wfn.org | ACNS3620 The Ecumenical Forum for Young Theologians

["Anglican Communion News Service" <acnslist@anglicancommunion.org>]

ACNS 3620     |     MIDDLE EAST     |	  10 OCTOBER 2003 

The Ecumenical Forum for Young Theologians: Seeking ways of dialogue
between the children of Abraham

[ACNS source: Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem] More than thirty young
Christian theologians came together in Jerusalem last month to explore
avenues of dialogue between Christians, Muslims and Jews. Theologians
from England, Scotland, the United States, Russia, Romania, Armenia,
Sweden, Germany, South Africa, Malawi and Palestine, came for a two-week
visit to Palestine, Israel and Jordan. The Programme was prepared by the
Ecumenical Forum for Young Theologians; a ministry of the diocese of
Jerusalem that brings together Christians from the worldwide family of
Churches and has set itself the task of exploring the challenges to
today's church by fostering dialogue at a grassroots level. During their
time in the Holy Land, participants were able to meet not only Christian
Church leaders - among them the Latin and Armenian-Orthodox Patriarchs
of Jerusalem and the Lutheran, Maronite, Syria-Orthodox, and Anglican
Bishops in Jerusalem - but also members of the beleaguered Palestinian
Christian community in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Beit Sahour, Bir Zeit,
Ramallah, Nablus and Jericho. During a short visit to Jordan they were
received in Aqaba by Her Royal Highness Princess Basma of Jordan as
guests of His Excellency, Mr Akel Bultaji. Princess Basma paid tribute
to those who had travelled from afar and, as an observant Muslim,
reiterated the need for searching dialogue between the three Abrahamic
faiths.

The two key sponsors of the programme were the Anglican Bishop in
Jerusalem, the Rt Revd Riah Abu El-Assal, and Judeh Majaj, General
Secretary of the East Jerusalem YMCA. Bishop Riah called on all people
of faith to take seriously the ministry of peace and reconciliation. "I
keep on saying: One of the great blessings of being the member of a
faith community is the act of coming together," Bishop Riah pointed out.
This was particularly the case for those engaged in the critical
dialogue between Muslims, Christians, and Jews. YMCA Secretary General
Mr Majaj encouraged those attending to dig deep into their faith and to
lead the Church by their own example: "the global vision of the YMCA is
the holistic development of youth," Mr Majaj said. "Indeed, the youth
are among the most marginalized in Palestine right now." He added, "That
is why the idea of gathering young theologians is wonderful and
something I encourage greatly."

The Revd Dr Andreas Loewe, curate of Upton-cum-Chalvey (Slough) and the
British co-coordinator of the study programme, explained, "One of the
central aims of the programme was to expose participants to the
practicalities of dialogue between the three Abrahamic faiths. We were
overwhelmed of the local Christian community, and the real depth of
encounter with Muslims and Jews." During their time in the Holy Land,
the theologians were able to meet members of the local Jewish community
for joint Biblical exegesis at an orthodox synagogue in West Jerusalem,
and visited the Israeli Holocaust Memorial Yad Vashem as well as a
Reform Synagogue. They were also given the opportunity to meet local
Muslim leaders engaged in a reconciliation project that brings together
Christians, Druze, Jews and Muslims in Galilee, and were received by
Sheikh Mohammad Hussein, the guardian of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in
Jerusalem. Their meetings were not only restricted to theological
dialogue, but included the experience of sharing in an Islamic
meditation of Dhikr (remembrance) in the Sufi tradition, and the
celebration of a Shabat supper.

During the course of the programme, it became increasingly clear that
the political dimension that stands at the heart of the conflict between
Israelis and Palestinians also underpins the practical dialogue between
Christians, Muslims, and Jews. Participants visited Israeli settlements
in the Occupied Territories, met with settlers, and observed the
building of the nine-metre high separation wall that separates
Palestinian communities from the rest of the Occupies Territories, and
Israel. Only days after the Israeli cabinet decision to expel
Palestinian President Mr Yasser Arafat from Ramallah, they were given a
first-hand experience of the tension in the city when passing through
the chanting crowds that had gathered as a human shield in order to meet
the president in the ruins of his compound. Bishop Riah, who led the
visit, commented, "We were welcome by someone who is unwelcome to the
Israelis, at a time when people sought his expulsion. But lasting peace
cannot be brought about by expelling people, only by the end of the
occupation and a clear commitment to the United Nations resolutions."

The Programme provoked profound reaction from the visitors to the Holy
Land. Canon Julia Butterworth, a participant from Canterbury Diocese,
reflected, "I keep turning the words of a Sufi Sheikh whom we met in his
home on the Via Dolorosa: 'Jerusalem is the heart of the world. If the
heart is sick, the whole world will feel it.' This leads for me the
ongoing reflection on the coming together in prayer of the three
religions who look to Jerusalem, and our political and social action to
heal God's world."

The gathering of the young theologians did not only touch the visitors
but also affected the local Christian community. The Revd Yazeed Said,
Palestinian co-coordinator of the programme and Acting Dean of Saint
George's Cathedral in Jerusalem, emphasised, "Events like our study
programme help he Christian community to face theological challenges,
which create in them a greater capacity for theological learning. Hence,
more commitment for their local Palestinian Church is sown." Father Said
concluded, 'It is most important that we create a solid network of
support in the months to come; but in order for us to succeed we need
the support of the wider church to help sustain this vital, ongoing
theological dialogue. Such activities are there to help he Church do
what it needs to do in the first place, that is to think theologically,
reflect critically in the light of Crucified, and grow prayerfully for
the sake of others'. 

An office will be established in Jerusalem to maintain the work of this
Forum for the future, which will require continuous financial and moral
support.

[A photograph is available at:
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/articles/36/00/acns3620.html]

___________________________________________________________________
ACNSlist, published by Anglican Communion News Service, London, is
distributed to more than 7,000 journalists and other readers around
the world.  For subscription information please go to:
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/acnslist.html