Bethlehem University

Bethlehem University (Arabic: جامعة بيت لحم, romanized: Jāmiʻat Bayt Laḥm) is a Catholic university located in the city of Bethlehem, in the West Bank, Palestine.

History

Established shortly before the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War in 1973, the university traces its roots to 1893, when the De La Salle Brothers opened schools in Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Jaffa, and Nazareth, along with others in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt; and to 1964's Pope Paul VI's visit to the Holy Land in which he promised the Palestinian people a university, a centre for Ecumenical Studies (Tantur Ecumenical Institute), and a school for children with special educational needs (Effetá Paul VI School).

As of 2025, Bethlehem University is the first established university in Palestine and the only Catholic university in the Holy Land (excluding seminary schools and theological or biblical institutes). It continues to be a joint project supported by the Vatican and run by the De La Salle Brothers.

In 2017 the Palestine Museum of Natural History opened on the campus; it is closely linked to the Palestine Institute for Biodiversity and Sustainability.

Demographics

Bethlehem University students are predominantly Muslim (~75%) and female (~78%), with Christians representing ~25% of the students.

Faculties

• Arts & Humanities
• Business Administration
• Education
• Nursing & Health Sciences
• Applied Sciences, Technology & Engineering
• Institute of Hotel Management & Tourism

Majors and Minors

• Archaeology and Cultural Heritage
• Religious Studies
• Psychology of Childhood and Adolescence
• Social Work
• Sociology
• English Language, Literature, and Communications
• Interactive Media and Communication
• Business Administration
• Accounting
• Pre-School Education
• Lower Basic Level Education
• Upper Basic Level – Teaching Arabic Language
• Upper Basic Level – Teaching English Language
• Upper Basic Level – Teaching Mathematics
• Upper Basic Level – Teaching Social Studies
• Nursing
• Midwifery
• Speech Therapy and Audiology
• Physiotherapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Medical Laboratory Sciences
• Pharmaceutical and Industrial Chemistry
• Software Engineering
• Computer Simulation in Sciences and Engineering
• Sustainable Energy Engineering
• Hotel Management
• Tourism Studies
• Computer Information Systems
• Biology
• Industrial Chemistry
• Mathematics
• Physics

Interreligious character

All religious groups are welcome at the university, which currently counts among its students Christians of many different denominations including Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican, Russian Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox, Greek Catholic, and others.

Эх сурвалж: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)