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Israel seeing growth in its Christian population: report

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Israel’s Christian population grew slightly, with Arab Christians comprising most of the country’s Christians, according to a new report released on Christmas Day.

The report, released by the Central Bureau of Statistics on Sunday, found that Israel’s Christian community grew by 2% in 2021, representing 1.9% of the country’s population. According to the report, 75.8% of Christians in Israel are Arab Christians, accounting for 6.9% of the Arab population in Israel.

“In 2021, the total fertility rate of a Christian woman was an average of 1.77 children per woman, 1.80 in 2019,” the report reads. “The number of children per Arab Christian woman was lower still, at 1.68 children per woman.”

Most Arab Christians reside in Nazareth (21,100), followed by Haifa (16,700), Jerusalem (12,900), and Shefar’am (10,500), according to the report. The average size of a Christian household was 3.06 people, similar to the size of a Jewish family (3.05) but lower than a Muslim household (4.46).

“The average number of children up to age 17 in Christian families with children up to this age is 1.86,” the report adds. “Of these Christian families, the average number of children up to age 17 in Arab Christian families is 1.94 — smaller than the numbers in Jewish families (2.42) and Muslim families (2.62).”

The report also found that 52.9% of Arab Christians and 31.2% of non-Arab Christians pursued higher education after completing high school, a more significant proportion of the Arab Muslim population (31.2%) and the Jewish people (48.2%).

Christian students seeking a first degree were broadly studying musicology (15.7%), management information systems (10.5%), and food engineering and technology (9.9%) in contrast to other students studying for their first degree.

Compared to Muslim students, Christians were less likely to be pursuing degrees in education, business and management sciences, and paramedical studies. However, Christian students could study social sciences, mathematics, computer sciences, and statistics more efficiently.

“The proportion of women among the Christian students was higher than women’s proportion among the total number of students in the advanced degrees: 65.2% and 53.1%, respectively, of those studying for a third degree, and 73.8% and 64.2%, respectively, of those studying for a second degree,” the report notes.

Regarding the proportion of Christians participating in the labor force in 2021, 66.3% of Christians aged 15 and older (69.2% of men and 64.1% of women) accounted for the faith group’s participation in the workforce.

Christians’ presence in Israel has long sparked debates about whether they should evangelize Jewish people.

As The Christian Post reported in October, the end of COVID-19 restrictions also drew Christian tourists back to Israel to mark the biblical Feast of Tabernacles or Sukkot.

More than 2,000 pilgrims from 70 nations reportedly visited Jerusalem from Oct. 9–16 for the celebration sponsored by the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem. While Rabbi Tuly Weisz said he is open to Christians participating in the occasion, the Israel365 founder raised concerns about Christians evangelizing Jews.

While Weisz said he believes non-Jewish tourists should be “warmly welcomed” to “come closer to the true fulfillment of Sukkot,” he expressed concern that some Christians would use it to share the Gospel with Jewish people.

“Unfortunately, some of the Christian visitors will hope to use their time in the Jewish state to engage in missionary activity,” he wrote in an op-ed piece published in The Jerusalem Post. “The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem does its best to prevent this, warning its guests to refrain from such offensive behavior.”

As Weisz noted, several Christians have criticized such activities while visiting Israel, including David Swaggerty, senior pastor of Charisma Life Ministries in Columbus, Ohio. In an interview with CP, Swaggerty explained he preaches the Gospel during pastor conferences in countries like Thailand and Tanzania, but he said Israel is different.

“When I go to Israel or with my Jewish friends in Columbus, missionizing is off the table,” he said. “I do not do that. I don’t believe that’s God’s will for my life to do that.”

“I don’t feel that’s my responsibility. My calling is to build bridges of trust and friendship among the Jewish people and Christians,” he added. “In doing that, I commit myself and my followers, my congregation, that we do not missionize the Jewish people.”

Swaggerty believes there’s “no point in fighting whether He (Jesus) came once at all” since “when He shows up, there will be no mistaking who He is.”

The pastor expressed confidence that Israel will see the Messiah one day, and the entire nation will “embrace” Him when He comes.

Others, such as Messianic Jewish author, radio host, and columnist Michael Brown, feel this approach to sharing the Gospel is a “terrible disservice” to the Jewish people.

“Every Jewish believer I know urges Christians to please share the Good News with our people,” Brown told CP. “It is the most unloving thing you can do to withhold the water of life from a Jewish person. Jews and Gentiles are saved the same way. It is through faith in Jesus, through His death on the cross.

“And without that, there is no salvation.”

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