A Tale of Two Cities: Christmas Celebrations in Bethlehem and Nazareth
In the heartland of Christianity, two ancient cities—Bethlehem and Nazareth—celebrated Christmas this year, but with starkly different atmospheres that reflect their diverging paths. While both cities hold profound significance in Christian tradition, Bethlehem as Jesus’s birthplace and Nazareth as his hometown, their Christmas celebrations tell a story of contrasting realities for Christian communities in the Middle East. In Nazareth, located within Israel, festivities were described as “broad and confident,” reflecting a growing Christian presence. Meanwhile, in Bethlehem, under Palestinian Authority governance, celebrations resumed after two years of disruption but against a backdrop of demographic decline and community concerns.
The statistics paint a sobering picture of Bethlehem’s changing religious landscape. According to Elias Zarina, a senior researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Applied Policy, Christians constituted 86% of Bethlehem’s population in 1950 but had dwindled to approximately 10% by the 2017 Palestinian census. The decline has reportedly accelerated following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, with at least 142 Christian families leaving the Bethlehem area since then. “They saw what happened on Oct. 7 and understood that minorities in this region have no future without real protection,” Zarina explained. Despite these challenges, Bethlehem did mark Christmas this year with traditional ceremonies at the Church of the Nativity and gatherings in Manger Square, with local officials framing these celebrations as demonstrations of resilience amid ongoing regional conflicts.
Nazareth presents a contrasting narrative, according to Josh Reinstein, director of the Knesset Christian Allies Caucus, who attributes the difference to governance and security factors. “Nazareth is a completely different situation,” Reinstein stated. “It’s an indigenous Christian community under the authority of Israel, and it grows every year. It prospers.” He pointed out that while Christians make up only about 2% of Israel’s population, they have “the highest GDP per capita compared to Jews, Muslims and Druze” within the country. Official demographic data appears to support this perspective, with Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics reporting that approximately 184,200 Christians live in Israel as of Christmas 2025, representing about 1.9% of the population. The Christian population in Israel grew by 0.7% in 2024, making it one of the few Middle Eastern countries where Christian communities continue to expand rather than contract.
The challenges facing Bethlehem’s Christian community extend beyond demographic shifts to include reported incidents targeting Christians. Zarina noted that several concerning events occurred within a single week before Christmas, including threats against churches and violent disputes over land. “Christians in these areas are subjected to a systematic policy manifested through harassment, violence, psychological terror, forced displacement and the confiscation of property by extremist families,” he claimed, suggesting that the Palestinian Authority appears “either unable or unwilling to enforce the rule of law and protect the Christian minority.” Recent events seem to support these concerns—a church in Jenin was reportedly firebombed and a Christmas tree was set on fire outside another church in the days leading up to Christmas, prompting Israel’s Foreign Ministry to warn about “growing hostility toward Christians” under Palestinian Authority governance.
Not all perspectives on the situation are uniform, however. Pastor Naim Khoury told Israeli news agency TPS-IL that conditions in Bethlehem itself have improved this year, and he had not observed holiday-related attacks. Other activists contend that fear limits what many Christians are willing to say publicly about their circumstances. “The Christians are under enormous pressure and cannot speak freely,” said Shadi Khalloul, founder of the Israeli Christian Aramaic Association. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu highlighted Israel’s commitment to religious freedom in his Christmas message, stating that “Israel is the only country in the Middle East where Christians can practice their faith with full rights and in total freedom,” though critics note that Israel has occasionally seen attacks against Christian sites by extreme religious-nationalist elements.
As the holiday season concludes, the divergent experiences of Christians in Nazareth and Bethlehem raise important questions about religious freedom and minority protections in the region. Heather Johnston, founder of the U.S. Israel Education Association, framed the contrast directly: “Christians are flourishing in Nazareth under Israeli rule, while in Bethlehem, under the Palestinian Authority, the Christian population has been shrinking for years. That difference speaks volumes about which systems actually protect religious freedom and allow ancient Christian communities to endure.” For activists like Zarina, the critical question now is whether international attention will persist beyond the holiday season or fade once the Christmas lights come down, and whether that attention can translate into lasting protection for one of Christianity’s oldest communities, caught in the complex religious and political dynamics of a troubled region.
