Portuguese church official: The decline of the Christian presence in Palestine is a warning bell

A Portuguese church official warned of the decline of the Christian presence in Palestine, noting that their proportion fell from 11% in 1925 to less than 1% in 2025, and described their disappearance as a "new betrayal of Christ."

The honorary president of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre in Portugal, Gonçalo Figueiredo de Barros, warned of the danger of the decline of the Christian presence in the Holy Land, amid repeated attacks on the Palestinian town of Taybeh, which is considered the last entirely Christian town in the West Bank. In an article, de Barros described the possibility of the Christian presence disappearing from the Holy Land as a "new betrayal of Christ," noting that the proportion of Christians in Palestine fell from 11% in 1925 to less than 1% in 2025. He pointed out that the proportion of Christians in Bethlehem saw a sharp decline, from 86% to less than 8% over 75 years, considering that these indicators reflect the scale of the challenges facing Palestinian Christian communities and threatening their historical continuity. De Barros warned that the Holy Land might retain its churches, shrines and historical landmarks, but would lose part of its spirit if the Christians who preserved their presence there over the centuries leave it. He called on the Church and the international community to shoulder their responsibilities in protecting the Palestinian Christian presence, and to work to provide the elements of a dignified life for young people and families, in a way that ensures their stay on their land and preserves religious and cultural diversity in the region.