wfn.org | World Council of Churches Responds to Palestinian Churches

[JerusalemRelOrgs@aol.com]

For more information contact:
George Awad or
Bishop Munib Younan
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jerusalem
Muristan Road, Old City, Jerusalem
Tel: 972.2.627-6111
Email: ga_elcj@netvision.net.il

    JERUSALEM, March 19, 2002--The Christian communities of Jerusalem and 
Palestine have warmly welcomed a message from the World Council of Churches 
received here this week.

    The international church organization said "the illegal occupation of 
Palestine must come to an end."  The WCC blamed the occupation of Palestinian 
territories as "the root of the violence" and said that  "unless this is 
addressed, there can be little hope for a just and lasting peace."
 
    Although many of the Holy Land churches are too small to qualify for 
membership in the WCC, the international body responded quickly to a message 
of the Christian leaders in Jerusalem for support as violence and 
difficulties mounted in recent months.

    The World Council's message came in the form of an "open letter" to all 
the member churches around the globe.  The Council called attention to 
Israeli incursions into refugee camps in the territories that it has occupied 
since 1967, and especially to the difficulties that Palestinians have had 
getting medical treatment.

   The Holy Land churches, several of which date back to the first Pentecost, 
are regarded by Christians throughout the world as the "mother churches" of 
Christendom.  Of the thirteen churches headquartered in Jerusalem, three are 
headed by Patriarchs.  All thirteen participate in the Middle East Council of 
Churches.

   Writing on behalf of the World Council's Commission on International 
Affairs, the Rev. Duane Epps told about of reports of "invasions, occupation 
and major physical damage or destruction of church-related and 
internationally supported schools and other facilities" at the hands of 
Israeli military.

    The open letter also called for "dialogue and common actions with your 
Jewish, Muslim and other neighbours who share a common longing for peace and 
justice."

   The full text of the WCC letter follows:
          

Open letter to the member churches 
of the World Council of Churches, 
regional and national councils of churches 
and ecumenical partner organisations 

Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,

We have all been watching with growing alarm as, hour by hour, the violent 
conflict between Palestinians and Israelis intensifies. The killings, 
bombings and destruction continue to escalate in defiance of the repeated 
admonitions and appeals of the United Nations, of governments and of people 
around the world. Israel is rapidly re-occupying Palestinian lands by 
military force, raiding Palestinian refugee camps and engaging in mass 
indiscriminate detentions of civilian inhabitants under the most degrading 
circumstances. Attacks on medical and rescue staff, coupled with the severe 
new restrictions on access to hospitals and other medical facilities, add to 
the systematic violations of human rights and international humanitarian law. 
In his address to the United Nations Security Council on March 12, secretary 
general Kofi Annan emphasized the critical need to end the illegal occupation 
and the violence.

The WCC is receiving regular eye-witness reports from Palestinian church 
workers about invasions, occupation and major physical damage or destruction 
of church-related and internationally supported schools and other facilities. 
A number of statements and appeals have also come to us from the Middle East 
Council of Churches Department for Service to Palestinian Refugees 
(MECC/DSPR) and from other Christian, Muslim and Jewish religious groups and 
secular Palestinian and Israeli organizations, pleading for determined 
international action, including the deployment of UN monitors, to put a stop 
to the escalating violence and to address dire humanitarian needs. 

The thirteen Patriarchs and Heads of Churches and Christian communities in 
Jerusalem issued a statement on March 9 (attached), expressing their deep 
distress at the increasing bloodshed, joining their voices with every 
Palestinian and Israeli seeking a just peace. Saying that "Israeli security 
is dependant on Palestinian freedom and justice," they call upon Israeli 
citizens and the Israeli government to "stop all kinds of destruction and 
death caused by the heavy Israeli weaponry, [for the] way the present Israeli 
government is dealing with the situation makes neither for security nor for a 
just peace". The church leaders also urge the Palestinian people to put "an 
end to every kind of violent response", reiterating that the way to peace is 
through negotiations. They appeal too, and in particular, to churches around 
the world to contact their respective governments to seek their active 
involvement in the quest for peace.  

The WCC, Action by Churches Together (ACT), APRODEV (WCC-related development 
organisations in Europe) and the MECC/DSPR are all seeking to respond to the 
humanitarian crisis, and all need your help and support.  Above all, however, 
an immediate common effort is required to break through the stagnation of the 
international community and to encourage action that corresponds to words. 
More than ever, we must hear and respond to the cries of the churches and 
bring them to the urgent attention of Christians, our communities, our media 
and our governments. 

Our united message is clearly stated by the WCC Executive and Central 
Committees: the illegal occupation of Palestine must come to an end. It is at 
the root of the violence.  Unless this is addressed, there can be little hope 
for a just and lasting peace. We therefore urge you to strengthen your 
efforts related to the 2002 focus of the Decade to Overcome Violence: "End 
the Illegal Occupation of Palestine". 

The WCC has also initiated the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in 
Palestine and Israel (EAPPI). Through this, the Council is organising a 
continuing international ecumenical presence in Palestine to monitor and 
report on human rights violations, offer protection to individuals and 
communities, and accompany local Christian and Muslim Palestinians and 
Israeli peace activists in their efforts of non-violent resistance to 
occupation, closures, and destruction of Palestinian homes and sources of 
livelihood. Some Christians and others are already in the area and have 
remained present through the current violence. It is hoped that others will 
join them soon. We urge you to contact your own national organizing bodies to 
offer participation or other forms of support. 

In the present circumstances, however, this is not enough to provide the 
immediate protection needed. Thus we urge you to apply pressure on your 
governments to support proposals that have been brought to the UN Security 
Council, and encourage the rapid deployment of an intergovernmental 
monitoring body in Palestine.

The churches of Jerusalem have also asked for prayers for peace. The global 
fellowship of churches can join together in special prayer vigils and 
services of worship with the Christians of Palestine. A collection of prayers 
from the local churches has been published by the WCC for use on such 
occasions. These prayers and other materials related to the WCC initiatives 
are available at www.wcc-coe.org or by mail upon request.  

We are not alone in our faith commitments to the peoples caught up in this 
tragic conflict.  Thus wherever possible, we encourage you to engage in 
dialogue and common actions with your Jewish, Muslim and other neighbours who 
share a common longing for peace and justice.  

This terrible tragedy of violence and injustice must end. To remain silent 
now can only be seen as complicity with the violence, the systematic abuses 
of human rights and the refusal, especially by the State of Israel, to abide 
by its obligations under international law. Now is the time for each one of 
us to speak out and act, fulfilling our Christian vocation as peacemakers.

Dwain C. Epps
Director
Commission of the Churches on International Affairs

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