Bethlehem has a unique setting spanning a fertile landscape to the west and desert to the east. Its diverse environment made it a center for Baal and Adonis on the one hand, and the perfect setting for desert monasteries on the other. Its historical and religious significance turned it into a place for pilgrimage and a tourist destination, while its location on one of the ancient trade routes made it a city for expansive cultural exchange. The city’s present-day inhabitants of Christian and Musl...

This volume addresses the problematic relationship between colonialism and the Bible. It does so from the perspective of the Global South, calling upon voices from Africa and the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean. The contributors address the present state of the problematic relationship in their respective geopolitical and geographical contexts. In so doing, they provide sharp analyses of the past, the present, and the future: historical contexts and traject...

Women in the Arab world suffer from a lack of equality in most rights, duties and within all areas of society, including the criminal justice court, economy, healthcare, media, politics, religion, family law and civil status law. International reports document the systematic gender gap that is based on discrimination, the prevalence of male traditions and unequal treatment. This book investigates the role that intersectionality of law, culture and religion plays in hindering movement towards equ...

This unique booklet on the impact of COVID-19 on Palestine was prompted by the need to provide an overview of the effects of COVID-19 in the realms of politics, economy, health, gender, and religion. The booklet contains eleven contributions by prominent public figures in Palestine.

Jerusalem is key to peace. Jerusalem, the religious epicenter of the three monotheistic religions and the geographic nexus of the mappa mundi, is now again the center of attention in an escalating political struggle in the Middle East. The move of the US embassy to Jerusalem in May 2018 has sparked many questions. While for many it meant the end of any prospect for peace, the Trump administration continue to claim that the deal of the century is yet to come. While the importance of the city for...

Empires rise and expand by taking lands and resources and by enslaving the bodies and minds of people. Even in this modern era, the territories, geographies, and peoples of a number of lands continue to be divided, occupied, harvested, and marketed. The legacy of slavery and the scapegoating of people persists in many lands, and religious institutions have been co-opted to own land, to gather people, to define proper behavior, to mete out salvation, and to be silent. The contributors to Peopl...

This work represents the current and most relevant content on the studies of how Christianity has fared in the ancient home of its founder and birth. Much has been written about Christianity and how it has survived since its migration out of its homeland but this comprehensive reference work reassesses the geographic and demographic impact of the dramatic changes in this perennially combustible world region. The Rowman & Littlefield Handbook of Christianity in the Middle East also spans the hist...

This book contains the findings of the latest research and studies conducted by Dar al-Kalima University College of Arts and Culture in 2017. The first chapter crystalizes four waves of Christian emigration from Palestine within the last century. The second chapter contains the results of an emigration survey conducting in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip mid-2017; a first study of its kind that includes both Christians and Muslim Palestinians. The third chapter looks at the situation of the Pal...

The studies on diaspora, migration and identity formation outside the “mother land” are increasing in number and scope. In the last ten years several papers, doctoral theses and books were published focusing on certain aspects of the Palestinian diaspora and identity. This book contains the proceedings of an international conference that was held in Bethlehem/Palestine in 2015. The conference brought together 41 international researchers, in addition to over 50 local Palestinian academicians. Ar...

Why did Jesus die? And in what ways did his crucifixion offer redemption to the world? Those questions, which lie at the heart of Christian faith, remain a pressing concern for theological reflection. What sets this work apart is that the authors -- a Palestinian theologian from Bethlehem and a New Testament scholar from the United States -- explore the meaning of the cross in light of both first and twenty-first century Palestinian contexts. Together, their insights coalesce around themes th...