wfn.org | Information on Middle East Given at Annual Briefing

[PCUSA NEWS <pcusa.news@ecunet.org>]

GA99025 
20-June-1999 
                    Information on Middle East 
                     Given at Annual Briefing 
 
 
FORT WORTH-The first question most Presbyterians ask when they think about 
the Middle East is "What impact will the recent Israeli elections have on 
U.S.- relationships there, especially in view of the church's historic 
concerns for peace and justice in the area?" 
     Victor Makari, coordinator for Middle East and Southern Asia in the 
Worldwide Ministries Division, and colleagues specializing in specific 
areas answered that question and others Sunday afternoon at the annual 
Middle East briefing. 
     The briefing has been of such interest to  Assembly  participants that 
it has earned a place on the official General Assembly program schedule. 
Follow up forums on specific areas are set to be held Wednesday, 9:30-11:30 
a.m. 
     Concerns at Sunday's briefing included a future U.N. consortium to 
meet in Cairo to formulate issues and possible solutions relating to future 
Palestinian statehood, moving Israel's capital to Tel Aviv, and the state 
of Jewish-Christian-Muslim dialogue in the U.S.  
     Douglas Dix, recently returned from Jerusalem where he represents the 
Presbyterian Peace Fellowship, reported that the Israelis as well as 
mid-East watchers are still waiting for Barak to organize his government. 
He  pointed out that Barak's apparent commitments  of "no retreat to 
Israel's 1967 boundaries, no re-division of Jerusalem, and no obvious 
halting of settlements," would limit movement in the situation. He also 
stated that hope for movement and also the makeup of Barak's  government 
will depend on whether the new prime minister decides to deal first with 
with the peace questions, or with domestic issues. 
     Several resource persons commented on the difficulty of establishing 
significant interfaith dialogue in many regions, with the Dallas area as 
one of the exceptions.  Interfaith relationships are seen to be the basis 
of any hope for peace in the Middle East or elsewhere.  
      Meanwhile the PCUSA has, since 1993,  established some 20 ministries 
with Middle Eastern immigrants from at least ten countries. These projects 
are encouraged to establish their own communities of faith in their own 
languages for the present time. 
 
Midge Mack 

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