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Interview with Abbot of Dormition Monastery in Jerusalem

Abbot Nikodemus shows solidarity with Christians in the West Bank

"That would be a disgrace for all of us"

Attacks threaten the people of Taybeh in the West Bank. The Christian residents are repeatedly attacked by radical Israeli settlers. Abbot Nikodemus Schnabel calls for solidarity with his fellow believers.

DOMRADIO.DE: Time and again, Christians in the village are the target of hate crimes by radical Israeli settlers. Taybeh is only a small town. Why don't they just leave the few hundred Christians alone?



Nikodemus Schnabel OSB (Benedictine, Abbot of the Dormition Abbey in Jerusalem and the Tabgha Priory on the Sea of Galilee): One could cynically call Christians collateral damage. Ultimately, it affects not only Christians, but Palestinians in general, the overwhelming majority of whom are, of course, Muslims.

The ideology of these radical settlers prevails, according to which the Palestinians are denied their statehood and autonomy, and instead, it is claimed that all this is biblical land and therefore everything that belongs to them is their property. They use Judea and Samaria instead of the West Bank, and they don't even mention the term "Palestinians." This is a provocation to say: "This is our land." This provocation is quite severe.

Abbot Nikodemus Schnabel "I was able to speak to children who are truly afraid."

I was there on Wednesday. When the settlers attack, we're not talking about a clash on the edge of the village, a kind of neighborhood dispute. Rather, the settlers take their cows to the center of the village, to the village center, i.e., to the inhabited area.

That was very provocative. In the center of the village stands a very old church from the fifth century, St. George's Church. It's now a ruin, but it's one of the oldest Christian monuments in the entire Holy Land. The settlers set fire to the church and the cemetery.

They are deliberately spreading fear and terror. I've spoken to children who are genuinely afraid when the settlers come, even riding on horses, herding the cows. That frightens them.

DOMRADIO.DE: As abbot of the German-speaking Benedictines on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, you visited the village on Wednesday. How can your presence help to perhaps reduce this fear somewhat?

Abbot Nikodemus: It was very important to me to say to my Christian brothers and sisters: "We care about you, we are here, I am watching." Germany is not exactly perceived as a country that is committed to the Palestinians and also to the Christians there. That is unfortunately the case. That is why, especially as someone with German citizenship, it is particularly important to me to say: "Your fate is important to me; it interests me even as a German!"

Abbot Nikodemus Schnabel.  It was very important to me to say to my Christian brothers and sisters: "We care about you, we are here, I am watching."

But there are also signs of hope. There are three parishes in the village: a Latin (Roman Catholic), a Melkite (Greek Catholic), and a Greek Orthodox. They're all vibrant. For example, they're currently running a joint ecumenical summer camp for all 155 young people. There's a lot of life there. That's why it gives hope, but it leaves you with mixed feelings. We saw that there are dance and music lessons.

The parish even has its own small radio station. The Taybeh Brewery in the village is also famous. This means that you can see that Christians are excited about the future. But then you also notice that this future is under pressure; they are being terrorized. A major concern, for example, is the harvest. Taybeh is surrounded by olive trees. The harvest is coming in October, and many have said they won't go to their fields. Because in neighboring villages, Palestinians were killed by settlers during the harvest. There's real fear for life and limb just to go to their property and their olive trees. I find that unacceptable, and I actually miss a bit of an outcry against this unbelievable injustice.

DOMRADIO.DE: But at least there have been visits of solidarity from politicians and religious groups, for example from the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa. And you were here this week. What can Christians in Germany perhaps do to encourage and strengthen the Christians in that village?

Abbot Nikodemus: On a next pilgrimage, one could, for example, also visit Taybeh. I always say that a good pilgrimage is not a kind of Disneyland trip where you simply visit the stones, that is, the buildings, the pilgrimage sites, but rather one where you also meet people.

You really have to say that the parishes in Taybeh are extremely vibrant, and you might even be able to celebrate a service there with the Christians or have encounters with the young people or with the priest there. They even run a guesthouse there.

So perhaps you can stay there instead of in some hotel in Jerusalem. This way, you can demonstrate that Taybeh is on the pilgrimage map. That's one thing that immediately came to mind, because it's a beautiful village.

The second thing you can do is support through prayer. I believe in the power of prayer! And the third is to look, simply realize that you have fellow believers in Taybeh, in Jerusalem, in Gaza, and in Tel Aviv. I sometimes have the feeling that Germans and some Christians are a bit on the sidelines of this conflict and say to themselves, we just have the Jewish Israelis and the Muslim Palestinians.

But it's not that black and white. There are Christians on both sides. There are Palestinian Christians, there are Israeli Christians, there are Christians who have Arabic as their mother tongue, there are Christians who have Hebrew as their mother tongue.

Abbot Nikodemus Schnabel

"We should see that this is the birthplace of our faith, and it is fitting for every Christian to look there."

And there are many migrants living there, and there are also many "professional Christians," like me, for example, who speak German, French, or Italian as members of the order. We should see that this is the birthplace of our faith, and it is fitting for every Christian to look there.

DOMRADIO.DE: The main focus is on the situation in Gaza. How could we also draw attention to the Christians in the West Bank?

Abbot Nikodemus: By visiting the area, as I said. Of course, the situation is not comparable to Gaza; there we are currently talking about the threat of death by starvation. You can't get into Gaza; there's no chance of that.

Abbot Nikodemus Schnabel

"I would find it simply tragic if these ancient Christian communities were to disappear without a trace."

But you can go to the West Bank, and you shouldn't let yourself be intimidated, you shouldn't let yourself be fooled into believing it's all dangerous and full of terrorists. You can easily go to Bethlehem or Beit Sahur, but also Taybeh. The Christian towns in the West Bank, in particular, are hungry for visitors, hungry for pilgrims to show that Christians have been living their faith here continuously for centuries.

I would find it simply tragic if these ancient Christian communities were to disappear without a trace and we didn't even notice. That would be a disgrace for all of us.

DOMRADIO.DE: As Christians, we also live on hope, despite everything. What signs of encouragement did you take away from your visit to Taybeh?

Abbot Nikodemus: Definitely the congregation! There are only a few hundred believers, but they display such creativity, such joy in their faith, they are so active! I'm always touched by this, and I think: what a parish, what life, what vitality! The Christians there are excited about the future, they are full of hope. And the problems are not of their own making, but come from outside. That's why our solidarity clearly belongs there.

Abbot Nikodemus Schnabel "The Christians want to live in peace with all their neighbors, including the settlers."

The Christians want to live in peace with all their neighbors, including the settlers. They do this, for example, with their Muslim neighbors in other villages. That's what I always find so incredibly touching, because you don't hear any hatred from them. There are never any radical calls for retaliation or revenge. They take Jesus' commandment to love one's enemy very seriously! The Christians have extended their hand. But those spitting on that hand are the radical settlers around Taybeh.

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