{"id":340,"date":"2006-12-22T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2006-12-22T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/godspolitics\/2006\/12\/deanna-murshed-o-strangled-tow.html"},"modified":"2006-12-22T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2006-12-22T12:00:00","slug":"deanna-murshed-o-strangled-tow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/godspolitics\/2006\/12\/deanna-murshed-o-strangled-tow.html","title":{"rendered":"Deanna Murshed: O Strangled Town of Bethlehem"},"content":{"rendered":"
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“It is unconscionable that Bethlehem should be allowed to die slowly from strangulation.”
– Archbishop Desmond Tutu<\/b><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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When we hear about Bethlehem this Christmas season, what do we imagine? A town far away and frozen in time? Or security walls, checkpoints, and a place that has been home to tens of thousands of Christians – descendents of the early church? In a recent nationwide survey<\/a>, carried out by top U.S. political pollsters Zogby International, it was found that only 15% of Americans realize that Bethlehem is a Palestinian city with a mixed Christian-Muslim community, lying in the occupied West Bank.<\/p>\n

The fact is that until recently, Bethlehem has been an established town with a thriving indigenous Christian population (read: not Western converts but “original” Christians). But these people, who have been “living stones” to the life and witness of Jesus, are now on the verge of extinction. Much of this is due to the evolving political and social nightmare that makes emigration (when possible) nearly irresistible. And let’s not forget the “security” wall that encloses and nearly chokes the city.<\/p>\n

Consider these facts<\/a>:<\/p>\n