The inaugural meeting of the APPG on Christianity in the Holy Land
took place yesterday. The new APPG has been established to use the
leadership and influence of Parliament to promote both the heritage
and vital contemporary role of Christianity in the Holy Land. Its
members will seek to ensure the Holy Land remains a place where the
Christian community can contribute to the peace and wellbeing of
the whole society, and where Christians continue to live, flourish
and thrive.
Members of both houses, from four parties, elected Conservative
MP Steve Double as Chair. The Vice Chairs elected were Bishop
Christopher Chessun, (Labour), Brendan O’Hara MP (SNP), (Conservative), and (DUP). The International Community of the Holy
Sepulchre was appointed to provide the APPG’s Secretariat
function.
The meeting welcomed two distinguished church leaders from the
Holy Land, who joined live via video link. His Beatitude,
Patriarch Theophilos III, is the 141st Patriarch of Jerusalem and
the direct successor of St James, the brother of Jesus. Patriarch
Theophilos is acknowledged by the Israeli, Palestinian, and
Jordanian authorities as the senior Christian leader in the Holy
Land.
The Patriarch thanked the officers and members of the APPG,
adding, “we were delighted to hear of the creation of an All
Party Parliamentary Group on Christianity in the Holy Land. Your
support will help the Christian community to flourish and thrive
in the future. On behalf of the Council of Patriarchs and Heads
of Churches in the Holy Land, I thank you for your support.”
Referring to the impact of Covid-19, the Patriarch said, “since
March the Holy City has been strangely still. A year without
tourism has decimated local businesses and devastated families
that have served visitors for generations. As Churches we are
doing all we can to provide aid and relief for the community.”
Also addressing the new APPG was His Grace Suheil Dawani, the
Anglican Archbishop in Jerusalem and former Primate of the
Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East. Archbishop Suheil said
“the UK has long ties with the Holy Land, and has been closely
involved with the church here for many generations. Several of my
predecessors were sent to this Holy City from Lambeth Palace,
just over the river from you in Westminster. The UK’s long
history in the Holy Land is part of our history as the Anglican
Church in Jerusalem.”
announced that the APPG’s plans include a visit to
the Holy Land later this year to meet with senior church leaders
and Christian communities. There are also plans to hold a joint
event with members of the US Congress to strengthen
trans-Atlantic cooperation on the topic.
