"Jewish people who are believers - perhaps 7,000 to 10,000 now in 130 different house groups or congregations/synagogues - are mostly tolerated, sometimes persecuted, often severely, especially by the ultra orthodox. The secular (80 percent of Israeli Jewish citizens are secular-cultural Jews, but not religious. They observe Passover and may even close stores etc. on Sabbath, but they are not people of significant faith) usually do not care, and even sometimes are more tolerant of the Jewish believers in Jesus than they are the ultra orthodox who want to control the country," said Finto.
However, he said that the Palestinian territories are another picture altogether. "Bethlehem is no longer controlled by Israel, but by Palestinians, often hostile Muslims who accept traditional Christians who have been Christians for generations (although Bethlehem's Christian population has decreased from 80 percent to about 20 percent according to recent statistics), but if a Muslim turns to faith in Jesus, he may be killed by his own family members. The evangelistic work is going forward, but has to be done very carefully, wisely and under the direction of the Holy Spirit," Finto said.
Weiner has interviewed many of the Christian victims (Palestinian Christians). His findings have revealed that certain pattern of abuses have become apparent. "The worst treatment is often 'reserved' for persons who leave Islam to become Christians," said Weiner.
He has even witnessed persecution first hand, but said it may often seem hard to assess or control.
"Persecution is very hard to measure. If nobody complains does it mean that there is no persecution. It could, but in the case of the Christians living under Palestinian rule this would not be a reasonable conclusion," said Weiner.
