Religious leaders from various faiths in both the U.S. and Holy Land lobbied for, and prayed for, a lasting peace in the Middle East ahead of key meetings sponsored by the U.S. and the so-called Quartet of Mideast mediators on the resumption of talks between Israel and the Palestinians, and on a new Palestinian unity government.
A group of 29 national Christian, Jewish, and Muslim organizations, called the National Interreligious Leadership Initiative, recently penned a document entitled, "Arab-Israeli-Palestinian Peace: From Crisis to Hope."
Key excerpts from the document include the following:
"As Jewish, Christian and Muslim religious leaders, our shared Abrahamic faith compels us to work together for peace with justice for Israelis, Palestinians and all peoples in the Middle East. As Americans, we again ask the United States to make peace in the Middle East an urgent priority. Our nation has an inescapable responsibility and an indispensable role to provide creative, determined leadership for building a just peace for all in the Middle East.
Our faith traditions hold that every human being is created in the image of God, that human life and dignity are to be respected, and that all persons are children of the One God. This common religious heritage–which we trace to Abraham–finds expression in a common commitment to peace with justice for all God's children.
Beginning in December, 2003, we called upon the United States to exercise leadership at the highest levels to secure a just peace deal between Israelis and Palestinians through concrete support for the Road Map and ‘12 Steps for Peace.' We have been disappointed that the United States did not more actively pursue the Road Map for Peace, which we felt held great promise. While much has changed since December, 2003, our fundamental call for the United States to more fully engage in the work for a two-state solution to the conflict has not.
Palestinian and Israeli elections have changed the political landscape. The crises in and near Gaza and the war in Lebanon have cost many lives, destroyed communities, displaced peoples, deepened animosities, and diminished prospects for a negotiated peace.
At this time of crisis and danger, we must speak a word of hope. It is our conviction that the current crisis can also open up new opportunities for peace. Our shared faith in the One God gives us hope and reminds us that God is on the side of peace. Hatred will not have the final word. We are one human family, and people ultimately want the same things for their own families–peace, security, dignity, opportunity.
The way forward requires that we listen and learn from each other. The way forward requires that we work together for active, fair, and firm U.S. leadership to help Israelis, Palestinians and Arab states achieve a just peace. We seek by our prayers and by our work together to build bridges among our communities and to generate interreligious cooperation and action for peace."
The group sent a copy of the letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and asked for a meeting with her, which she agreed to.
Afterward, Roman Catholic Cardinal and retired archbishop of Washington, D.C., Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, called the meeting "substantive and excellent."
McCarrick said the delegation emphasized that points.
"First, as Americans, we ask for bold, persistent, United States leadership for peace in the Middle East, leadership that supports and challenges both Israelis and Palestinians.
Second, as religious leaders in the Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions, we committed ourselves to continuing to say tough things to our communities, here and in the Middle East region, to build up public support for peace.
We know that these are difficult but necessary steps on the road to a two-state solution, and we pledge to build public support for them," McCarrick said.
Likewise, another religious coalition, this one comprised of Christian leaders and institutions from a range of traditions–Orthodox, Catholic, mainstream and Evangelical Protestants–sent a letter to President Bush, calling for peace in the Holy Land. The 39 signatories are members of Churches for Middle East Peace.
Their letter stressed two main themes.
"First, we ask that you make Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking, in the context of a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace initiative, an urgent priority for your administration. We recognize the great many difficulties and struggles that the people of the Middle East region must confront, and the heavy responsibilities that fall upon you to help restore hope for a better future for them and for the citizens of the United States. We know that many view the Israeli-Palestinian situation as the most intractable in our troubled world, but we know that when it is resolved, the positive repercussions will go well beyond that small geographic area.
We commend your vision of a viable, contiguous Palestinian state living as a peaceful neighbor alongside the state of Israel, with both nations secure and recognized by their neighbors. With your active engagement, this vision could reignite a passion for peace that can overcome the appeal of violence, vengeance and exclusivity. The United States and the world will become safer as confidence grows that the U.S. is willing to take leadership and work cooperatively with the United Nations and other nations to resolve this conflict.
Our second appeal is for you to work with Israelis, Palestinians and the international community to guarantee access to Jerusalem's Holy Places; and religious liberty for all peoples. Resolving the status of Jerusalem is key to achieving a workable two-state solution.
We encourage you to maintain the faith, the courage and the resolve to work with other world leaders toward negotiations that guarantee two viable and secure states, Israel and Palestine, living side-by-side and sharing Jerusalem. For guidance, we look to the examples of the great prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah, who declared that God calls all nations and all people to do justice to one another."
The letter also dealt with the plight of Palestinian Christians.
"We bring to you our deepening concern for the welfare and future of the Palestinian Christian community. A small but vital part of the Palestinian society, Christians are rapidly emigrating to countries where they can gain the economic and physical security that is denied all Palestinians living under occupation. The future of the Palestinian Christians requires a solution to the conflict that will allow both peoples–Israelis and Palestinians–to live side-by-side in two states where all enjoy justice, peace and security.
The Palestinian Christian leaders have asked us to bring to your attention the very grave situation of Jerusalem. They remind us that Jerusalem is the location of not only historical memories and sacred places of pilgrimage, but also living communities of believers. With the construction by Israel of the separation barrier, many of the faithful–both Christians and Muslims–are excluded from the Holy City, and Jerusalem is severed from Bethlehem," the letter stated.
The barrier which Israel erected for security reasons against Palestinian militant attacks, has resulted in a sharp drop in ambushes and suicide bombings on Israeli targets.
On a related note, the Rev. Munib Younan, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, gave a series of lectures on the situation in the Middle East and the future of Palestinian Christianity, during a recent visit to the U.S., with stops in Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas.
Younan, as reported by ELCA News Service, noted that a recent study indicated, 162,000 Palestinian Christians live in the Holy Land. Younan said, a breakdown shows that 120,000 Palestinian Christians live in Israel, (within 1949 borders), 40,000 live in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and 2,000 live in Gaza. Prior to 1948, Younan said, Christians made up about 15 percent of the population in historic Palestine. Today, he said, Christians account for less than two percent of the population in the West Bank and one-quarter of one percent in Gaza.
Younan disputed claims of Christian persecution by Muslims as the reason for the Christian population decline in the Middle East. Instead, Younan said, the study concluded that the decline is the result of the "political situation manifested in the occupation, and the loss of hope in a just peace."
"We are very worried about the future of Palestinian Christianity. If present trends continue, there will be no living, local Christian community there in 15 to 20 years," he said.
Younan spelled out three principles that could lead to reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians: a culture of "truthfulness," and breaking a silence that hides the suffering of people who are "vulnerable and violated;" reconciliation built on justice, the fruit of which is peace; and a willingness by both Israelis and Palestinians to forgive, which can result in "true reconciliation."
"I always make a point to urge Israelis to see God in the Palestinians and urge Palestinians to see God in the Israelis. I urge both to accept the other's humanity with all of its pain and suffering. If we do so in the spirit of forgiveness, then we can recognize each other's human, civil, religious, national and political rights. Only then will justice come. Only then will the Holy Land be the Promised Land of milk and honey for Palestinians and Israelis," Younan added.
In the meantime, Churches for Middle East Peace has scheduled a conference for May 6-8 in Washington, D.C., under the theme, "For the Peace of Jerusalem."
The gathering is aimed at providing an opportunity for church members and clergy to understand the current issues in the Holy Land and to learn about the principles of effective advocacy, grounded in faith.
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