Bethlehem University () is a

Catholic university Catholic higher education includes universities, colleges, and other institutions of higher education privately run by the Catholic Church, typically by religious institutes. Those tied to the Holy See are specifically called pontifical univers ...

located in the city of

Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

, in the

West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

History

Established shortly before the outbreak of the

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...

in 1973, the university traces its roots to 1893, when the

De La Salle Brothers The De La Salle Brothers, officially named the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools (; ; ) abbreviated FSC, is a Catholic lay religious congregation of pontifical right for men founded in France by Jean-Baptiste de La Salle ( ...

opened schools in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

Jaffa Jaffa (, ; , ), also called Japho, Joppa or Joppe in English, is an ancient Levantine Sea, Levantine port city which is part of Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel, located in its southern part. The city sits atop a naturally elevated outcrop on ...

, and

Nazareth Nazareth is the largest Cities in Israel, city in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. In its population was . Known as "the Arab capital of Israel", Nazareth serves as a cultural, political, religious, economic and ...

, along with others in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

, and

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

; and to 1964's

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...

's visit to the

Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...

in which he promised the

Palestinian people Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous ...

a university, a centre for Ecumenical Studies (

Tantur Ecumenical Institute Tantur Ecumenical Institute is an international ecumenical institute for advanced theological research in Jerusalem. Goals and objectives "No one climbs up to Tantur except to follow a vocation, the same vocation that led on the pioneers of ecu ...

), and a school for children with special educational needs (Effetá Paul VI School). Bethlehem University is the first established university in Palestine and the only

in the Holy Land (excluding seminary schools and theological or biblical institutes). It continues to be a joint project supported by the Vatican and run by the De La Salle Brothers. In 2017 the Palestine Museum of Natural History opened on the campus; it is closely linked to the Palestine Institute for Biodiversity and Sustainability.

Demographics

Bethlehem University students are predominantly

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

(~75%) and female (~78%), with

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

representing ~25% of the students.

Faculties

*Arts & Humanities *Business Administration *Education *Nursing & Health Sciences *Applied Sciences, Technology & Engineering *Institute of Hotel Management & Tourism

Interreligious character

Bethlehem University is the only formal educational institution in the Holy Land where

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

and

students formally learn, study and reflect on their respective religions and that of the others in mixed groups and settings. All religious groups are welcome at the university, which currently counts among its students Christians of many different denominations including

Greek Orthodox Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Greek Christianity, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christians or more broadly the rite used in the Eastern Rom ...

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

Russian Orthodox The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...

Syriac Orthodox The Syriac Orthodox Church (), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox denomination that originates from the Church of Antioch. The church currently has around 4-5 million followers. The church upholds the Mia ...

Greek Catholic Greek Catholic Church or Byzantine-Catholic Church may refer to: * The Catholic Church in Greece * The Eastern Catholic Churches The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also known as the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Ea ...

, and others.

Graduate programs

*Master of Business Administration in International Cooperation and Development (MICAD) *Masters in Governance & Administration of the Public Sector (MGAPS) *Master of Science in Biotechnology *Master of Arts in Tourism Studies *Master of Arts in Community Social Work *Master of Science in Oncology and Palliative Care Nursing *Master of Arts in Education. Creative Pedagogies and Community Practices (MOCP) *Higher Diploma in Neonatal Nursing *Higher Diploma in Emergency Nursing *Higher Diploma in Education. Teaching Christian Religion *Higher Diploma in Education. Upper Basic Level - Teaching Science *Higher Diploma in Education. Upper Basic Level - Teaching Mathematics *Higher Diploma in Education. Upper Basic Level - Teaching Social Studies *Higher Diploma in Education. Upper Basic Level - Teaching English Language *Higher Diploma in Education. Upper Basic Level - Teaching Arabic Language

References

External links

Directory of Faculty and Staff
* {{Coord, 31, 42, 53.50, N, 35, 11, 55.0, E, type:edu_region:IL, display=title Buildings and structures in Bethlehem Lasallian colleges and universities Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities Universities and colleges established in 1973 1973 establishments in Palestine Catholic universities and colleges Nursing schools in Palestine