The churches in Jerusalem have fired the opening shot in their battle against the municipality. For the first time since the establishment of Israel, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem's Old City has closed its doors in the wake of an Israel Hayom exposé revealing that the city plans to reverse its exemption policy and begin collecting municipal taxes from the city's churches.
"Setting a historical precedent, the heads of the churches are announcing the closure of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem," the church said in an emergency statement. "This is an act of protest, in light of the systematic assault on the churches and the Christian minority in the Holy Land."
"We, the heads of the churches entrusted with overseeing the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the status quo in the holy Christian sites in the Jerusalem – the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Custodia Terra Sancta (Custody of the Holy Land) and the Armenian Patriarchate – are monitoring the systematic aggression against the churches and the Christian community in the Holy Land with great concern. This is a blatant violation of the status quo."
"Recently, this assault reached unprecedented heights when the Jerusalem Municipality issued outrageous seizure warrants and liens on the churches' property and bank accounts over alleged outstanding municipal tax debts. This measure runs contrary to the churches' historical status in the holy city of Jerusalem and their relationship with the civilian authorities. These actions violate existing agreements and international pledges ensuring the rights of the churches," the statement said.
"This looks like an attempt to weaken the Christian presence in Jerusalem," it added.
In recent weeks, the Jerusalem Municipality informed the Prime Minister's Office and the Finance, Foreign and Interior ministries that it plans to begin collecting about 650 million shekels ($190 million) in unpaid property taxes from 887 church and U.N.-owned properties across the city.
The move will not apply to actual houses of worship, which are exempt from municipal property taxes, but to assets owned by the churches that are used for purposes other than prayer, some of them commercial.
To date, the state has demanded that the municipality refrain from collecting these debts, in light of previous agreements with the churches.
However, the city has obtained the legal opinion of international law expert Professor Gabriel Halevi, who examined in depth the legal aspects of church institutions and the U.N.'s obligation toward the Jerusalem Municipality. Halevi found unequivocally that there is no grounding for the state's position, that the agreements between the state and the churches do not apply to the Jerusalem Municipality, and that the municipality is required by law to collect the debts.
As a preliminary measure, the municipality has put a lien on the bank accounts of a number of churches, among them the Anglican Church, which has accrued a debt of NIS 7,214,228 ($2,070,267), the Armenian Church, which owes NIS 2,011,996 ($577,382), the Greek Orthodox Church, which has a debt of NIS 570,946 ($163,844), and the Catholic Church, which owes NIS 11,981,103 ($3,438,217).
"The financial loss sustained by Jerusalem over the years as a result of the state's position amounts to nearly NIS 1 billion [$287 million]," the city said in a statement.
"It is inconceivable that residents of Jerusalem need to pay out of pockets for municipal services such as trash collection, landscaping and the paving of roads for churches and the U.N. The funds can significantly assist in the city's development and improve services for residents."
The municipality said that exempting businesses and other properties owned and used by the churches from municipal property taxes is discriminatory and is liable to lead to additional claims for exemptions on the grounds of discrimination and inequality, something that could exponentially jeopardize the city's financial stability.
"If the state does not allow us to collect the taxes for the benefit of Jerusalem's residents, we will not hesitate to appeal to the High Court of Justice," the municipality said. "Alternatively, if the state is interested in the continuation of the current situation, we demand that the state provide full indemnity for these amounts. Either way, we will no longer agree to Jerusalem residents paying this amount."
