wfn.org | Delegation of church leaders headed to Middle East to bolster peace efforts

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For more information contact:
James Solheim
Director
jsolheim@dfms.org
http://www.ecusa.anglican.org/ens

2000-220

Delegation of church leaders headed to Middle East to bolster peace efforts 

by James Solheim

     A high-level delegation of American church leaders is headed for the Middle 
East to express solidarity with Christian churches there and to lend their voices 
to a growing chorus calling for renewed efforts to find a peaceful solution to 
the crisis in the area.

     The delegation hopes to meet with Israeli and Palestinian political and 
religious leaders to discuss the escalation of violence and collapse of the peace 
process, as well as  difficult issues such as the future status of Jerusalem, 
Israeli settlements in Gaza and the West Bank, refugees and the protection of 
human rights.

     "It is crucial that we sit down with those who are victims of the violence, 
as well as those who are working to restore the peace process," said the Rev. 
Mark Brown, assistant director in the Office for Governmental Affairs of the 
Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELCA), who was instrumental in arranging the 
December 7-12 visit. 

     Despite the heightened tensions in the area, Brown said that the delegation 
also hopes to visit institutions in Jerusalem, Gaza, Bethlehem, Beit Jala, Beit 
Sahour and Ramallah. "We need to better understand the breakdown in peace 
negotiations and discuss ways in which churches in the U.S., Palestine and Israel 
can work together to strengthen the Christian communities and to promote a just 
and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians," he said.

     The delegation include participants from the National Council of Churches, 
the United Church of Christ and the Armenian Apostolic, Roman Catholic, 
Episcopal, Greek Orthodox, Lutheran, Mennonite, Presbyterian, Quaker and United 
Methodist churches.

     The visit comes at the same time as many of the churches are involved in a 
Prayer Vigil for Middle East Peace. The vigil begins on the first Sunday in 
Advent, December 3, and will continue until the violence ends and a peace 
agreement emerges.

     Based on an initiative and organized by the ecumenical working group 
Churches for Middle East Peace, the vigil holds in prayer all those who are 
suffering in the Holy Land, including Palestinians and Israelis. (For details and 
resources go to www.loga.org/PrayerVigilHome.htm.)

Participants in the delegation include:

     Bishop Viken Aykazian of the Armenian Apostolic Church
     The Very Rev. Brother Stephen Glodek of the Catholic Conference of Major 
     Superiors of Men's Institutes
     The Rev. John McCullough of Church World Service and Witness of the National 
     Council of Churches
     Bishop Vincent Warner of the Episcopal Church's Diocese of Olympia
     Mrs. Patti Browning, wife of the former presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church
     Bishop Dimitrios of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America
     Former Presiding Bishop Herbert W. Chilstrom of the ELCA
     Bishop Margaret Payne, bishop of the ELCA's New England Synod
     Donella Clemens of the Mennonite Central Committee
     Inez Allan of the Presbyterian Church USA
     Mary Ellen McNish of the American Friends Service Committee
     The Rev. Bernice Powell Jackson of the United Church of Christ
     Bishop William Oden of the United Methodist Church

     Note: If you would like to receive daily press reports and photos of the visit, 
send your e-mail address to CorinneWhi@aol.com at Churches for Middle East Peace. 
During the trip the delegation's press officer, Jim Solheim, can be reached at 
jsolheim@dfms.org.