Roman Catholicism in Israel
The Roman Catholic Church in Israel is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome.
Church
In Israel, about 152,000 Christians live, and consequently two percent of the Israeli population. The majority of Christians - 80.4 percent - are Arabs. Since 1990, the Christian communities have grown by approximately 36,000 people. With the founding of Israel in 1948 about 34,000 Christians lived in the country.
Most Israeli Catholics are members of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, but there are mainly in the north is also a strong presence of the Maronite Church. In addition, the Roman (Latin ) Catholic Church in Israel is led by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. In addition, further Uniate churches are based, called the Greek - Catholic Churches, the Syrian Catholic Church, the Armenian Catholic Church, Chaldean Catholic Church and the Coptic Catholic Church.
The following Catholic dioceses are represented in Israel:
- Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Latin Church
- Archeparchy Akka of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church
- Archeparchy Haifa and the Holy Land of the Maronite Syriac Church of Antioch
- Archdiocese of Jerusalem of the Melkite Greek 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 first Apostolic Nuncio in 1994. In 1997, the State of Israel and the Holy See signed an agreement which relates to the granting of the status of a legal entity to the institutions of the Catholic Church in Israel. Apostolic Nuncio to Israel, Archbishop Antonio Franco since 2006, who also heads the Apostolic Delegation in Jerusalem and Palestine.
Israel is represented by the Catholic Bishops' Conference Holy Land.