Olive Wood Art Made in the Holy Land

Christian shopkeepers, artisans, and carvers in Jerusalem have long worked in the Holy Land providing natives and visitors with products exhibiting the beauty of olivewood. Even today, there are families working hard to continue these traditions in a time and place where doing so is not as easy as it may have been. Some are finding that it is becoming more difficult to keep the time-honored Christian presence in the very place where Jesus ministered and died.

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Working and functioning can be rough for these Christians who are now greatly in the minority, and/or who live in mixed Palestinian areas. Understandably in the midst of Middle-Eastern tensions, many security measures have been increased, leaving the non-threatening Christian residents and shopkeepers with limits that affect them financially, geographically and in many other ways. This even includes barrier walls in some areas, and certain required roads and highways. A wall (some say, like the Berlin wall) has been erected and has stood for about 10 years. The reason behind this has been described as the protection and safety measures necessary since the two periods of Palestinian “Intifada” (insurgency fighting from some Palestinian residents in Israeli territory) from 1987 to 1994, and then, again, in 2000-2005.

Life is becoming more and more challenging for Christians/ Catholics in certain cities since the 1990’s. “ ‘Nowadays, most Christians are hiding their identity when they are outside the Christian area because they don’t want to be persecuted,’ “…said an archeologist and tour guide in the Holy Land. [The Criterion newspaper, Mar 20, 2015]

The underlying tension and ongoing constraints have caused many Christians to leave the towns of Bethlehem and Jerusalem. What used to be up to 80% Christian residents living there (as recently as the early 90’s) has dwindled down to 2%. One gentleman commented that he would like to see the churches remain open as churches, and not just as museums, especially in those cities that mean so much to Christians—particularly in Bethlehem and Jerusalem. “Restrictive laws, economic hardship and“ tension due to extremism “has caused an exodus of Christians from the Holy Land.” [The Criterion newspaper, Friday, March 13, 2015]

Shops and businesses tend to be frequented by those of the same religious affiliation—whether Muslim, Jewish or Christian. With the low numbers of Christian residents, and reduced tourist trade (particularly during various perilous times), it becomes difficult to stay and raise a family. The ones who stay there tend to be very committed to remaining as a Christian presence in the cradle of Christianity. “'They need direct help and support so as not to emigrate more [to the point of] no more Christians in the Holy Land,’" says one souvenir shop owner in Old City Jerusalem. [The Criterion newspaper, Mar 20, 2015]

The items in our Jerusalem olive wood collection are produced by families within the old Biblical cities within the Holy Land. The primary family (who co-ordinates, packages, sends and designs much of what we have in our shop) is located in Jerusalem, itself. He is a member of a family of craftsmen and carvers who have created artistic pieces out of olive wood for over a century. The shop they own is a family-owned business in Jerusalem. They are connected to a few other artisan families who live nearby in the Holy Land, who contribute their creations to each shipment—including items from Bethlehem.