Arab Christians in British Mandate Palestine: Communalism and Nationalism, 1917-1948 - Paperback

by Noah Haiduc-Dale (Author)

Recent conflict in the Middle East has caused some observers to ask if Muslims and Christians can ever coexist. History suggests that relations between those two groups are not predetermined, but are the product of particular social and political circumstances. This book examines Muslim-Christian relations during an earlier period of political and social upheaval, and explores the process of establishing new forms of national and religious identification.
Palestine's Arab Christian minority actively engaged with the Palestinian nationalist movement throughout the period of British rule (1917-1948). Relations between Muslim and Christian Arabs were sometimes strained, yet in Palestine, as in other parts of the world, communalism became a specific response to political circumstances. While Arab Christians first adopted an Arab nationalist identity, a series of outside pressures - including British policies, the rise of a religious conflict between Jews and Muslims, and an increase in Islamic identification among some Arabs - led Christians to adhere to more politicized religious groupings by the 1940s. Yet despite that shift Christians remained fully nationalist, insisting that they could be both Arab and Christian.

Front Jacket

'Haiduc-Dale's well-researched study... is a valuable addition to the scholarly literature on Palestine and on Christians in the Middle East.' Ann Lesch, American Historical Review 'This book is an important reference for those interested in a nuanced history of Palestinian Christians under the mandate and the religious politics of Palestine more generally.' Liora Halperin, International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies 'In recent years, several excellent monographs have been published by historians of the interwar Levant, and the current book by Noah Haiduc-Dale is a nuanced and engaging addition to this field.' Lauren Banko, New Middle Eastern Studies 'An important contribution to our understanding of the history of Christian communities in Mandate Palestine and in the Middle East in general.' George Emile Irani, Journal of Palestine Studies Examines the relationship between Palestinian Arab Christians and the budding Palestinian nationalist movement. While accepting the difficulties of belonging to a minority religious community in a mandate ruled through religious divisions and in a region fraught with religious symbolism, Haiduc-Dale challenges the commonly held belief that Arab Christians in Palestine retreated from the nationalist movement as the British mandate wore on. Instead, by examining Israeli and British archival material, as well as local Arabic newspapers, he convincingly argues that Arab Christians sought to strengthen their religious identity while simultaneously bolstering their nationalist credentials. Key features - Presents a chronological history of Palestinian Christians' roles in the conflict as it unfolded in the British mandate period - Reconsiders explanations about Christians' relationship with Muslims in Palestine during a period of nationalist development and rising tensions with the Zionist movement - Argues that nationalism and sectarianism are not necessarily opposing modes of identification - Provides a complex assessment of minority-majority relations in a region beset by stereotypes about religiously motivated violence. Noah Haiduc-Dale is Assistant Professor of History at Centenary College, New Jersey

Author Biography

Noah Haiduc-Dale is Assistant Professor of History at Centenary College, New Jersey.