For Immediate Release -- Monday, April 2, 2007
MIDDLE EAST VISIT MARKS THE BEGINNING OF HOLY WEEK AND PASSOVER
Toronto: A delegation of high-level United Church of Canada leaders, lay people, and staff are currently in Palestine and Israel on a visit that marks the beginning of both the Christian Holy Week of Easter and the Jewish Passover.
The church's newly elected Moderator, The Right Rev. David Giuliano, and Nora Sanders, The United Church of Canada's recently appointed General Secretary of the General Council, are key members of a six-person delegation participating in a solidarity visit to the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem and other partners in occupied Palestinian territories and Israel who are working for peace.
"As Christians throughout the world celebrate the resurrected Christ, whose message is one of peace and justice, we are hearing that message expressed again as both hope and prayer from our partners," says Wendy Gichuru, Program Coordinator for the church's Middle East partnerships.
The United Church of Canada is the country's largest Protestant denomination, with a long history of working together with other Canadian churches in partnership with Palestinian and Israeli groups to promote peace and development in the Middle East.
"Through this visit, The United Church of Canada is affirming its support for peace, justice, and security for Palestinians and Israelis," explains Gichuru. "It is also important to raise greater awareness in the church about the circumstances of fellow Christians living under occupation."
From March 25 to April 3, the six-person delegation will meet with
senior Christian, Muslim, and Jewish leaders and visit the peace-building programs supported by The United Church of Canada in the region, including in Jerusalem, Gaza, Ramallah, Bethlehem, Nazareth, and Hebron.
"Together with the people of this region, we too are desperately longing for peace with justice," says David Giuliano. "This visit is to witness to the tremendous work carried out by Palestinians and Israelis working for peace, and to affirm our solidarity with them in this quest."
Giuliano adds that The United Church of Canada is also in the midst of developing an education, advocacy, and fundraising campaign to be launched next fall in support of global peace. The church's goal is to raise $2 million, 50 percent of which will be available for peace initiatives with partners in the Middle East.
Nora Sanders, General Secretary of The United Church of Canada, expressed gratitude for the warm welcome the delegation has received from people in the region.
"Our partners appreciate The United Church of Canada's support for a just resolution to the conflict, based on international law and the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians to live within safe and secure borders agreed upon through peaceful negotiation," says Sanders. She adds that partners have encouraged the church to press the Canadian government to play a constructive role in bringing the parties back to the negotiating table.
Sanders says that message is echoed in the words of the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem: "We believe that the churches can and must do more to recognize their duty towards the Holy Land and act together to sensitize their governments, their people, and the international community."
Other members of the delegation are Omega Bula, Executive Minister of the Justice, Global and Ecumenical Relations Unit; the Rev. Jeanette Liberty-Duns, Chair of the Peace Policy Task Group; and Allan Seal, a member of the Executive of the General Council.
Gichuru says she hopes that upon their return, the delegation will have an opportunity to meet with the Prime Minister to share the message from partners in the region, and urge Canada to re-engage positively in a meaningful peace process.
For further information, please contact: Mary-Frances Denis Communications Officer The United Church of Canada 416-231-7680 ext. 2016 (business)
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