DISCORD IN JERUSALEM.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 473, 3 April 1909, Page 11

DISCORD IN JERUSALEM.

ARABS AND THE CREEK CHURCH. i ' . A THREATENED REVOLUTION. ' ■■ ■ • 1 i t FAR-REACHING POSSIBILITIES. * —- ■ £ _ By H. T. B. Deew. I .'Jaffa Road, Jerusalem, February 11,1909. •'/It '-'is 'not surprising if the world knows ( little of discord in Jerusalem—discord that L at present seems likely to have, very serious \ consequences. A single, telegraph line, and an exceedingly imperfect and intermittent j marine mail service, are the only c.onnec- i tions' the Holy City lias with the outer s world. ' Add to this a strict and jealous Turkish censqrship,. where possible, of outward j news, and an embargo here on the publica- j tion of newspapers, i ' , ' 1 .There-. >have been troubles in Jerusalem 1 since: Christian sects first came into conflict i over holy places, and, indeed, ages before < that; and it seems;inevitable that differences 1 shall' exist so long as sectarianism, Moham- J medanism, and other "isms" exist. • But the t matter of-which I now write is of far greater t moment. More than once it has appeared as i if the city were on the,verge of bloodshed '« and riot; The dispute is primarily between ( the .native Arabs, and tho Greeks in charge < of tho Church of the Holy Sepulchre, but < . there are' other more important issues., Sev- 1 ( eral days' residence, in the city, has enabled I ' me'to. get .right at the root .of the trouble,' t , and,' to appreciate its significance.' To-day, < also,' I had an interview with a" well-in- t 'formed native official,;and from him learned s its-History!'" .' | History; of the Trouble. ' t ;The Ohurclt of the Holy Sepulchre, is, as j many no doubt-know, the-celebrated build- , ing which was erected in the fourth-cen-tury, Ail).', - by the saintly Queen' Helena, < , the mother of Constantino. It stands over j j <ho places .which are -supposed, to have witnessed the crucifixion, burial, and resur- , rection of Christ.' It is the roligious centre of Jerusalem, and indeed of the whole Christian, world. It is the place at which all 1 pilgrims devoutly worship, and which every 1 tourist ."really must do.'' Its control, and £ i" "tihat of all its :fevenues, is in. tho hands of t thV Groek Orthodox Church—and money is •really at the bottom of the present trouble, i ■ tOne requires to delve into tne past to trace 1 .th'e,situation that has arisen. The facts as i supplied 1 by the, official mentioned (and veri--fieii, at other- sources., though so far, .1 be- 1 lieve, " unpublished) are. as follow-When ] Omar .Ben Kitab captured Jerusalem in A.D. j 637, i he received, from the Patriarch" of the i branch of tho Greek Church there.the keys i of the'city;-and-of its holy places. The < Patriarch at that time was , an : Arab, and 1 Christian Arabs filled all, the . priestly., offices, i and'controlled the whole of the. Church's af- i fairs. Seeing .this, Omar . granted ..to'the' ] Church,' under its native- control, :a Co'nsti- 1 tutionl. Omar prayed iri- all the/holy -places 1 in the oity,' an 3 m-each N pkce; where':-he 1 prayed.a mosque now stands. '. -That no ' mosque surplanted- the Churoh of the Holy i Sepulchre is due to the fact that re- < spected the; Christian Arabs, and worshipped i outside their Church. i 'Years-later, when Abdul Fatah took Con- 1 stantinople, he learned . that the best way < to'bring the people of that cit^: to ;submission and quietude, was. to propitiate and 1 gain to. _his side the' Greek patriarch .>': of i Constantinople, who .' exercised : great, • influ- ' ence over -the Greeks.'' This he succeeded .in ■ doing,- and the Gteek Patriarch,' in. return,' 1 secured permission' for Greeks to enter the : Church' at Jerusalem. '.-The'. Arabs'.at Jerusa- i lem were first consulted, and gave their- i consent. From . that time has dated the • gradual accession of Greek influence in. the Jerusalem Church. •As time went.on, the number of 'the Greek monks and priests increased, while the "appointments, from - among the Arab Christians grew less .and less. !TheUArab Patriarch died andi was succeeded by a Greek. Simple in their Christianity and fanatical iij their fervour, the Arabs .dedi- ■ cated property to the Church, expecting ; blessings, ~in return, for themselves and, for their children. In time' the. Greeks ac- ' quired complete government of the Church's affairs, and administered the ac- 1 cumulating property, the Arabs, on the other hand, losing representation, and grow- ! ing poorer arid poorer.' • And now, to-day the Greek Patriarch, the Archbishop, Bishops, and monks, enjoy sole, charge of affairs, while the Greek Arabs are worshippers only, having no voice in matters affecting -the - Church or its finances, and being able to rise only to a minor priesthood. Their Rights) Now, according to Eastern law and custom, an agreement once made, as that between Omar Ben Kitab and the' former Greek Arabs, remains binding for all time. The Arabs now hark back to it and say that" the Constitution was given to them and not to the Greeks. There are, in Jerusalem, live thousand Arab-Greek ' Christians. (Let me here explain that the term Arab-Greeks'" is used because there are also Arab-Latin Christians.) Five years ago they awakened to-their position. ,But until a few, months ago they had been. unable to do anything. Any .movement-' on their part had been nullified b f v the power of the Church, and the susceptibility of the Turkash Government to the jingle of gold. This is no id)e statement. Since the proclamation of the'new Turkish Constitution in July last, however, the citizen of'the Ottoman -Umpire counts himself on' a different footing;-the mind -of the people has comchanged.'' , This' is common' -to the whole'. Turkish Empire. The people are freedom mad! With Oriental extravagance,' , t . he absenco °f details, of the new Constitution, their ideas of their new liberties have , even gone beyond reasonable limits.. One of the first things; the Arab Chnstmns, therefore, did, was to represent to the Greek. Synod that they were now on an equal footing with the bishops and ' -and the, imported' Greeks. Thev went first-ta the Patriarch; arid then to the Archbishop, and demanded their rights., iho deputation was very. large. , and very .demonstrative, throwing' the wty . mto excitement. The -deputation' r&- % agrc , €mc , nt , of , Omar, arid showed that the Greeks had - brought no '.property with them, mor had .they in any way -given ' J? *'1° W l '- They raised no'objectioTto Greeks holding office, but desired'equal representation for Arabs in all matters affecting the priesthood and the control of church property. .Altogether, the deputation .presented 19. demands, which included:'the appointment of an Arab bishop ; equal-voting power in the election of subseqiierit patriarchs:. a school to be' established in which Arabic should be taught, a seminary in which to prepare Arabs for the priesthood; and other educational establishments of a general character. The Patria'ch agreed' to , sWl,°f conditions; but this : the Arabs would not. accept. A Corrupt Rule. ' / Arabs in their arguments against, the /priesthood point to soriie striking things. While the Greeks, they say, bring no money, to tho Church and enter.it almost penniless, their wealth soon Incomes great. The Archbishop, they say, is worth £3,000,000; and yet ho was once a poor Sacriston in the . Church, -the revenue of which he now solely controls!- Let me here mention that.the wealth of tho Church of the ,Holv Sepulchre must be enormous. In Jerusalem,- alone, the. revenue runs into large figures. From Russia come annually at least 20,000 mujik pilgrims, all bringing gifts, some contributing the saving of a pleasureless life-time. Placing the individual offering at one dollar —it. is • considerably more—the result can be calculated. Tho property of the Church in Jerusalem also amounts to one-third of the city.. - And rents are high 1 But it. is calculated that the revonue of the Church from outside Jerusalem is far greater' than that from within; so- an estimate of the total - gives; huge figures. Yet, though the Greek Church does loss than the Latin. Church for its converts, and for the city" generally, its principal convcnt carries a debt of nearly -£200,000. Its bishops, however, aro said to.be worth, at least £20,000 each, and the monks, at a low estimate, £5000. The Ai'abs, alto. liavo watched the meteoric riso

to opulence of men who came hero practically paupers. The owner of a shop outside the Jaffa Gate, a relative of a Church dignitary, who is now rated they Bay at £15,000. came here a shoe-black fifteen years ago. Tnb man who married his nieco was a 61acksmith, but is now worth £10,000. These are only a few of the things that the Arabs publicly throw up at tho Arabs, and which rankle in their ipinds. They feel that they are fceing divested to enrich foreigners. Determined Action. To continue. The Greek Synod would not agree to their demands. Then the Arab Christians from all parts of Palestine and Syria camo together and decided on united action. Tho Patriach, seeing this, declared sympathy for the natives. It is said that at a meeting of tho synod olio of the members,- feeling that the Patriacli was wavering, made a remark that led the former to say. to the synod. "I don't know you! which was equivalent to a dismissal of the whole body. Tho Patriacli was thus .in favour of the natives and the synod against, them, but the Synod refused to bow; to their head. Tho natives then appointed representatives —three from Jcrusa.cm, ana _ one from each of the other Palestinian cities, to a total of twelve—to present a statement to Constantinople. The Patriarch is said to have signed this petition. The synod also sent its representatives to Constantinople, affirming that the Patriarch was inefficient, ;or imbecile. (This is about the only cause for which a Patriarch can be deposed.) Then it becamo rumoured that tho Patriarch had agreed to vacate office; but this tho Arabs would not permit him to do. They could not understand the position, and were suspicious. _ They thought that he was possibly playing into the hands of the synod, while appearing _ to favour their case, that the whole division ■in tho synod was a hoax. Were he to resign, and no fresh appointment be made for a year or two, there would bo no head to grant their demands, and so the matter would he hung up idefinitely. The "young Turk"-is about tired of this way. of solving difficult questions. Others, however, thought the Patriarch genuinely- sympathetic. However, they demanded thht before he vacated their requests ' must be. granted, A ' Riot Threatened. The next thing (early in January last) was that orders came from Constantinople to have the Patriarch deposed, and, if necessary, forcibly ejected from his palace. This action very nearly - precipitated a revolution. The natives gathered, amid scenes of great excitement, in a huge mass around .the Patriarch's house, and refused to allow his removal. A seething mass rushed to the Turkish Governor's house and demanded-the Patriarch's reinstatement. The whole native populace became , a mass of tinder ready \to burst into "flame. The Governor, recognising the seriousness of the position, got/into immediate ' telegraphic communication, with Constantinople, and, after being at the wires from 2 p.m. until '6 o'clock the next morning, he was able to announce that the Patriarch would be . reinstated for three ■ days pending a decision. That day the Arabs turned the, monks out of ,the Greek monastrieg round*, about ithe city, but tho latter wore reinstated, later, by the soldiers. That the monks in the principal monastery (at. the Church* of the Holy Sepulohre) escaped molestation was due to the. strength of its fortifications; and doors. Laten, a further _ telegtam arrived again dismissing tho Patriarch, but finally he was reinstated pending a complete inquiry. The. Arabs, meanwhile, took possession; of the Patriarch's house, fearing' his removal, and refused, to leave it. They still occupy [it. They, took their 'families there and made it their home. ,T|iey swore solemnly -to ;die before'they would ;permit the- Patriarch's removal. More than once I entered the diior of the place and saw them there. 'The Arab Greek Christians—as also the Latin Arabs —receive daily allowances and rent-free rooms from the Church, and the Greek Synod thought to starve them into submission by withholding this charity. But though the majority are very poor, they refused to bo moved. , ' A Demonstration. . •'< On January 9 a commission, with Nazim Pasha, Governor of Damascus, at its head, was set up to go into the dispute. On Monday last (February 8) the members arrived here by train, from Jaffa, and the event was the occassion .of a great demonstration. Great preparations has been going on. Crowds flocked to the station, and about 20,000 lined the streets to the city. Soldiers defiled along a portion of the route. A party of Young Turks headed an excited procession,' which, carrying flags,- emblems, etc., went ahead of the commissioners' carriages. Two or three speeches were . made en" route. "Vive la Constitution!" was the tenor „ of the cries, and of the inscriptions -.on the banners. At such times the Oriental becomes' absolutely delirious with- excitement, and the scene on the long, sweeping street to the City of Zion, its length painted many striking colours with the bright, robes of the town and country populace—Jew, Turk, and Bedouin—can be better imagined than described. Such sights", and such sounds, dre not forgotten; easily. -Tourists arriving by the same train had a trying time, finding the way blocked for. an hour, and not readily understanding the position. I viewed the scene with a sturdy Boer fronj South Africa, and felt safer under his protection.

More Serious Complications.

Thus far the quarrel to the reader wouldappear to .be straight-out between the Greeks and the-Arabs. But there are far. more serious aspects. In the-first place, this portion of the Turkish Empire is fighting for its rights under -the new Constitution. As I have said, the-people" are determined to be free. The whole Turkish dominion is watching the outcome. -Is the will of : the people to, be considered, or are bribery and fyranny 'still--to -continue triumphant? This-is the question of the Young Turk \ (which torm also includes Young Arabs). This morning I heard a fine, intelligent - Arab, recently educated- at Cambridge, remark, to an American gentleman that he and'others were prepared to give .their-lives, if needs be, in order that greater bloodshed should be averted in the future. This will show, .perhaps more forcibly than words, that the lexers of the movement are not all ignorant natives. The Arab and the clever Jew are both Semitip and closely related.

But there is a,still more serious complication, serious -in its political aspect. Russia has been endeavouring- for some time to have a table placed in the-Church of the: Holy Sepulchre on which the offerings of her numerous pilgrims might bo laid. . This, huge.revenue^would thus be secured to her,, instead of going to the Greeks as it 'at preksnt does. Russia's sympathies are said to be with the Arabs,'and a gift of one million roubles, which she. made a week or two ago to be spent, in their education in Damascus, is interpreted as an astute move to secure their goodwill, and. as a tacit expression of co-operation. It _is also asserted by the Greeks that Russian gold has' been freely circulated among the Arabs. One monk vehemently declared to an acquaintance of 'nine that the "Commission had been baptised in Russian gold" 1 Turkoy can sco that if the Arabs are allowed to win in tho present dispute they will publicly give Russia the table. Having gained this inch, Russia, in > accordance with her old policy, would not bo long in asking for an ell, and then strained relationships between tho two countries would ensue, and Russia might get the : lot. Indeed, •if the Arabs secured equal representation - on the synod, why. should not Russia,-'through thom, dominate the church? Tho;Greek monks have shown their hatred by throwing .carbolic acid from the roof of their convent at the Russian Consul, slightly injuring him, and partially blinding two soldiers. i

rhen again, Turkey cannot lightlv offend 7,000,000 Greek subjects.' Her Greek populace are ever on tho alert to turn her against her enemies that they in the embroilment might obtain long-desired retaliation. Three months ago. they led the demonstration in Turkey, against Bulgaria, and for which many of-them were quietly imprisoned, and tlius silenced. A, gontleman; residing at that time in Constantinople, is my informant. The Greek Consul was a fow days ago recalled from Jerusalem, and replaced, the-reason being that ho,had neglected to take active interest in the present matter, and had failed to keep his Government ac-

quainted with tho progress of events. His successor lias openly declared for tho Synod. On tho other hand, Turkey has also much to fear should tho Arabs not obtain satisfaction. They are determined to fight, and dio if need be, for their rights. The Mahomodan Arabs are in sympathy with their Christian brothors, though tneir main object in this is 'Hoot."' Bedouins and Arabs from beyond tho Jordan, and from all parts of Palestine, have asked to be informed of tho progress of events, so that they may' come in should there be trouble. When tno climax occurred over tho dismissal of tho Patriarch, many started for tho city. Som6 actually arrived here, armed to tho teeth, but tho trouble was then temporarily ovor. Tho Government are well prepared for trouble, having 2000 soldiers, here, instead of tho usual 400 or 500. It is believed that' one reason for the delay of the Commission of Inquiry was that soldiers might bo quietly brought here. This certainly has been done. Naturally as little as possible has been circulated in order that the tourist season—which is now beginning— shall not suffer, but. even the tourist who is usually oblivions to all but " tho sights," can see that events are moving. It is the topic at all dinnor _ boards. Still there is little cause for anxiety on the tourists' behalf— especially, in the British tourists—since tho Arab and the Turk are. very friendly disposed towards us. Tho only danger is that should a few reckless shots be fired, and a soldier or two be wounded, fearful and blind retaliation with its .usual consequences might result, as the Turkish soldiers are mostly undrilled, and undisciplined, and raw levies,' though fino, dirty, and good-natured fellows. It is natural; therefore, that old residents here, who can size things up, should feel some anxiety.

It is ■ expected that tho • Commission will conclude its sitting this week, so possibly an early climax will be reached.