In today’s Palestinian territories, teaching has become more than a profession. It is, quite literally, a lifeline.
“Right now, teachers are the only ones who are working, the only ones who can still earn an income,” says Father Ibrahim Faltas, the Franciscan friar responsible for the schools of the Custody of the Holy LandSince the outbreak of war, he explains, most sectors of the Palestinian economy have collapsedTourism—once a cornerstone in places like Bethlehem—has been frozen for over two years.
Thousands who previously held permits to work in Israel are now unable to leave the occupied territories. Salaries from the Palestinian Authority have largely stopped because public funds have dried up.
Against this already fragile backdrop, Israel’s Knesset passed a controversial law on January 21 that could further destabilize Palestinian society—especially its Christian institutions. Approved by 31 votes to 10 and promoted by Likud lawmakers Amit Halevi and Avichay Boaron, the new legislation bars graduates of Palestinian Authority–accredited universities from teaching in Israeli schools unless they also obtain specific Israeli certification.Supporters frame the measure as a safeguard against incitement.
Critics see something far more ominous. For Father Faltas, the implications are immediate and severe.
Under the new rules, Palestinians who earned their degrees at universities such as Bethlehem University—an institution founded by the Vatican and run by the De La Salle Brothers—or Hebron University would no longer be eligible to teach in Israel. “This is extremely serious,” the friar warns, pointing out that many of these educators are already among the few remaining wage earners in their families.
The Custody of the Holy Land alone operates 18 schools across the region, five of them in Jerusalem.
These institutions form part of a wider network of Christian education in the Holy City: 15 Christian schools serve approximately 12,000 students, including many Muslim children. In the Old City, next to the Franciscan convent of St. Saviour, stands the Magnificat Institute, the Custody’s music school, attended not only by Christian and Muslim pupils but also by Jewish children. This fragile ecosystem depends heavily on teachers commuting from the West Bank. “There are 235 educators coming mainly from Bethlehem, Hebron, and Ramallah,” Father Faltas explains. “If they cannot enter Jerusalem, all these schools would have to close.
There simply aren’t enough qualified teachers in the city itself.”
By Zenit Staff
