Mitri Raheb

Decolonizing Palestine challenges the weaponization of biblical texts to support the current settler-colonial state of Israel. Raheb argues that some of the most important theological concepts -Israel, the land, election, and chosen people - must be decolonized in a paradigm shift in Christian theological thinking about Palestine. Decolonizing Palestine is a timely book that builds on the latest research in settler-colonialism and human rights to place traditional theological themes within the wider socio-political context of settler colonialism as it is practiced by the modern nation-state of Israel. Written by a native Palestinian Christian theologian who continues to live in the region, Decolonizing Palestine provides an insider's perspective that disrupts hegemonic and imperialist narratives about the region.

Den palæstinensiske teolog Mitri Raheb kaster i denne bog et kritisk blik på Vestens billede af den kristne minoritet i Mellemøsten, og han insisterer på, at forestillingen om de kristne som hjælpeløse, forfulgte og afhængige af Vestens hjælp er en illusion. De kristne i Mellemøsten bliver ofte fremstillet som en hjælpeløs minoritet, der er prisgivet deres muslimske fjender og helt afhængige af Vestens beskyttelse. Men forestillingen om, at Mellemøstens kristne bliver forfulgt, er en vestlig konstruktion, som siger mere om Vesten end om de kristnes situation. Siden midten af det nittende århundrede har det været et tilbagevendende tema, og især under Trump-æraen har forestillingen fået vind i sejlene. Den påståede bekymring for de forfulgte kristne er blevet brugt som redskab for international politik, men i virkeligheden har de vestlige kolonimagter gentagne gange ofret Mellemøstens kristne på deres egne nationale interessers alter. For Mellemøstens kristne har Vesten som regel været en del af problemet og ikke en del af løsningen. Sådan har det været lige fra massakren på Libanons Bjerg til fremkomsten af ISIS. Forfølgelsens politikker kaster et kritisk blik på denne fortælling. I bogen skildrer Mitri Raheb de kristnes situation i Mellemøsten fra Napoleon Bonapartes invasion i 1799 til Det Arabiske Forår i 2011. Bogen analyserer de socioøkonomiske og politiske faktorer, der har ført til det drastiske fald i antallet af kristne i Mellemøsten og giver et insiderperspektiv på denne omstridte region. Mellemøstens kristne har overlevet successive imperier ved at tilpasse sig. De har lært, hvordan man overlever grusomheder, yder kreativ modstand og samtidig bevarer en dynamisk identitet. I dette lys bliver historien om Mellemøstens kristne ikke en historie om forfølgelse, men en fortælling om modstandsdygtighed. Mitri Raheb, teolog, uddannet i Tyskland. I 1988 vendte han tilbage til sin fødeby Betlehem, hvor han blev præst ved den lutherske Julekirke. Han er forfatter og redaktør på adskillige bøger. På dansk er udkommet Betlehem under belejring (Boedal/Unitas 2005) og Troen og Imperiet (Unitas 2014). Omtale"Mitri Raheb tager læseren ved hånden på en begavet og tankevækkende rundtur, der sætter mangt og meget i perspektiv."- POV International

Persecution of Christians in the Middle East has been a recurring theme since the middle of the nineteenth century. The topic has experienced a resurgence in the last few years, especially during the Trump era. Middle Eastern Christians are often portrayed as a homogeneous, helpless group ever at the mercy of their Muslim enemies, a situation that only Western powers can remedy. The Politics of Persecution revisits this narrative with a critical eye. Mitri Raheb charts the plight of Christians in the Middle East from the invasion of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799 to the so-called Arab Spring. The book analyzes the diverse socioeconomic and political factors that led to the diminishing role and numbers of Christians in Palestine, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan during the eras of Ottoman, French, and British Empires, through the eras of independence, Pan-Arabism, and Pan-Islamism, and into the current era of American empire. With an incisive exposé of the politics that lie behind alleged concerns for these persecuted Christians—and how the concept of persecution has been a tool of public diplomacy and international politics—Raheb reveals that Middle Eastern Christians have been repeatedly sacrificed on the altar of Western national interests. The West has been part of the problem for Middle Eastern Christianity and not part of the solution, from the massacre on Mount Lebanon to the rise of ISIS. The Politics of Persecution, written by a well-known Palestinian Christian theologian, provides an insider perspective on this contested region. Middle Eastern Christians survived successive empires by developing great elasticity in adjusting to changing contexts; they learned how to survive atrocities and how to resist creatively while maintaining a dynamic identity. In this light, Raheb casts the history of Middle Eastern Christians not so much as one of persecution but as one of resilience.

A Palestinian theologian from Bethlehem and a New Testament scholar from the United States explore the meaning of the crucifixion in light of both first and twenty-first century Palestinian contexts. Together, their insights coalesce around themes that expose the divine power of the cross both for Jesus's first followers and for contemporary readers alike.

This book contains the proceedings of the International conference, "Shifting Identities: Changes in the social, political, and religious structures in the Middle East", which was held in Cyprus in July 2015. The conference brought together around 50 professors, historians, theologians, social scientists and researchers from over 15 countries including Europe, the USA, and the Middle East. Case studies from Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Iran, and Sweden were presented. Some of these case studies focused on particular community like the Armenians, Syrian orthodox, or Protestants while others studies chose to tackle issues like feminism or Arabism in the Middle East. Several of the articles struggled theologically to find a meaning to what is happening in the aftermath of the so-called Arab Spring showing a way forward. Shifting identities is not a pure theoretical exercise but are related to shifts that were experienced by several of the authors in the course of their biographical journeys.

The development of the Palestinian Identity has been the focus of manystudies and conferences. However, all of the studies so far concentrateon the emergence of this identity in the last hundred years. Althoughseveral papers in this book still have dealt with the development of thePalestinian Identity in late Ottoman and early British Mandate Palestine, another focus of the event was however on analyzing the understandingof the Palestinian Identity in relation to the biblical story, history andarcheology and how this understanding has been reflected in poetryand the art. The self-Understanding of the Palestinians of themselves inrelation to time and space and their relationship to other marginalizedgroups is a question of high political and social relevance. The participation of scholars from different parts of the world in theevent did not only bring an international scope, persuasions and perspectives, but helped fostering an ecumenical, interdisciplinary, multi-ethnicand multi-cultural environ, dialogues and philosophy. Contributing ScholarsBader, Liana Bechmann, Ulrike Borgman, Erik Callendar, Dexter Fernandez, Eleazar Fuchs, Ottmar Jubeh, Nazmi Musallam, Adnan Raheb, Mitri Rivera, George Shomali, Qustandi Smith, Robert Staubli, Thomas Stegeman, Janneke Van-Reisen, Mirjam

A Palestinian Christian pastor relates the untold powerful and inspirational stories of the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, stories that prove that even in the midst of conflict and war, the hope and the desire for true peace can still exist. Original.

Raheb, a Christian pastor in Bethlehem, explores the recent history of the Palestinian Christians, and the complex meeting of the world's three major monotheistic religions.