Muslims help rein in Christian kerfuffles

Restoration work takes place on the tomb of Jesus in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. Photograph: National Geographic/AP

Thoughtful, caring, compassionate, wise, charitable ... the list of glowing adjectives rolls out for Christians like a rosy red carpet. It's nice, in a world full of so much strife, to find someone who's halfway decent.

And yet it is not just Monty Python who can tweak the Christian tableau.

Here is the BBC tale of the excavation of the site where Jesus was allegedly laid out after his crucifixion:

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in the heart of Christian quarter of the walled Old City, covers the assumed site of Jesus’s crucifixion, burial and resurrection.
Six denominations – Latin (Roman Catholic), Greek Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, Syrian Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox and Copts – share custodianship of the cavernous church. Bitter disputes over territories and responsibilities have erupted in the past, sometimes involving physical altercations.
In a sign of the distrust between the different denominations, the keys to the church have been held by a Muslim family since the 12th century. [emphasis added]

Lord, there's a blue-ribbon award in those words somewhere.