Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Illustrations
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: Nationalism and Religious Identification
- 1 1917–1923: Balancing Religion and National Unity
- 2 1923–1929: Christians and a Divided National Movement
- 3 1929–1936: Towards Communalism
- 4 1936–1939: Standing Aloof? Arab Christians and the Great Revolt
- 5 1940–1948: National Strength through Communal Unity
- Conclusion: Nationalism and Communal Identification – Conflicting Identities?
- Bibliography
- Index
4 - 1936–1939: Standing Aloof? Arab Christians and the Great Revolt
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 October 2013
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Illustrations
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: Nationalism and Religious Identification
- 1 1917–1923: Balancing Religion and National Unity
- 2 1923–1929: Christians and a Divided National Movement
- 3 1929–1936: Towards Communalism
- 4 1936–1939: Standing Aloof? Arab Christians and the Great Revolt
- 5 1940–1948: National Strength through Communal Unity
- Conclusion: Nationalism and Communal Identification – Conflicting Identities?
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
A force from the army went to the village of Rafiydiah … The residents of this village are Christians; the Muslim residents are no more than 10%. When the army arrived the residents started to raise the cross sign in front of them, and when the army saw these signs they returned to Nablus without doing anything in the village … In the Christian villages now, they have started to do the cross sign on the doors of their homes.
Zionist Intelligence, August 1936The Muslim and the Christian their unity is power and immunity
Religion and denomination to God but the nation is for all
Don't say Christian or Muslim we are all brothers from the same blood
Whatever you say or do Adam is our father and Eve our mother!
Everyone understands that our unity is power and immunity
Nuh Ibrahim, ‘The Nation is For All’In December 1936, the ‘Carriers of the Banner of al-Qassam’ issued a leaflet calling for a boycott of Arab Christians: ‘God is great! God is great! Oh Muslims, boycott the Christians. Boycott them. Boycott them.’ The pamphlet contained a list of accusations concerning Arab Christians' lack of dedication to nationalism, specifically calling for communal separatism. Christians, the leaflet explained, ‘compromised the nation for their personal benefit’: they arrived at protests late because they were unwilling to face risks like Muslims, they held the majority of government jobs, worked as teachers educating Muslim youth ‘on the Christian principles that are in contradiction to the text of the Holy Quran’, and even worked as spies for the British and French governments.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Arab Christians in British Mandate PalestineCommunalism and Nationalism, 1917-1948, pp. 130 - 162Publisher: Edinburgh University PressPrint publication year: 2013