It'd've been cool if the fight looked something like this.
In reality, though, it was probably more like a girl fight. <|:)~
Posted on 07/29/2002 5:20:00 PM PDT by dighton
Eleven monks were treated in hospital after a fight broke out for control of the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, the traditional site of Jesus’s crucifixion, burial and resurrection.
The fracas involved monks from the Ethiopian Orthodox church and the Coptic church of Egypt, who have been vying for control of the rooftop for centuries.
It is not the first time monks have come to blows at Christendom’s most holy place, but it is one of the most serious in recent times.
As black-clad monks threw stones and iron bars at each other, the Israeli police were called to restore order. Seven Ethiopian monks and four Egyptians were hurt and one of the Ethiopians was reported to be unconscious in hospital.
The fight erupted over the position of a chair used by an Egyptian monk near the entrance to the roof.
He sits there to assert the Copts’ claim to the rooftop, which is mainly occupied by a few African-style huts which the Ethiopians, who have been evicted from the main church over the centuries, use as their monastery.
On a hot day, the Egyptian monk decided to move his chair out of the sun. This was seen by the Ethiopians as violating the “status quo” in the church, set out in a 1757 document which defines the ownership of every chapel, lamp and flagstone.
After several days of rising tension, the fists began to fly on Sunday. The Egyptians said their monk was teased and poked and, in a final insult, pinched by a woman.
Yesterday there was a silent stand-off on the roof, with the Ethiopians defending their property with a row of chairs.
The church is a cockpit of rivalry between Christian sects and, in the words of one historian, the “most unchristian place in the world”. It is shared among six denominations, with the more powerful ones taking ruthless advantage of any weakness by their rivals.
© Copyright of Telegraph Group Limited 2002.
It'd've been cool if the fight looked something like this.
In reality, though, it was probably more like a girl fight. <|:)~
a.cricket
There are a LOT of Christian denominations that have a presence there ....no bigger than a bedroom area. Some share on alternate days. Very strange, but very interesting!!
a cricket has identified the problem, I believe.
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