Christianity in Israel

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Christianity in Israel 9th Station of the Cross on the Via Dolorosa procession route in Jerusalem. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the background is venerated by Christians as the site of the Burial of Jesus . Christianity is one of the main religions in Israel , third by size, and is practiced by 177,000 people living in Israel (2.0% of the population) as of 2020. 77% of these followers are Arab-Christians , who are mostly adherents of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church (60% of Arab Christians). 42% of all Israeli Christians are affiliated with the Melkite Greek Church, and 30% -32% with the Orthodox Church ; smaller numbers are split between Latin Rite Catholics with 13% of Christians, about 25,000 Russian Orthodox Christians ( Russian Orthodox Church ), about 15,000 Arameans (including 7,000 Maronites ) who adhere to the Maronite and Syriac Churches, 3,000 to 10,000 adherents of Armenian Churches, 1,000 Assyrians affiliated with the Assyrian Churches, a community of around 1,000 Copts , being registered as "Arab Christians", though their Arab identity is disputed , and small branches of Protestants. Ten Christian churches are formally recognized under Israel's confessional system, for the self-regulation and state recognition of status issues, such as marriage and divorce : the Armenian Apostolic Church , the Armenian Catholic Church , the Chaldean Catholic Church , the Episcopal Church , the Greek Orthodox Church , the Latin Church , the Melkite Greek Catholic Church , the Syriac Catholic Church , the Syriac Maronite Church , and the Syriac Orthodox Church . However, the practice of religion is free, with no restrictions on the practice of other denominations. There are approximately 300 Christians who had converted from Islam according to one 2014 estimate, and most of them are part of the Roman Catholic church. A certain number of Israelis also practice Messianic Judaism —usually considered a syncretist form of Christianity. The number of Messianic Jews in Israel is estimated at around 20,000. They are mostly classified "without religious affiliation" rather than Jewish or Christian. Israeli Christians are historically bound with neighbouring Lebanese , Syrian , and Palestinian Christians . The cities and communities where most of Christians in Israel reside are Haifa , Nazareth , Jish , Mi'ilya , Fassuta and Kafr Yasif . Christian Arabs are one of the most educated groups in Israel. Maariv newspaper has described the Christian Arabs sector as "the most successful in the education system", since Christian Arabs fared the best in terms of education in comparison to any other group receiving an education in Israel. In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Israel Central Bureau of Statistics . 2019-12-23 .

The holy sites of Jesus Christ and the places living Christians Christianity ( ; ) is the third largest religion in Israel , after Judaism and Islam . At the end of 2022, Christians made up 1.9% of the Israeli population, numbering approximately 185,000. 75.8% of the Christians in Israel are Arab Christians . Christians make up 6.9% of the Arab citizens of Israel . Ten Christian churches are formally recognized under Israel's confessional system, for the self-regulation and state recognition of status issues, such as marriage and divorce : the Armenian Apostolic Church , the Armenian Catholic Church , the Chaldean Catholic Church , the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East , the Greek Orthodox Church , the Latin Catholic Church , the Melkite Greek Catholic Church , the Syriac Catholic Church , the Syriac Maronite Church , and the Syriac Orthodox Church . However, the practice of religion is free, with no restrictions on the practice of other denominations. Approximately 300 Christians have converted from Islam according to one 2014 estimate, and most of them are part of the Roman Catholic Church . A certain number of Israelis also practice Messianic Judaism , usually considered a syncretist form of Christianity . The number of Messianic Jews in Israel is estimated to be around 20,000. They are mostly classified as being "without a religious affiliation" rather than being classified as either Jewish or Christian. Arab Christians are mostly adherents of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church (60% of Arab Christians in Israel). Some 40% of all Israeli Christians are affiliated with the Melkite Greek Church, and some 30% with the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem . Smaller numbers are split between the Roman Catholic Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem , with 13% of Christians, as well as an unknown number of Russian Orthodox Christians, about 13,000 Maronites and other Syriac Christians, 3,000 to 5,000 adherents of Armenian churches, a community of around 1,000 Coptic Christians , and small branches of Protestants . Israeli Christians are historically bound with neighbouring Lebanese , Syrian , and Palestinian Christians . The cities and communities where most Christians in Israel reside are Haifa , Nazareth , Shefa-Amr , Jish , Mi'ilya , Fassuta and Kafr Yasif . Arab Christians are one of the most educated groups in Israel. Maariv newspaper has described Arab Christians as "the most successful [group] in the education system", since Arab Christians fared the best in terms of education in comparison to any other group receiving an education in Israel. The Christian communities in Israel run numerous schools , colleges, hospitals, clinics, orphanages, homes for the elderly, dormitories , family and youth centers, hotels , and guesthouses.

Christianity ( Hebrew : נצרות , romanized : Natsrút ; Arabic : المسيحية , romanized : al-Masīḥiyya ; Imperial Aramaic : ܢܘܨܪܝܐ ܕܐܪܥܐ ܕܝܣܪܐܝܠ ) is the third largest religion in Israel , after Judaism and Islam . At the end of 2022, Christians made up 1.9% of the Israeli population, numbering approximately 185,000. 75.8% of the Christians in Israel are Arab Christians . Christians make up 6.9% of the Arab-Israeli population . Ten Christian churches are formally recognized under Israel's confessional system , for the self-regulation and state recognition of status issues, such as marriage and divorce : the Armenian Apostolic Church , the Armenian Catholic Church , the Chaldean Catholic Church , the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East , the Greek Orthodox Church , the Latin Catholic Church , the Melkite Greek Catholic Church , the Syriac Catholic Church , the Syriac Maronite Church , and the Syriac Orthodox Church . However, the practice of religion is free, with no restrictions on the practice of other denominations. Approximately 300 Christians have converted from Islam according to one 2014 estimate, and most of them are part of the Catholic Church . About 20,000 Israelis practice Messianic Judaism , usually considered a syncretist form of Christianity . Arab Christians are mostly adherents of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church (60% of Arab Christians in Israel). Some 40% of all Israeli Christians are affiliated with the Melkite Greek Church, and some 30% with the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem . Smaller numbers are split between the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem , with 13% of Christians, as well as an unknown number of Russian Orthodox Christians, about 13,000 Maronites and other Syriac Christians, 3,000 to 5,000 adherents of Armenian churches, a community of around 1,000 Coptic Christians , and small branches of Protestants . The number of Christians in Israel is higher than in the Occupied Palestinian territories . Christians in Israel are historically bound with neighbouring Lebanese , Syrian , and Palestinian Christians . The cities and communities where most Christians in Israel reside are Haifa , Nazareth , Shefa-Amr , Jish , Mi'ilya , Fassuta and Kafr Yasif . The Christian communities in Israel run numerous schools , colleges, hospitals, clinics, orphanages, homes for the elderly, dormitories , family and youth centers, hotels , and guesthouses. The Christian community in Israel is one of the few growing Christian populations in the Middle East. Israeli Arab Christians generally have higher educational achievements and enjoy higher incomes than their Druze and Muslim counterparts. US Department of State . 2022. page 6. St Francis Magazine . 10 (1): 17– 24. An Unusual Relationship: Evangelical Christians and Jews . "The New Christian Right's relations with Israel and with the American Jews: the mid-1970s onward" . The Jews have cause to worry because Evangelicals are active on both fronts, promoting support for the State of Israel , and evangelizing the Jews at the same time. While the Israeli government eagerly accepts public support of Evangelicals and courts the leaders of the New Christian Right , many Jews bitterly condemn Christian proselytism and try their best to restrict the activities of missionaries in Israel. " Jews for Jesus " and other Christian Jewish groups in Israel have become especially effective in evangelizing, often with the support of foreign Evangelicals. It is not surprising that Jewish leaders, both in the United States and Israel , react strongly to "Jews for Jesus" and the whole "Messianic Jewish" movement , whose concern is to promote awareness among the Jews as to God's real plans for humanity and the need to accept Jesus as a Savior . In this respect, Gershom Gorenberg lamented the fact that "people who see Israel through the lens of Endtimes prophecy are questionable allies, whose support should be elicited only in the last resort. In the long run, their apocalyptic agenda has no room for Israel as a normal country." "The Christian communities in Israel" . Christians have, on average, higher educational achievements, marry at an older age, have fewer children, and enjoy larger income... Druze and Muslims share many cultural patterns, and they have a similar socioeconomic standing, but while Druze males have to serve in the military, Muslim men (as well as Christian) do not.