In a deadly stampede, it matters not one bit if the faithful are Jewish or Christian, commemorating a rabbinic sage or Jesus’ resurrection. Regardless of the language or nature of the prayers, miracles can’t be counted on, year after year, to stand in for safety precautions. 

Nevertheless, for some of the media, the ecumenical threat to life and limb posed by large crowds unprotected by adequate safety precautions didn’t stand a chance against the overwhelming predetermined narrative alleging the Jewish state’s oppression of a persecuted Christian minority.

Traditionally, many thousands of Greek Orthodox Christians observe Orthodox Easter by converging on the ancient church and surrounding streets in the Old City of Jerusalem, carrying torches of fire. It’s an event that holds tremendous religious significance, but also potential perils, with so many people and an abundance of flames crowded together in an ancient building and alleyways. Indeed, in 1834, hundreds died in a stampede at this very event.

And there have been smaller warnings since then. “In the past, the light set fire to people’s clothes, even their hair, said Tareq Abu Gharbiyyeh, East Jerusalem’s fire chief who has been fire-proofing the ceremony for the last 30 years,” the Jerusalem Post reported last year.

Last year’s Christian Holy Fire ceremony was no different than the Jewish religious gatherings. It likewise saw new restrictions, with a cap of 1800 people permitted to enter the church. 

This year, officials from the Patriarchate of Jerusalem cynically rejected the professional advice of their own engineer to maintain last year’s limit of 1800 worshippers within the church, and then cast Israeli police efforts to enforce their professional’s safety recommendations as oppressive heavy-handedness impinging on their freedom of religion.

Israel’s burgeoning Christian population is particularly noteworthy given the decimation of Christian communities across the Middle East. But without ethical journalism practices safeguarding faithful reporting of the facts about Christian life in Israel, the truth is trampled under an onslaught of coverage tilted against Israel.