Editing Openai/68cb1119-3ba8-800a-9fe6-77c5599d54ad (section)

===== - Eligibility: - Primarily open to students enrolled at BYU (Brigham Young University) or other CES (Church Educational System) institutions. - Must be non-Israeli nationals. This includes: - No Israeli passports - No permanent Israeli residency - Even students of Palestinian descent with legal Israeli residency are excluded in many cases =====
* Why? - This restriction was a core part of the agreement the LDS Church made with Israeli authorities when the Jerusalem Center was built in the 1980s. - In exchange for approval to build in Jerusalem, the Church agreed: - Not to proselytize in Israel - To enroll only foreign (non-Israeli) students - To maintain a secular academic focus
* Academic Focus: - The program includes Hebrew studies, Arab-Israeli relations, biblical archaeology, and ancient scripture—but is explicitly non-missionary and not a seminary.

Confidence rating: 9.5/10 — The restriction is clearly documented in public agreements, Center FAQs, and news reports from the center’s founding. Minor variations in enforcement (e.g., students with dual citizenship) may occur case-by-case, but the overall rule is firm and longstanding.

Would you like me to pull up the actual non-proselyting agreement PDF or application guidelines for the Jerusalem Center for reference?