Speaking at the Vatican’s special Synod of Bishops for the Middle East, Coptic Patriarch Antonios Naguib of Alexandria, Egypt, said the proposed oath was not logical. “Personally, I think it’s a flagrant contradiction and it’s curious that this is coming from a country that declares itself the most democratic state — or sometimes says it’s the only democratic state — in the Middle East.”

Figures distributed by the Israeli embassy said, of Israel’s population of 7.2 million, about 1.2 million are Muslim and just 152,000 are Christian.

Earlier, Pope Benedict XVI had opened the Synod with a strong call to support the minority Christian population in the region, and said peace and protection of human rights were essential conditions for the Church’s survival there.

Celebrating Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica Oct. 10 with more than 250 synod participants, the Pope said the synod’s primary goal was to renew the pastoral energy of Middle Eastern church communities and strengthen their faith identity so they can continue to witness the Gospel to all peoples. That task, he added, goes hand in hand with the  Church’s dialogue with Muslims and Jews.

Of the 185 voting members of the special Synod of Bishops for the Middle East, 12 are bishops who minister in the United States and Canada, including Toronto Archbishop Thomas Collins.

A report issued at the opening of the synod said, in the face of tension and violence, Middle East Christians must work to defend freedom, democracy, peace and the human rights of each and every individual. “We must emerge from a logic in defense of the rights of Christians only, and engage in the defense of the rights of all,” said the report.

The report called on Catholics and other people of good will to work together to promote civil communities and nations that have a “positive secularity,” which respects the religious identity of its members, but does not define citizenship or rights on the basis of religious belonging. “Religious freedom is an essential component of human rights,” it said.

All the constitutions of the countries represented at the synod recognize the right of religious freedom, but some of them place limits on the freedom of worship and some, in effect, violate the freedom of conscience with legal or social pressures against conversion, it said.

While the Catholic Church “firmly condemns all proselytism” — pressuring, coercing or enticing someone to change faiths — Christians can contribute to the freedom and democracy of their nations by promoting greater justice and equality under the law for all believers, the report said. It also reaffirmed that the Catholic Church condemns all violence, whatever its origin, and calls for “a just and lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.” The Church supports the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians to live in freedom and security in their own countries with internationally recognized borders, it said.

It also said the international community must pay greater attention to “the plight of Christians in Iraq, who are the primary victims of the war and its consequences.”

The synod, which was to meet Oct. 10-24, included the participation of 13 “fraternal delegates” from the Orthodox, Anglican and Lutheran communities.