ARMENIAN, GREEK WORSHIPPERS EXCHANGE BLOWS AT JESUS’ TOMB
Ha’aretz
April 20 2008
Israel
Dozens of Greek and Armenian priests and worshippers exchanged blows
in Christianity’s holiest shrine on Palm Sunday, and pummeled police
with palm fronds when they tried to break up the brawl.
The fight is part of a growing rivalry over religious rights at
Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulcher, built over the site where
tradition says Jesus was buried and resurrected.
A fist-fight broke out after Armenian clergy kicked out a Greek
priest from their midst, pushed him to the ground and kicked him,
according to witnesses.
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Two Armenian worshippers were briefly detained by police. Scores
of Armenian supporters staged a protest outside the police station
during the questioning of the two, beating drums and chanting.
The Holy Sepulcher is shared by several Christian denominations
according to a centuries-old arrangement known as the status quo.
Each denomination jealously guards its share of the basilica, and
fights over rights of worship at the church have intensified in recent
years, particularly between the Armenians and Greeks.
The Eastern Orthodox churches, including the Armenians and Greek
Orthodox, follow a different calendar than Western Christians and
began Easter Week observances on Sunday.
Father Pakrad, an Armenian priest, said the presence of the Greek
priest during the Armenian observances violated the status quo. Our
priests entered the tomb. "They kicked the Greek monk out of the
Edicule," he said.
Pakrad accused the Greek Orthodox of trying to step on the Armenians’
rights. "We are the weak ones, persecuted by them for many centuries."
The Greek Orthodox Patriarch in the Holy Land, Theofilos III, told
The Associated Press "the Armenians are pushing to change the rules,
and try to challenge was he said is the dominance of his church in
the Holy Land."
"This behavior is criminal and unacceptable by all means," he
said. "They wanted to trespass on the status quo concerning the order
that regulates the services between the various communities."
Last year, pre-Christmas cleaning in the Church of the Nativity
turned ugly when robed Greek Orthodox and Armenian priests went
at each other with brooms and tones. The Church of the Nativity in
Bethlehem – built over Jesus’ traditional birth grotto – also falls
under the status quo arrangement.
The status quo divides the Holy Sepulcher among the Armenians, Roman
Catholics and the Greek Orthodox who have the largest share. The
Coptic, Ethiopian Orthodox and Syrian Orthodox churches also have
duties to maintain specific areas.