Bethlehem removes Christmas decorations in honor of Gaza ‘martyrs’

The traditional Christmas mass and prayers will still take place, but without Christmas trees or festive lights.

By JNS | | Topics: Gaza, Palestinian Christians
Palestinians march during a Christmas parade outside the Church of the Nativity on the eve of Christmas, Dec. 24, 2022. Photo by Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90.
Palestinians march during a Christmas parade outside the Church of the Nativity on the eve of Christmas, Dec. 24, 2022. Photo by Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90.

The historical Christian city of Bethlehem has decided to remove all Christmas decorations from public places in honor of terrorists killed by Israel in the Gaza Strip, the Bethlehem Municipality said this week.

The decorations were removed “in honor of the martyrs and in solidarity with our people in Gaza,” the municipality announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday.

A spokesperson for the Judean city told The Telegraph that “people are not really into any celebration, they are sad, angry and upset; our people in Gaza are being massacred and killed in cold blood.”

The spokesman added: “It is not appropriate at all to have such festivities while there is a massacre happening in Gaza and attacks in the West Bank.”

The traditional Christmas mass and prayers will still take place, but without Christmas trees or festive lights.

The town of Bethlehem usually attracts thousands of visitors in the run-up to Christmas, as Christian tourists make a pilgrimage to Manger Square and the Church of the Nativity.

Only some 33,000 local Christians remain in the three towns of the Bethlehem area, according to 2022 estimates.

In Bethlehem, only one in five residents is Christian, a sharp decline since the town was placed under Palestinian Authority control in 1995, when 80% of the town identified as Christian.

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2 responses to “Bethlehem removes Christmas decorations in honor of Gaza ‘martyrs’”

  1. Julie Reid says:
    November 16, 2023 at 8:58 pm

    We are in contact with and give support to a Christian family in Bethlehem, one of the few thousands who have not fled. It would be a great encouragement to them to be able to visit Jerusalem, and to visit a church, during this special festive season. I appreciate that this may very difficult to facilitate, for a country at war. On the other hand, it would show support for those [grafted branches] who are not the natural enemies of Israel. If not now, it would be wonderful if plans to grant access visas for visits to the ‘holy city’ could be put in place for these Bethlehem believers for, say, Easter.

  2. psalm100al says:
    November 16, 2023 at 9:13 pm

    The Catholic mass is an abomination to Almighty God as they say the wafer is the actual body of Christ and the wine is His actual blood and this happens at least on a weekly basis under the strange name of transubstantiation!

    The Holy Bible say that Christ died ONCE for all. Romans. 6/10: 1 Peter. 3/18: Hebrews. 9/26

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