Bethlehem Christians Fast Ramadan: Sharing their fellow Muslims the spiritualities of the holy month, Christians in the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem have been observing Ramadan fasting in continuation of a centuries-old tradition of interfaith solidarity.On the other hand, Muslims too usually share their Christian friends their fasting by abstaining from eating cheese, meat and milk, in demonstration of solidarity with the Christians. The tradition was preserved over generations of Muslims and Christians who coexisted in Bethlehem for hundreds of years. Bethlehem has a Muslim majority, but is also home to one of the largest Palestinian Christian communities. In a survey of Bethlehem’s Christians conducted in 2006 by the Palestinian Center for Research and Cultural Dialogue, 90% reported having Muslim friends, 73.3% said that the Palestinian Authority respects Christian heritage in the city, and 78% reported that the emigration of Christians from Bethlehem was due to the Israeli travel restriction in the area.
Posted on: Fri, 11 Jul 2014 15:10:37 +0000
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