Roman Catholic Church in Israel

The Roman Catholic Church in Israel is part of the worldwide Catholic Church.

church

About 152,000 Christians live in Israel, or two percent of the Israeli population; the vast majority - 80.4 percent - are Arab Christians . Since 1990, the Christian communities have grown by around 36,000 people. When the State of Israel was founded in 1948, around 34,000 Christians lived in the country.

Most Israeli Catholics are members of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church , but there is also a strong presence of the Maronite Church , especially in the north . In addition, the Latin Church in Israel is directed by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem . There are also other United Churches , including the Syrian Catholic Church , the Armenian Catholic Church , the Chaldean Catholic Church and the Coptic Catholic Church .

The following Catholic dioceses are represented in Israel:

Jerusalem Patriarchate of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church
Archeparchy Akka of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church
Patriarchal Exarchate Jerusalem and Palestine of the Maronite Church
Haifa Archeparchy and the Holy Land of the Maronite Church
Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem of the Latin Church
Patriarchal Exarchate Jerusalem of the Syrian Catholic Church
Patriarchal Exarchate Jerusalem and Amman of the Armenian Catholic Church .

After the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the State of Israel on December 30, 1993, Andrea Cordero Lanza di Montezemolo became the first Apostolic Nuncio in 1994 . In 1997, the State of Israel and the Holy See signed an agreement granting legal entity status to the institutions of the Catholic Church in Israel. Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli has been Apostolic Nuncio in Israel since September 2017 and heads the Apostolic Delegation for Jerusalem and Palestine .

Israel is represented in the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land (AOCTS).