The Anglican Church in Palestine and Israel: Colonialism,Arabization and Land Ownership

This study investigates the history and development of the Anglican Church under the Turkish, British, Jordanian and Israeli regimes. The paper recounts the development of various societies within the Anglican church and their politization, especially in the context of decolonization and the Arab-Israeli conflict over time. Our analysis is strengthened by an examination of the struggle over Church property between the local Arab clergy, the British Church leaders and the Israeli government. We conclude with a discussion of the scope and nature of the political and spatial/legal development of the Anglican Church in Palestine/Israel in the modern era. We stress the unique influence of spatial, political, economic, and political implications, at the local and international levels and situate the history within the general context of the Middle East, colonialism, Church history and local empowerment.     

The Catholic Church in Palestine/Israel: Real Estate in Terra Sancta

This paper traces the history and development of Catholic real estate ownership in Palestine/Israel, uses of the properties, and the impact on the physical and cultural landscapes and on identity formation of the local population. It takes a long-term perspective, beginning with the return, after a short absence, of the Franciscans to the Holy Land in the fourteenth century and ending with the present position of the Catholic Church and the properties of its various sects and orders. It examines the history of the Catholic Church in Palestine/Israel under the Ottoman, British, Jordanian, Egyptian and Israeli regimes. In contrast to the large body of existing scholarship on the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, this examination of the local history of the Catholic Church views it through the prism of land ownership and properties. The landholdings of the Catholics are compared and contrasted with findings of previous studies by authors on those of the Greek-Orthodox and Anglican churches. Special attention is paid to the differences in frameworks, functions and geographic dispersal of the church organs, such as monasteries and educational institutions as well as the property of the local Arab Greek-Catholics. The article also examines the effect of Arabization of the Catholic clergy in relation to the lands owned by the Catholic Church and finds that, unlike other churches in the Holy Land, the Catholic Church has not generally experienced ethnic-related dissent over property.