Above: photo of the brawl, courtesy - The Associated Press. Images below: The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, from the outside and the interior.
History
Christian Monks Brawl Next to Jesus' Tomb
by MATTI FRIEDMAN
EDITOR'S NOTE: The only reason the following article is being posted within these pages is to remind ourselves that the brawls we, too, witness in some gurdwaras from time to time are not unique to our community. Sadly, such unfortunate events are prevalent in all faith groups. There are no exceptions ... which leads us to suggest that they do not indicate a failing on the part of any specific faith group or a religion, but only that of human beings and human nature itself.
However, we hasten to add that there is nevertheless no excuse for such shenanigans anywhere and nothing in any way absolves the miscreants. There is no reason why we Sikhs cannot join hands and eradicate such uncivilized behaviour from our places of worship. It goes against every grain of Sikhi!
Police rushed into one of Christianity's holiest churches Sunday, November 9, 2008, and arrested two clergymen after an argument between monks erupted into a brawl next to the site of Jesus' tomb in Jerusalem.
The clash between Armenian and Greek Orthodox monks broke out in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, revered as the site of Jesus' crucifixion, burial and resurrection.
The brawling began during a procession of Armenian clergymen commemorating the 4th-century discovery of the cross believed to have been used to crucify Jesus.
The Greeks objected to the march without one of their monks present, fearing that otherwise, the procession would subvert their own claim to the Edicule - the ancient structure built on what is believed to be the tomb of Jesus - and give the Armenians a claim to the site.
The Armenians refused, and when they tried to march, the Greek Orthodox monks blocked their way, sparking the brawl.
Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said police were forced to intervene after fighting was reported. They arrested two monks, one from each side, he said.
A bearded Armenian monk in a red-and-pink robe and a black-clad Greek Orthodox monk with a bloody gash on his forehead were both taken away in handcuffs after scuffling with dozens of riot police.
Six Christian sects divide control of the ancient church. They regularly fight over turf and influence, and police are occasionally forced to intervene.
"We were keeping resistance so that the procession could not pass through ... and establish a right that they don't have," said a young Greek Orthodox monk with a cut next to his left eye.
The monk, who gave his name as Serafim, said he sustained the wound when an Armenian punched him from behind and broke his glasses.
Father Pakrat of the Armenian Patriarchate said the Greek demand was "against the status quo arrangement and against the internal arrangement of the Holy Sepulcher." He said the Greeks attacked first.
Archbishop Aristarchos, the chief secretary of the Greek Orthodox patriarchate, denied his monks initiated the violence.
After the brawl, the church was crowded with riot police holding assault rifles, standing beside Golgotha, where Jesus is believed to have been crucified, and the long smooth stone marking the place where tradition holds his body was laid out.
The feud is only one of a bewildering array of rivalries among churchmen in the Holy Sepulcher.
The Israeli government has long wanted to build a fire exit in the church, which regularly fills with thousands of pilgrims and has only one main door, but the Christians cannot agree where the exit will be built.
A ladder placed on a ledge over the entrance sometime in the 19th century has remained there ever since, because of a dispute over who has the authority to take it down.
More recently, a spat between Ethiopian and Coptic Christians is delaying badly needed renovations to a rooftop monastery that engineers say could collapse.
[Courtesy: The Associated Press]
November 9, 2008
Conversation about this article
1: Jasminder Ahluwalia (U.S.A.), November 10, 2008, 1:21 PM.
Great intro comment to this article. I remember a certain section of the community were very quick to send out the youtube video of the brawl at Dixie Road Gurdwara - which shocked all Sikhs (turbanned and non-turbanned alike). The emails contained a condescending tone of "look at these turbanned, barbaric Sikhs", and were often circulated by some of those who unfortunately were trying to justify their decision not to maintain the articles of their faith. This is my message to those referenced above: Sikh or Christian, Jewish or Muslim, Hindu or Buddhist - this is, sadly, human nature!
2: Harpreet Singh (London, England), November 10, 2008, 7:37 PM.
It is human nature, and it can happen amongst people of any faith. However, I believe that it happens quite a bit in some gurdwaras. I have lost count of the amount of brawls and fights I have witnessed or heard about happening, ever since I was a kid. This is one thing that turns people away from religion in droves. The younger generation sees this and is disgusted and repelled, and sees the moral bankruptcy of the elders and establishment who allow this to happen.