A Christian in The Holy Land.(Michel Sabbah, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem in 1988)(Brief Article)(Interview)

When Pope John Paul II appointed Michel Sabbah as the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem in 1988, it was the first time the Holy Land's indigenous Roman Catholics were led by a fellow Palestinian. Previously, Rome had always sent an Italian to fill the sensitive post. Some 20 percent of Palestinians are Christians, including Yasir Arafat's wife, Suha, who was born into a Christian family before converting. On a recent visit to Rome, Patriarch Sabbah spoke to NEWSWEEK's Alessandra Borghese at the Vatican about where Christians stand in an atmosphere of conflict between Muslims and Jews. Excerpts:

BORGHESE: Is it difficult to be a Christian in Israel, and are people heeding the Holy Father's call for Christians not to leave the Holy Land?

SABBAH: Christians live like others. They're Palestinians, and as a result life is hard and they suffer; their liberty of movement is limited. They're humiliated and reduced to begging for their daily bread. Some have left, especially those who are economically able to do so. Others remain by principle, and because they want to stay faithful to their homeland and to the church.

How do you feel about the efforts of the Vatican to negotiate between the Palestinians and the Israelis, and the effort to win recognition for Israel by the Vatican?

There's a much greater presence of the church, and much greater efforts to facilitate action in the Holy Land and dialogue with the two authorities. However, until now all these efforts have not produced much. For example, we have problems renewing visas even for clergy.

Is it difficult being a Christian Palestinian in a predominantly Muslim and Jewish land?

Christians are part of Palestinian society, and the Palestinians are Christians and Muslims. No one is going to flee because of Islamic influence, but because of the lack of work, or the political tension provoked by the curfew. But there is no Muslim persecution of Christians, and in fact they share the same hope of one day having an independent state.