Dear Brother Archons and Friends of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate,

In keeping with our sacred mission to defend religious freedom everywhere it is threatened, the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate (AEP) unequivocally condemn the Jerusalem Municipal Authority’s move to “freeze” all bank accounts belonging to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem. This reckless and ill-advised decision means that the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate cannot pay the salaries of its clergy, teachers and staff, severely undermining its ability to carry out its sacred mission.

The Archons strongly urge the Israeli government to reverse this decision immediately, and to live up to its promises of allowing the free exercise of religion by people of all creeds and faith traditions.

The decision to freeze the Patriarchate’s bank accounts comes in the context of a longstanding Israeli property tax. Historically, churches in the Holy Land have never paid either municipal or government taxes on their properties; this held true for centuries, throughout the periods of Ottoman, British, Jordanian and Israeli rule over Jerusalem.

However, the Jerusalem municipality decided in 2018 that the tax exemption for churches applied only to properties that were being used “for prayer, for the teaching of religion or for needs arising from it.” This left unprotected numerous properties that the Patriarchate of Jerusalem and other Church organizations owned, including guest houses and cafés for pilgrims. The Jerusalem municipality began attempting to collect tens of millions of shekels in taxes from the Patriarchate and other ecclesiastical entities.

In 2018, Jerusalem’s then-mayor, Nir Barkat, froze the bank accounts of several Jerusalem churches. In protest, His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem, along with Armenian Patriarch Manougian and Custos of the Holy Land Fra Francesco Patton, closed the venerable Church of the Holy Sepulchre for three days. The controversy only ended when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intervened directly and the municipality backed down. The Archons call upon Prime Minister Netanyahu to intervene again and end this dispute once and for all, protecting the religious freedom of all people in Jerusalem.

His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos’ group, Protecting Holy Land Christians, stated: “As religious institutions, churches play vital roles in maintaining educational, welfare and charitable institutions that serve the local population, Christian or otherwise.”

In accordance with that fact, the Archons call for the immediate rescinding of the order to freeze the Jerusalem Patriarchate’s bank accounts, and for the end of infringement upon the rights of the Christians in Jerusalem and its environs. Let us join together in prayer to our loving and merciful God for their well-being and protection.

Yours in the service of the Ecumenical Patriarchate,