Theodosios (Hanna) of Sebastia

Theodosios of Sebastia (born Nizar Hanna; 1965), popularly known as Atallah Hanna , is a Palestinian Christian prelate who has served as Archbishop of Sebastia for the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem since 2005. He is the second Palestinian archbishop in the history of the diocese.

Ecclesiastical career In 1991, Hanna returned to Jerusalem, where he was tonsured a monk with the name Theodosios and received ordination as a deacon.

Activism

Theodosios gained renown for his high-profile political activism, his outspoken denunciation of the Israeli occupation,

Theodosios has served as a member of the Constitutional Consultative Committee that worked on the third draft of the Palestinian constitution of March 2003 and was awarded the Jerusalem Prize by the Palestinian National Authority's Ministry of Culture in 2004. At the WCC's Geneva headquarters on 19 October 2000, he stated that Palestinian Christians "are suffering, because they are Palestinians and they want to stay in their homeland in Palestine".

Later that month, Theodosios sent a message to the United Nations Human Rights Commission calling for "immediate and rapid intervention" by the United Nations "to save the Palestinian people from the terrible massacres being carried out by the occupation forces". He also called for the commission to pressure Israel to lift its blockade of Palestinian towns and villages. In March 2002, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem issued a statement expressing "denunciation and condemnation over Israel's suspension of Archimandrite Dr. Atallah Hanna at King Hussein bridge between Jordan and the West Bank upon his return from Beirut, for five hours in a very racist and provocative way." The patriarchy also expressed its regret over the demand of the Israeli government that Theodosios be fired from his position as church spokesperson, considering this measure to be "a grave violation to its sovereignty in running its affairs." Arab Orthodox figures urged the Orthodox Arab Christian communities in Palestine and Jordan to boycott the Greek Patriarch. The Father Theodosios Atallah Hanna Defense Committee was formed to mobilize on his behalf.

Arrest and confiscation of travel documents On 22 August 2002, Theodosios was arrested outside of his home in the Old City of Jerusalem by Israeli Border Police on the order of Attorney General Elyakim Rubinstein. He was taken to the police station at the Russian Compound where he was charged with "suspicion of relations with terrorist organisations", "illegally entering an enemy country" (i.e. Syria and Lebanon) and "incitement". Media were present at the site of his interrogation which lasted five hours. In an interview with Palestine Chronicle in September 2002, Theodosios said that his arrest marked "the first time that a Christian religious leader and official is arrested in such an inhumane and non-acceptable manner that is devoid of all human ethics and without any prior notification."

Sharing his view as to the reasons for his arrest, he said that:In the past three months, a far-reaching defamation campaign was launched against me in a number of Israeli newspapers accusing me of supporting terrorism and violence and condoning suicide attacks. I have a strong conviction that the slander, assault and arrest are all part of a chain of accusations meant to deliver a message to me, and the rest of the Christian and Moslem religious leaders ... The Israeli authority has launched a campaign aiming at silencing all those nationalistic voices in Jerusalem and claiming that these voices support terrorism, violence, etc. I believe that the only concerned party is the Israeli authority. In my case there could be some elements involved from within the Church itself, and this is something that I cannot disregard, especially that there are those who do not share my stance on issues pertaining to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Adalah noted that a few weeks earlier, the police had summoned Theodosios to collect his passports on the condition that he sign "a statement promising not to incite against the state or make statements in support of terrorist actions or organizations; not to visit states hostile to Israel without the permission of the Ministry of Interior; and not to contact enemy states (as defined under Israeli law) or terrorist organizations."

Conflict with Irenaios I and elevation to archbishop

In 2005, Theodosios was active in the movement to dethrone Patriarch Irenaios following allegations that land belonging to the Greek Orthodox Church had been sold to Zionist Jewish organizations. After the election of Patriarch Theophilos III in 2005, Theodosios was appointed and ordained as Archbishop of Sebastia. He is the second Palestinian to hold the position of archbishop in the history of the diocese.

In 2024, he criticised US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and the Second Trump Administration for claiming to be real Christians, while having a pro-Israel stance. He stated that, if they were truly Christian, they would call for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine, to the Gaza War and to the Israeli occupation of Lebanon. He also declared that "Palestine is mentioned in the Bible, and instead of these racists denying the existence of Palestinians, they should work towards resolving the Palestinian issue, which is the key to peace in our region and the world".