JERUSALEM, Israel – As Christians worldwide marked Holy Week earlier this month, events in Jerusalem highlighted how quickly perception and reality can collide. What began as what the government called a security decision sparked global reaction, fueling claims of religious persecution and igniting a wave of misinformation. However, a closer look reveals a very different series of events.
Normally, during Holy Week, Jerusalem’s Old City is filled with pilgrims from around the world. However, this year, war kept people away, and as the crowds disappeared, competing narratives about events here spread quickly online.
On Palm Sunday, Israeli authorities temporarily denied Catholic Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa entry to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Police cited immediate security concerns due to missile threats from Iran.
David Pileggi, rector at Christ Church in the Old City, told CBN News, “And so, once an Israeli interceptor would strike a missile, then over perhaps a six to ten-minute period, you would have pieces of shrapnel falling.”
That very real danger caused authorities to restrict access to some of Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy sites.
Dean Elsdunne, international spokesperson for the Israel Police, explained, “Home Front Command directives called for the temporary closure of holy sites here in the Old City of Jerusalem, including the Western Wall and the Temple Mount.”
Within hours, images of the cardinal’s denial spread, with social media claims that Israel was banning and persecuting Christians.
Judeo-Christian Zionist Congress President Calev Myers explained the situation surrounding the cardinal.
“It’s an old adage of making a mountain out of a molehill,” he said.
Myers added, “Unfortunately, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre does not have a proper bomb shelter that’s up to security specs. And so, the only people who are allowed on that premises during the war, which was, you know, during Holy Week, there, are thirty, the thirty priests who live there.”
He noted that even the Israeli initial denial of access came down to the procedure
“Now, Father Pizzaballa understood those rules. But instead of getting the proper permission from the Israeli Police in advance, he just went there,” Myers recalled.
Within a day, Israeli leaders at the highest level reversed the decision, although the outrage continued.
Online advocate Hillel Fuld described for us how the circulation of false or misleading information is far greater than most people imagine.
“I would say, manifestation of everything we’ve seen for the past three years, which is total fake news that spreads like wildfire. Someone makes something up out of thin air, and as you know, this was no different, like Israel discriminating against Christians, which is obviously not the case at all.”
Fuld continued, “All the holy sites were closed for our protection because Iran was, you know, randomly and arbitrarily just firing missiles everywhere. This was nothing in any way against, you know, Israel and the Jews.”
We asked Myers, “There were so many Christians who were quick to believe the claims that Israel was restricting or targeting Christian worship. Why do you think that is?”
He replied, “There’s a lot of propaganda right now that’s being amplified by bot farms out in Russia, which are funded by Qatar and China, and these countries that want to undermine the Judeo-Christian foundations of Western Civilization.”
He points to a very different picture inside Israel.
“When the truth on the ground is that Israel is the only country in the Middle East where Christian communities have actually been growing, and the Christian population has been growing over the last century.”
When Christian leaders recently met at Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s residence, Melkite Archbishop Joseph Matta shared how his Galilee-based church continues to grow, even in the midst of war.
“My church is the largest church here in Israel, and I have lots of parishes,” Matta declared. “We are gathering, yes, but we are growing, with some difficulties, even because of the situation, because of the war.”
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Analysts and advocates believe misinformation about how Israel treats Christians is fueling anti-Israel and anti-Semitic rhetoric worldwide, especially among younger generations.
Myers commented, “For the first time in history, Joshua, you have very bad state actors who have direct access to the hearts and minds of a whole generation.”
New research from Pew shows that 60 percent of Americans now view Israel unfavorably, with half of that number holding a “very unfavorable” opinion.
Recent analysis suggests online narratives are contributing to rising tension and fueling real-world hostility, even as church leaders here see the reality on the ground.
“Persecution? No,” Pileggi said. “Harassment from extremist groups? Yes. Bureaucratic insensitivity? Yes. Ignorance? Sometimes, in the hands of the police. Yes, all of these things exist in Israel, and Israel can do better, but at the same time, we are free in a way that other countries in this region are not.”
Questions about what’s true and what’s not continue to shape how this story is seen around the world. Yet, during it all, many here find hope in the very reason Holy Week is celebrated.
He concluded, “Instead of being that political football that gets tossed around between the pro-Israel crowd and the anti-Israel crowd, hopefully, both sides can help us and help our communities get out of our box…and to encourage us and to facilitate us having a ministry that brings the presence of Jesus the Messiah, through the power of the Holy Spirit, into this big mess called the Middle East.”
