The newly elected mayor of the Palestinian city of Bethlehem had the opportunity to greet Pope Leo XIV after the general audience.
The mayor, who is a Christian, shared with the Pope one of his main concerns, as he explained to Vatican media:
Today, only 168,000 Christians remain in the Holy Land, while there are over 4 million Palestinian Christians around the world. That alone shows the pressure Christians are under.
For decades, the region has experienced a Christian exodus. In fact, Christians now make up only 2% of the population.
The situation has worsened with the escalation of conflict in the area since October 7, 2023. Continuous bombings and violence have forced many to flee their homes, further reducing the Christian population.
However, the root of the problem is not new. Just ten days before the war erupted again, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem analyzed the situation of Christians in the Holy Land in an interview with this outlet:
September 27, 2023
Card. Pierbattista Pizzaballa
Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem
The motivation—the reason for this exodus—is logically tied to the political situation in the Middle Eastern countries, which in some cases are more virtual than real, as they are unable to control their own territory and live in extreme poverty. In that context, poverty is nothing new, but the prospects for the future are very fragile, very weak. They're not visible, and so faith in any kind of change is fragile and weak—and that makes emigration easier. It’s not just Christians who emigrate. Everyone does. But because Christians are few, their presence in these lands becomes even more complicated.
Now, the mayor of Bethlehem has once again brought the issue to the Pope’s attention. It’s not the first time he’s done so. Upon taking office, he wrote a letter to the pontiff asking for prayers and to send a message of support and hope to the community.
Trans. CRT
