Theodosios (Hanna)
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Theodosios (Hanna) of Sebastia (born 1965) is the
Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
of Sebastia from the
Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem,, ''Patriarcheîon Hierosolýmōn;'' , also known as the Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem, is an autocephalous church within the wider communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Established in th ...
. Colloquially known as Atallah Hanna (), Atallah and both meaning "gift of God" in
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and
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, respectively. Theodosios, who was ordained on the 24 December 2005 at the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also known as the Church of the Resurrection, is a fourth-century church in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem. The church is the seat of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchat ...
, is the second
Palestinian 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 p ...
to hold the position of archbishop in the history of the
diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...
.


Early life; education

Archbishop Theodosios was born Nizar Hanna to
Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...
parents in the village of
Rameh Rameh (; ; alternatively spelled ar-Rame or ar-Rama) is an Arab citizens of Israel, Arab local council (Israel), town in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. Located east of Nahf and Karmiel, in it had a population of . O ...
,
Upper Galilee The Upper Galilee (, ''HaGalil Ha'Elyon''; , ''Al Jaleel Al A'alaa'') is a geographical region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Part of the larger Galilee region, it is characterized by its higher elevations and mountainous terra ...
region of northern
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
. Archbishop Theodosios studied
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
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 ...
, continuing his studies in
Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
where he earned his
Master of Theology Master of Theology (, abbreviated ThM, MTh or MTheol, or ''Sacrae Theologiae Magister''; abbreviated STM) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a ...
from University of Thessalonica School of Theology in 1991.


Ecclesiastical career

That same year, 1991, Nizar Hanna returned to Jerusalem, where he was tonsured a monk with the name Theodosios and received ordination as a deacon. Also in 1991 he was elected a member of the
Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre The Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre, or Holy Community of the All-Holy Sepulchre, is an Eastern Orthodox monastic fraternity guarding the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and other Christian holy places in the Holy Land. It was founded in its pres ...
. In 1992 Theodosios was ordained a
priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
at the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also known as the Church of the Resurrection, is a fourth-century church in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem. The church is the seat of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchat ...
. A few days later he was elevated to the rank of
archimandrite The title archimandrite (; ), used in Eastern Christianity, originally referred to a superior abbot ('' hegumenos'', , present participle of the verb meaning "to lead") whom a bishop appointed to supervise several "ordinary" abbots and monaste ...
and placed in charge of the Arab section of the Patriarchate. Active in public life, he has served as the spokesperson and Director of the Patriarchate's Arab Department, has taught in local schools, and lectured on
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
at the
Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...
Arab Teachers' College. For his devotion to ministry in 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 ...
, Theodosios was granted an honorary
Doctor of Theology Doctor of Theology (, abbreviated DTh, ThD, DTheol, or Dr. theol.) is a terminal degree in the academic discipline of theology. The ThD, like the ecclesiastical Doctor of Sacred Theology, is an advanced research degree equivalent to the Doctor o ...
degree from the
Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...
Theological Institute in
Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
. In 2001 Theodosios was appointed by the late Patriarch Diodoros to serve as the official spokesperson for the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem. In 2005, after the dethronement of Patriarch Irenaios and his replacement with Patriarch Theophilos III, Theodosios was ordained Archbishop of Sebastia.Ma'an News Agency, ''J'lem archbishop: Israel targets mosque today, church tomorrow'', 27.09.2009

/ref>


Political positions and the response of the authorities

Theodosios gained renown for his high-profile political activism, his outspoken denunciation of the occupation, and his stress upon the importance of
Palestinian 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 p ...
identity - positions that have made him popular with
Arab Arabs (,  , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...
s and unpopular with the
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
i authorities. Before being ordained archbishop, Theodosios has been arrested, detained and interrogated more than once by the Israeli authorities under various allegations of 'incitement'. Theodosios has served as a member of the Constitutional Consultative Committee that worked on the third draft of the Palestinian constitution of March 200

and was awarded the Jerusalem Prize by the
Palestinian National Authority The Palestinian Authority (PA), officially known as the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), is the Fatah-controlled government body that exercises partial civil control over the Palestinian enclaves in the Israeli-occupied West Bank as a c ...
's Ministry of Culture in 2004. He is also one of the authors of the Kairos Palestine document together with Patriarch Michel Sabah, Naim Ateeq, Rifat Odeh Kassis, Nora Qort and others.


During the Second Intifada

Theodosios represented Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Diodoros as part of a Palestinian ecumenical delegation invited by the
World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, most jurisdictions of the Eastern Orthodo ...
(WCC) to present before the
United Nations Commission on Human Rights The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) was a functional commission within the United Nations System, overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006. It was a ...
. At the WCC's
Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
headquarters on 19 October 2000, he stated that Palestinian Christians "are suffering, because they are Palestinians and they want to stay in their
homeland A homeland is a place where a national or ethnic identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethnic natio ...
in
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 ...
". Theodosios also accused Israel of practicing "
ethnic cleansing Ethnic cleansing is the systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial, or religious groups from a given area, with the intent of making the society ethnically homogeneous. Along with direct removal such as deportation or population transfer, it ...
against the Arabs, Muslim and Christian. Everyone thinks that there is a conflict between Arabs and Israelis. It is not a conflict between Arabs and Israelis, but an occupation by Israel." He called on all WCC churches to hold a special prayer for the Palestinian people and stated that they "should be enjoying all the rights of any other
nation A nation is a type of social organization where a collective Identity (social science), identity, a national identity, has emerged from a combination of shared features across a given population, such as language, history, ethnicity, culture, t ...
... and should be enjoying their independence in their own
state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...
, the capital of which is Jerusalem." The following year, on 10 October 2001, Theodosios participated with other
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
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 ...
leaders in a march from Jerusalem to the Bethlehem checkpoint to protest Israeli attacks on religious sites. Theodosios explained that, "We intend to conduct special prayers inside the
Church of the Nativity The Church of the Nativity, or Basilica of the Nativity, is a basilica located in Bethlehem, West Bank, Palestine. The grotto holds a prominent religious significance to Christianity, Christians of various denominations as the Nativity of Jesus, ...
for the sake of our martyrs." Later that month, Theodosios sent a message to the
United Nations Human Rights Commission The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) was a functional commission within the overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006. It was a subsidiary body of th ...
calling for "immediate and rapid intervention" by the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
"to save the Palestinian people from the terrible massacres being carried out by the occupation forces". He also called for the commission to pressure Israel to lift its blockade of Palestinian towns and villages. On 21 January 2002, Israel requested that the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate take punitive action against Archimandrite Atallah Hanna, for criticizing Israeli policy in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. In March 2002, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem issued a statement expressing, "denunciation and condemnation over Israel's suspension of Archimandrite Dr. Atallah Hanna at King Hussein bridge between Jordan and 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 ...
upon his return from
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
, for five hours in a very racist and provocative way." The patriarchy also expressed its regret over the demand of the Israeli government that Theodosios be fired from his position as church spokesperson, considering this measure to be "a grave violation to its sovereignty in running its affairs." In July 2002, two years into the
Second Intifada The Second Intifada (; ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its Israeli-occupied territories, occupation from 2000. Starting as a civilian uprising in Jerusalem and October 2000 prot ...
, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Irenaios I accused Theodosios of "supporting the Palestinian terrorism," after he refused to sign a document condemning Palestinian operations and he fired him from his post as spokesperson. The Arab Orthodox community responded by issuing an urgent statement calling on the Greek Foreign Ministry to intervene, stressing that Theodosios would remain the spokesperson for the church with or without Greek acceptance. Arab Orthodox figures urged the Orthodox Arab Christian communities in
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 ...
and
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 ...
to boycott the Greek Patriarch and the ''Father Theodosios Atallah Hanna Defense Committee'' was formed to mobilize on his behalf.


Arrest and confiscation of travel documents

:Day of the arrest On 22 August 2002, Theodosios was arrested outside of his home in the
Old City of Jerusalem The Old City of Jerusalem (; ) is a walled area in Jerusalem. In a tradition that may have begun with an 1840s British map of the city, the Old City is divided into four uneven quarters: the Muslim Quarter, the Christian Quarter, the Arm ...
by Israeli Border Police on the order of
Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
Elyakim Rubinstein. He was taken to the police station at the Russian Compound where he was charged with "suspicion of relations with terrorist organisations", "illegally entering an enemy country" (i.e.
Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
and
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 ...
) and "incitement". Media were present at the site of his interrogation which lasted five hours. Theodosios explained that he regularly visited Syria and Lebanon to attend religious and inter-religious conferences and dialogues using his
Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...
passport. Israeli police confiscated Theodosios'
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
i and Vatican-issued passports. :Theodosios' response to the arrest Upon his release, Theodosios claimed that his arrest had been unjustified since "he had only expressed opposition to Israel's military occupation of areas claimed by the Palestinians." In an interview with ''The Palestine Chronicle'' in September 2002, Theodosios said that his arrest marked "the first time that a Christian religious leader and official is arrested in such an inhumane and non-acceptable manner that is devoid of all human ethics and without any prior notification." Sharing his view as to the reasons for his arrest, he said that:
In the past three months, a far-reaching
defamation Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...
campaign was launched against me in a number of Israeli newspapers accusing me of supporting
terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...
and violence and condoning suicide attacks. I have a strong conviction that the slander, assault and arrest are all part of a chain of accusations meant to deliver a message to me, and the rest of the Christian and Moslem religious leaders ... The Israeli authority has launched a campaign aiming at silencing all those nationalistic voices in Jerusalem and claiming that these voices support terrorism, violence, etc. I believe that the only concerned party is the Israeli authority. In my case there could be some elements involved from within the Church itself, and this is something that I cannot disregard, especially that there are those who do not share my stance on issues pertaining to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
Theodosios further said that:
I believe that the act of ousting me from my position as the official spokesperson of the Church and the other measures taken are closely related to the pressure and
blackmail Blackmail is a criminal act of coercion using a threat. As a criminal offense, blackmail is defined in various ways in common law jurisdictions. In the United States, blackmail is generally defined as a crime of information, involving a thr ...
exercised especially that the Patriarch confirmed to me months ago that I am targeted and that Israel has demanded that he oust me from my position. This is what actually happened later on based on the Israeli desire to conceal the Christian dimension of the Palestinian issue. Israel attempts to present this conflict as a Jewish-Moslem religious conflict, and it also attempts to neutralize the Christian position, and therefore it is irritated by the growing Christian voices raised on the Palestinian issue. We have always asserted that the Church in Palestine is there to serve all Palestinians for it is a church for the people. It is also a church that is deeply rooted in this land and the Arab Palestinian Christians and Moslems who live in it. We have always asserted our resistance to the Israeli pressure, and we believe that in the case of the arrest itself Israel has transgressed all borders.
Responding to the charge of visiting "enemy states", Theodosios said that:
As to the case of the visit to Syria considered by Israel an enemy country, we say that we are not bound by the Israeli stance. The number of people who belong to the Greek Orthodox Church in Syria exceeds a million and the number in Lebanon exceeds half a million. Israel has no right of preventing us from visiting Syria and Lebanon under the claim that these are enemy countries especially that we maintain spiritual and nationalistic ties with these countries. When we visit these countries we meet with all political and religious officials with no exceptions whatsoever. We are open to everyone. Israel has no right of claiming that we maintain relations with
terrorist organization Several national governments and two international organizations have created lists of organizations that they designate as terrorist. The following list of designated terrorist groups lists groups designated as terrorist by current and former ...
s because what Israel calls terrorist maybe to us nationalistic,
freedom fighter A freedom fighter is a person engaged in a struggle to achieve political freedom, particularly against an established government. The term is typically reserved for those who are actively involved in armed or otherwise violent rebellion. Termi ...
s. We refuse to accept the terms that Israel dictates; therefore, what Israel condemns or what it elevates may not be necessarily as such to us.


Legal advocacy to reclaim passports

On 28 October 2002, Adalah - The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel sent a letter to the Attorney General's office on Theodosios' behalf demanding that they intervene to return both the Israeli and Vatican passports that had been confiscated from Theodosios by the Israeli police. Adalah noted that a few weeks earlier, the police had summoned Theodosios to collect his passports on the condition that he sign "a statement promising not to incite against the state or make statements in support of terrorist actions or organizations; not to visit states hostile to Israel without the permission of the Ministry of Interior; and not to contact enemy states (as defined under Israeli law) or terrorist organizations." Theodosios refused, and the police refused to return his passports. Adalah argued that the police decision to withhold Theodosios' passports had no basis in any law and did not serve any legitimate purpose, and that the document he was asked to sign also had no legal basis and violated the Israel's domestic laws on equality. On 28 October 2002, the Attorney General sent a letter to the police legal advisor requesting his urgent reply to Adalah's letter. As of February 2005, both passports belonging to Archimandrite Theodosios had not yet been returned.


Activism against sales of church property in Jerusalem

In 2005, Archimandrite Theodosios was active in the movement to dethrone Patriarch Irenaios following allegations that land belonging to the Greek Orthodox Church had been sold to
Zionist Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...
Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
ish organizations. After election of new Patriarch Theophilos III in 2005 Archimandrite Theodosios Hanna was appointed and ordained as Archbishop of Sebastia.


See also

* Palestinian Christians *
Christianity in Israel Christianity (; ; ) is the third largest religion in Israel, after Judaism and Islam. At the end of 2022, Christians made up 1.9% of the Israeli population, numbering approximately 185,000. 75.8% of the Christians in Israel are Arab Christians. ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Theodosios Bishops of the Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem Palestinian bishops Eastern Orthodox Christians from Israel 21st-century Eastern Orthodox archbishops Israeli Arab Christians 1965 births Living people People from Rameh Eastern Orthodox Christians from Palestine