One of the items of business that the 219th General Assembly will be considering is the report of the Middle East Study Committee, which was commissioned to undertake a comprehensive study of the Israel/Palestine conflict that included the perspectives of three faith traditions (Christian, Jewish, and Muslim) and took into consideration geographical, historical, political, and theological perspectives. The Middle East Study Committee was made up of Presbyterians with diverse perspectives themselves. The report as it now stands is available on the PCUSA website.
On Friday evening, July 2, the Middle East Study Committee sponsored an event called "Shalom, Salaam, and Peace: One Hope, Two Peoples, Three Faith Traditions." This event gave General Assembly attenders a chance to hear first hand, the perspective of religious people who live in Israel and Palestine. Two of the three speakers who were invited to come spoke eloquently of their experiences and understandings. His Excellency Avraham Burg, former member and Speaker of the Knesset; Israeli Cabinent Minister, and Former Chairperson of the Jewish Agency for Israel and active peace maker began the conversation. One of his points was to warn Americans that increasing isolation of Israel in the world political arena is counter productive. He also said that both Palestinians and Israelis must move from trauma (which both have experienced in their histories and in an on-going way, to finding a way to develop trust.
Dr. Allan Jarrar, a Muslim Palestinian and Director of Community Based Rehabilitation, Palestinian Medical Relief Society, was unable to attend this gathering, but he sent his remarks for participants to read. Among his remarks were an overriding concern that grave violations of Palestinian human and socioeconomic rights, both personal and collective have persisted. He believes that a peaceful end to the ongoing conflict should be based on UN General Assembly and Security Council resolutions and that the international community is responsible for enforcing these resolutions.
The second speaker of yesterday's meeting was The Reverend Dr. Mitri Raheb, Pastor of Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church, Bethlehem, West Bank and Founder and President of Diyar Consortium and International Center of Bethlehem. Mr. Raheb began his comments saying that "We have too many peace-talkers and not enough peacemakers. Talk is one thing, but the facts on the ground are more important." The facts on the ground for the Palestinians are grim. He says, "The occupation is not philosophical, but it is existential." He also feels that the problem between Israel and Palestine has nothing to do with American Jewish/Christian dialogue. He challenged Presbyterians to put their faith into action. He said, "Hope is what we do, and there is so much to be done."
Both speakers were given the opportunity to respond to one another's comments and to questions from the audience. One basic difference between the two appeared to be the option of boycott. Mr. Burg feels that American policy that boycotts Israel is counterproductive and unhelpful. Mr. Raheb states that the Palestinians are already heavily boycotted economically by Israel and that this is a viable option for peace supporters to take against Israel as a form of non-violent resistance. Both have larger visions for peace beyond a two state solution, and both agree that unjust systems on both sides need to be addressed in order for Jesus' vision of abundant life for all peoples to be a reality.
No Cascades Commissioners have been assigned to the Committee which will be considering this report, however, I will try to attend this committee meeting as much as possible to watch the testimony and discussion. This report may prove to be one of the most noticed pieces of business to come from this assembly. In whatever form it takes after going through the Presbyterian committee and plenary process, this document is not considered official policy of the PC(USA), but a faith witness and basis for ongoing Presbyterian engagement and action towards justice and peace. Prayers for all peoples involved are needed.
No comments:
Post a Comment