A statement issued by Christian leaders in Jerusalem said the church would reopen on Wednesday morning after Israel froze tax collection.
“We, the heads of Churches in charge of the Holy Sepulchre and the status quo governing the various Christian holy sites in Jerusalem – the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate, the Custodian of the Holy Land and the Armenian Patriarchate – give thanks to God for the statement released earlier today by Prime Minister Netanyahu and offer our gratitude to all those who have worked tirelessly to uphold the Christian presence in Jerusalem and to defend the status quo,” the leaders of the three denominations in charge of the site said in a statement.
“After the constructive intervention of the prime minister, the Churches look forward to engage with Minister [Tzachi] Hanegbi, and with all those who love Jerusalem to ensure that our holy city, where our Christian presence continues to face challenges, remains a place where the three monotheistic faiths may live and thrive together,” it added.
The decision to shut the doors of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre came in protest over the Jerusalem Municipality’s plan to collect property tax on church-owned properties that are not used as houses of worship and to protest a bill that would authorize the expropriation of land sold by churches in return for compensation to the investors that purchased the properties.
In the meantime, the municipality has frozen its tax collection efforts, and legislation concerning the sale of church property will be suspended.
Earlier this month, the municipality notified the Finance, Interior and Foreign ministries and the Prime Minister’s Office that it will start collecting a total of NIS 650 million in taxes from 887 churches propertie.
This move prompted outrage from the churches based in Jerusalem, which decided on Sunday to close the doors of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
In a joint announcement by the three churches (the Greek Orthodox, Catholic and Armenian churches) running the holy site, the move was a “systematic campaign of abuse against churches and Christians.”
