Archived Items
As new items are posted on the home pages, older items will be moved here.
2010 || 2009
2011
IDF to build base in East Jerusalem near Augusta Victoria
February 15, 2011 - Haaretz reports that the IDF plans to build a military base next to Augusta Victoria Hospital between the Mt. of Olives and Mt. Scopus.
Palestine Recognized
January 20, 2011 - As the UN Security Council prepares to discuss and vote on a resolution denouncing Israeli settlements, there are new diplomatic developments that point to a continued increase in international recognition of Palestine.
Check out these articles for more information:
ELCA Southeast Michigan Synod Ecumenical Accompaniers on Radio
January 19, 2011 - Donna Matteis and Pastor Amy Kienzle, both ELCA members from the Southeast Michigan Synod who participated in the Ecumenical Accompaniers Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI), were intereviewed on the Craig Fahle Show about their experiences as Ecumenical Accompaniers and the current situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Download the MP3 of the show and scroll to around minute 20 to hear their 12-minute spot.
Israelis Demolish East Jeruslem Hotel
January 9, 2011 - Israel bulldozers have demolished the Shepherd Hotel located in East Jerusalem to make way for 20 new homes for Jewish Settlers. East Jerusalem is disputed with Palestinians claiming it part of the West Bank and the location of their future capital while Israel claims Jerusalem is united and under Israeli control. Palestinians leadership has said moves like this by Israel are destroying chances for peace. Israel says that it has the right to build in any part of the city.
For more info:
Current Conditions for Christians in Middle East
January 8, 2011 - Recent vionece against Coptic Christians in Egypt has elicited responses from around the world. Check out the statements from Bishop Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land and Bishop Hanson of the ELCA:
For other perspectives of the lives of Arab Christians:
2010
Settlers Expand Housing Next to Augusta Victoria Hospital
December 16, 2010 - Settlers expand housing construction at Mt. of Olives Yeshiva Beit Orot (next to Augusta Victoria
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Beit Orot, an orthodox yeshiva (left foreground) is adjacent to the Lutheran World Federation's Augusta Victoria Hospital. This picture from 2008 shows the crane that brought other major building materials in 2008 with AVH in the background. The LWF is in the process of getting building permits for a housing project for Christians. |
LWF buildings in the background can be seen behind the crane, which brought building materials to begin a synogogue at Beit Orot in 2008. |
Elder Statesman Call for New Direction Toward Peace
December 13, 2010 - The Elders, an independent group of eminent global leaders, has released a statement calling for less process and more peace in the Middle East. Read the statement here.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Admits Defeat in Peace Process
December 10, 2010 - In remarks made at the Brookings Institution's Saban Center for Middle East Policy Seventh Annual Forum, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton admitted that the peace process in the Middle East had stalled. She stated that the US was still committed to peace in the region and would continue working towards a framework agreement through indirect talks.
Israel's No to Settlement Freeze; Argentina and Brazil Recognize Palestinian State
December 8, 2010 - The following acticles discuss the recent developments of Israel refusing to stop settlement building and the recogniztion of a Palestinian State by Argentina and Brazil.
Dar al Kalima College Dedicates New Facility
November 30, 2010 - The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land celebrated the dedication of the new facilities of Dar al-Kalima College. The new facilities promote a “message of higher education and scientific research in Palestine” and include film and television studios, a specialized technical library, an auditorium and theatre hall, as well as music performance rooms, classrooms, computer labs, a cafeteria and gathering space. This project was facilitated by a loan from the Mission Investment Fund.
The opening is a major accomplishment and visual reminder to the whole Bethlehem community that the ELCJHL plays a leading role in developing future leaders in the land.
Read more | Watch a video of the dedication
Israel announces plans for 1300 new settlement units
November, 2010 - While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is visiting the US, with peace talks on the brink, Israel has announced another 1300 settlement units in the East Jerusalem settlements Har Homa and Ramot, drawing US and international criticism that the Prime Minister dismisses.
New York Times story | MJ Rosenberg analysis
Israel sees no connection at all between the peace process and building plans in Jerusalem.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Heads of Churches denounce murder of Iraqi Christians;
Robert Fisk comments on Christian exodus from the Middle East
November 4, 2010 - The heads of churches in Jerusalem have issued a statement condemning the violence against Christians in Baghdad.
Half of Iraq's Christians have fled their country since the Gulf War of 1991. They are down to 3% of the population. Palestinian Christians are now less than 2% of the population. The exodus of Christians from the Middle East is alarming and should be examined, according to writer Robert Fisk in Exodus: The Changing Map of the Middle East.
Americans, so obsessed by the myths of East-West "clashes of civilisation" since 11 September 2001, often seem to regard Christianity as a "Western" rather than an Eastern religion, neatly separating the Middle East roots of their own religion from the lands of Islam. That in itself is a loss of faith.
Robert Fisk, author on the Middle East
ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson and other Christian leaders meet with President Obama, urge need for shared Jerusalem and protection of Christians in Middle East
November 2, 2010 - Bishop Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the ELCA, was among more than 20 Christian leaders invited to visit with President Barak Obama on Monday. On the Middle East, they emphasized the need for religious freedom in the world, and they thanked the President for recent peace efforts. They also voiced the need to preserve Jerusalem as a shared city for all and to protect the place of Christians in the region. Read more.
LWF President and ELCJHL Bishop Younan addresses Catholic assembly on the Middle East
October 2010 - Pope Benedict XVI called together a Special Assembly on the Middle East at the Vatican in late October which issued a statement about the situation in the Middle East.
The Rt. Rev. Munib Younan, LWF President and Bishop of the ELCJHL, was invited to address Pope Benedict XVI and the Assembly. In Bishop Younan's address to the Special Assembly, he expressed gratitude for the initiative of the Synod in caring for Christians in the Middle East, and stressed the importance of strengthened ecumenical relations both in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and in the whole Middle East.
The citizens of the countries of the Middle East call upon the international community, particularly the United Nations conscientiously to work to find a peaceful, just and definitive solution in the region, through the application of the Security Council’s resolutions and taking the necessary legal steps to put an end to the occupation of the different Arab territories.
From the Catholic statement on the Middle East
Read more: The Catholic statement | ELCJHL website | Bishop Younan's statement
Peace Now estimates 600 new settlement units begun since freeze ended, report to come out Monday
October 21, 2010 - Peace Now will release a report on Monday detailing the estimated 600 new settlement starts since the settlement freeze ended. Israel announced 238 new settlement units this week to be built in East Jerusalem (Pisgat Ze'ev and Ramot). Hopefully the numbers will be clarified, since there were 2000 units still being built as "exceptions" to the settlement freeze, and another almost 500 which were begun during the freeze, also as "exceptions." The freeze never included East Jerusalem, and building there has continued throughout. Read more.
Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would extend the settlement freeze and restart peace talks if Palestinians would recognize Israel as a Jewish state. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas immediately said no, but PLO leader Yasser Abed Rabbo on Wednesday said yes, drawing criticism from many Palestinians who said he only speaks for himself. Most Palestinians are opposed to recognizing Israel as a Jewish state because it is unclear what it would mean for the 20% of Israelis who are Palestinian Christians and Muslims living in Israel. It would also call into question their historical claims to the land.
Continued violence (5 alestinians killed this week), possible expanded Palestinian home evictions in Silwan and expansion of settlements in East Jerusalem, which was exempt from the freeze all along, make for an explosive backdrop to the situation. Read more about the background and analysis of the situation.
THE CHURCHES' VOICE:
- 10/23 - During the Fourteenth General Congregation held yesterday afternoon, Friday 22th October 2010, the Synod Fathers approved the Nuntius, the Message to the People of God, at the conclusion of the Special Assembly for the Middle East of the Synod of Bishops. Read the statement | Read ELCJHL Bishop Younan's statement as President of the LWF
- 9/29 - Religion can be a solution in bringing peace, Bishop Munib Younan, President of the LWF, writes in a Washington Post blog.
- 9/29 - Bishop Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the ELCA, joined 27 members of the National Interreligious Leadership Initiative for Peace in the Middle East (NILI) in a statement calling for hope and prayer for the fragile peace talks. Statement
| News release
We refuse, now and always, to give into cynicism or despair. We are people of hope. We call upon the members of our religious communities to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and to support active,fair, and firm U.S. leadership to advance comprehensive peace in the Middle East. The time for peace is now.
Statement by NILI
- 9/3 - Read a bulletin from Churches for Middle East Peace that contains more analysis and links, including a peace litany and an NPR interview about lessons learned from the Camp David negotiations in 2000.
- 9/1 - The Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches, is in Israel/Palestine with a delegation speaking out for peace with justice. He has commented on Hamas' killings of Israelis and on Palestinian Christians, especially Palestinians' fragile residency status in Jerusalem. World Council of Churches Statements:
on killing of Israelis | on Palestinian Christians and Jerusalem
- 8/30 - Bishop Hanson joined other church leaders in a letter organized by Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) to President Obama advocating for the urgency of peace talks and changes on the ground in Palestine and Israel:
CMEP Letter to Pres. Obama | ELCA press release
Christian, Muslim and Jewish Leaders Denounce Anti-Muslim Rhetoric
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Jews, Christians and Muslims protest mosque and church desecrations in Nazareth in 2006. Photo by Julie Rowe. |
September 7, 2010 - The ELCA joined Christian, Muslim and Jewish leaders who gathered in Washington for an emergency interfaith summit at the request of the Islamic Society of North America. They issued a statement denouncing anti-Muslim sentiment and upholding mutual respect for all religions. The Rev. Donald McCoid, executive, ELCA Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations, represented the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the ELCA.
The statement | ELCA news release | Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations | Watch a video of the press conference
Churches for Middle East Peace also issued a statement denouncing any Koran burning.
Bishop Munib Younan of the ELCJHL and President of The Lutheran World Federation said the proposed act was "nothing less than a hate crime."
Bishop Younan is a strong critic of extremism, urging all religions to promote common human values and uphold the dignity of all. Read the statement and other writings: The statement | Religion, Democracy and Extremism - May, 2007 | Religion and Tolerance - June 2008 | No Religion Has a Monopoly on Hate - May 2007
Let us stand together in opposing extremism and fanaticism that holds all of us hostage to fear and violence. Let us bind together to find the common values in the three monotheistic religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – values that promote acceptance of the other, justice, tolerance, forgiveness, peace and reconciliation. Instead of burning the Qur’an, let us lift up to the world these values and return dignity to every human being.
ELCJHL Bishop Munib Younan,President of the LWF
New Report Questions Reality of Settlement Freeze and Calls for Extension of Freeze "without Exceptions"
August, 2010 - Americans for Peace Now released a report whose findings underscore the notion that unless the settlement moratorium is extended – with no new “exceptions” or loopholes – and unless it is enforced – this 10-month moratorium will have been meaningless. Pictured here is David Nassar of Tent of Nations near Bethlehem looking at an expanding settlement that is threatening to confiscate his land despite the settlement freeze.
The Main Findings:
- At least 600 housing units have started to be built during the freeze, in over 60 different settlements.
- At least 492 of those housing units are in direct violation of the law of the freeze.
- During an average year (when there is no freeze) approximately 1,130 housing units start to be built in 8 months in the settlements. The new construction starts during the moratorium constitute approximately half of the normal construction pace in the settlements.
- Some 2,000 housing units are currently under construction in the settlements, most of them started before the freeze was announced in November 2009.
See report, photos of findings and more information about settlements at Americans for Peace Now website.
New missionaries begin in Jerusalem
August 2010 - A new team of ELCA missionaries has arrived in the Holy Land! Pastor Fred and Diaconal Minister Gloria Strickert will serve the English-speaking Redeemer congregation, Pastor Elly McHan will be Bishop Younan's Communication Assistant and Pastor Emily Goldthwaite Fries, a UCC pastor, will volunteer to work with the ELCJHL schools. Six new Young Adults in Global Mission also began their year.
Read more about them | Read the Strickert's blog
ELCJHL Bishop Munib Younan Elected President of The Lutheran World Federation
July 24, 2010 - The Rev. Dr. Munib Younan, Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL), has been elected President of The Lutheran World Federation (LWF). He succeeds the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the ELCA, who was president since 2003.
Learn more: ELCA news release | LWF report
Bishop Younan's July 25 sermon “Who could imagine the Holy Land without Christians?”
In early August,one of Bishop Younan's first acts in his new role was to visit the annual Peace Forum in Lovisa, Finland, organized by the Finnish Christian Peace Movement. In his sermon in the Peace Mass, Bishop Younan encouraged Christians to live as children of light. At the seminar "Jerusalem - City of Peace," he gave the keynote address,emphasizing the importance of dialogue and reconciliation. The Bishop has been instrumental in instituting dialogue among key religious leaders in Jerusalem, including the formation of the Council of Religious Institutions of the Holy Land.
Download Bishop Younan's sermon | See the Peace Forum's website with links | Listen to part of the Bishop's keynote address
June 2010 - The 2010 special emphasis week has passed, but the resources listed here continue to be useful. If your synod or congregation did sponsor an educational or worship observance during the May 29 - June 4 special week, please send a description to Peace Not Walls at peacenotwallsinfo@elca.org.
Gaza Flotilla Event Draws Sadness, Anger, Church and Quartet Responses
May-June, 2010 - In late May, several ships of internationals attempted to break the blockade of Gaza and bring humanitarian supplies. Israeli commandos boarded one of the ships in international waters, killing eight Turkish and one Turkish-American nationals. The incident drew criticism of Israel and attention once again to the plight of the 1.6 million people in Gaza suffering from a strict blockade that was strengthened after Hamas took control of the area. The Rev. Mark Hanson, Presiding Bishop of the ELCA and President of The Lutheran World Federation, as well as other churches, released statements lamenting the loss of life and asking for a lifting of the blockade in accordance with UN Resolution 1860. The Middle East Quartet said the situation in Gaza is "unsustainable, unacceptable and not in the interests of any of those concerned."
For more information about Gaza check out the Major Issues: Gaza page.
New Israeli Orders May Affect Presence in the West Bank
April 2010 - New Israeli Defense Force (IDF) orders alter a previous 1969 document designed to keep "infiltrators" out of the West Bank. Several Israeli human rights groups are challenging the orders. Read more at www.hamoked.org.
ELCA Bishops Express Concern for Israeli Orders' Effect on Palestinians
On April 30, 2010 nine ELCA synod bishops sent a letter to US Sectretary of State Hillary Clinton. To learn more read the ELCA news release and the letter itself
See the IDF Orders:
Original 1969 Order 329: Order Regarding Prevention of Infiltration
Order 1650: Regarding Prevention of Infiltration (Amendment 2)
Order 1649: Regarding Security Provisions (Amendment 112)
Read more about it:
March 4, 2010 - Pastor Mitri Raheb was invited to join the worshiping community at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, MN and to share about his experiences as a Palestinian pastor living in Bethlehem.
2009
December 30, 2009 - A group of 15 key American Muslim, Christian and Jewish leaders from NILI visited leaders and people in Palestine, Israel and Jordan in December to seek common ground in achieving peace with justice in the Holy Land.
The leaders urged the US and others to be catalysts "for achieving an effective, sustainable ceasefire, including international measures to prevent resupplying of rockets; for allowing the flow of urgently needed humanitarian and economic assistance to the people of Gaza; for continuing good efforts to improve the capacity of the Palestinian Authority to increase security and economic development; and for further reducing the number of checkpoints and freezing all settlement expansion in the West Bank and East Jerusalem."
NILI was formed in 2003, when thirty-three of the nation's most prominent Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders announced a new, unprecedented collaborative effort to mobilize broad public support for active, fair and firm U.S. leadership in pursuit of Arab-Israeli-Palestinian peace. NILI was founded on Principles of Cooperation and initially advocated Twelve Steps for Peace.
Links about the NILI Delegation:NILI news release |
ELCA news release |
ELCA Bishop Margaret Payne's blog
Palestinian Christians Issue Kairos Document
December 11, 2009 - An ecumenical group of Palestinian Christians issued The Kairos Palestine Document: A moment of truth - A word of faith, hope and love from the heart of Palestinian suffering (see right sidebar). The document is a word of hope to Palestinian Christians and a challenge for churches to work toward an end of Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands as well as to re-examine theologies that support the Israeli occupation.
For more information about the Kairos Document