Palestinian General Delegate to the UK and the Vatican, to His Holiness Pope 
John Paul II, in which he requests the Pope's help in enabling
President Arafat to attend Christmas Mass in Bethlehem in accordance with 
tradition, and highlights the suffering of the Palestinian people.

O Your Holiness,
Mr Raanan Gissin has been a questionable and controversial spokesperson for 
the Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon for the last two years. Yesterday, 
he simply promoted himself to the position of
spokesperson for God pontificating on who can and who should not attend the 
Christmas Mass in the Church of the Nativity.

President Arafat has declared, years ago, that Christmas in Palestine is a 
national feast for Christians and Muslims alike. His presence at the 
Christmas celebrations will be symbolically a powerful message
of fraternity and hope not only on the local level but internationally at a 
moment when the world in turmoil needs badly such gestures.
The statement of Mr Gissin is a blatant violation of the Status Quo 
Agreement observed in Bethlehem since the 19th century. The presence of the 
official authority at the Christmas Mass has been scrupulously
respected during the Ottoman Empire, the British Mandate, the Jordanian 
rule, the Israeli occupation and since the birth of the Palestinian National 
Authority. Knowing the Israeli governmental attitude to
International Law, I suspect that this is probably an argument to which Mr 
Gissin will be totally insensitive.

The Catholic Church has not been insensitive to the ordeal of the 
Palestinian people and You, Your Holiness, have heard our cry for freedom 
out of captivity and bondage. Receiving Israeli President Katsav
tomorrow be our voice for Peace with Justice. Our Calvary has lasted for too 
long. Let us not feel abandoned by the world.





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