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12
FRIDAY, MAY 18, 1990
Christian Quarter
Conginued from Page 7
tional institutions, com-
pulsory closure of on
the Muslim holy days, a cur-
riculum of Muslim teachings,
and the building of mosques
next to churches to curtail
Christian expansion. Israeli
Christian Arabs were barred
from access to holy shrines in
the quarter and East
Jerusalem residents were for-
bidden to cross into the
western sector of the city with
its various Christian institu-
tions. These religious infr-
ingements led to a steep
decline in the Christian
population of the Old City.
Yet, not once during that
period did church officials call
for the closure of the holy
shrines.
Those who speak of
religious tolerance under
Jerusalem's previous rulers
have obviously forgotten Jor-
dan's destruction of the
Jewish quarter and desecra-
tion of Jewish holy places as
well. Denying Jews access to
the Western Wall and to
religious, cultural and educa-
tional sites on the Mount of
Olives and Mount Scopus, the
Jordanians also embarked on
a campaign of mass desecra-
tion of synagogues, schools
and cemeteries.
Against this background,
one must question the
motivation of this current
outcry. Is the issue at hand
truly concern for religious
freedom or one of political ex-
ploitation? Unsurprisingly,
Palestinian activists im-
ediately rallied to the cause
and took an active role in the
rioting which occurred. The
intifada leadership called for
a general strike to protest the
Jewish presence in the Chris-
tian quarter and the PLO of-
ficially took the matter to the
United Nations. Arab League
spokesman Clovis Maksoud
accused Israel of directing
Soviet immigrants to the
quarter in order to displace
Palestinians.
Indeed, church officials
have acknowledged that
Muslim pressure to become
involved in the Palestinian
uprising is strong. Nationalist
pressures and fear of reprisal
have prevented Christian pro-
test of the widespread
Muslim buying of church-
owned property in the Chris-
tian quarter. Many have
responded by fleeing the area.
Summing up the situation,
one senior church official
said, "If we don't get rid of the
Jewish settlers, we will be ac-
cused of collaborating with
Israeli authorities."
In the final analysis,
Israel's action was wrong but
it certainly does not merit the
vicious allegations of its hav-
ing endangered the rights
and lives of Jerusalem's
Christian population. The in-
cident, after all, represents a
single transgression in
Israel's long record of preser-
ving religious harmony in
Jerusalem. One must unfor-
tunately conclude that those
seeking to escalate Israeli-
Palestinian tensions have us-
ed the delicate religious
balance in the Holy City for
less than holy objectives.
❑
I NEWS I
European Gay Jews
Urged To Organize
Amsterdam (JTA) — "It's
hard to be a Jew," the old
aphorism goes.
It's harder still if you
happen to be lesbian or gay.
For that reason, the 120
people from eight European
countries who took part in
the second European Con-
ference of Lesbian and Gay
Jews here April 27 to May 1
stressed the need to
organize.
They believe in another
adage: In unity there is
strength.
Their conference slogan
was "Bond Beyond Boun-
daries," and in that context
they are trying to set up na-
tional Jewish gay and les-
bian organizations all over
Europe.
They presently exist only
in Holland and England.
The delegates from those
countries succeeded in con-
vincing conference par-
ticipants from France and
the German-speaking coun-
tries to form their own in-
dependent movements, ac-
cording to Xandy Buys, a
board member of Shalhomo,
the Dutch Jewish lesbian
and gay organization.
Shalhomo, which hosted
the conference, functions in
one of the world's most
broad-minded societies with
respect to differing lifestyles
and sexual preferences.
But the organization
struggled for 10 years before
gaining acceptance from
Dutch Jewry.
According to Buys, "You
could say Shalhomo is
tolerated, not integrated
amongst the Dutch Jews."
"We are accepted by pro-
gressive people, but support