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Bethlehem hosts first International Conference of Arab and Middle Eastern
Lutherans

BETHLEHEM/GENEVA, 27 July 2000 (LWI) - A first International
Conference of Arab and Middle Eastern Lutherans entitled "Witness and
Mission" took place in Bethlehem from July 4 to 9. The conference
brought together nearly 75 participants, members of the Lutheran
church from Palestine and the United States.

Jointly planned by the clergy and leadership of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in Jordan (ELCJ) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America (ELCA) along with the Association of Lutherans of Arab and
Middle Eastern Heritage (ALAMEH), the meeting aimed to establish ways
by which members of the Lutheran church in the United States and in
Palestine can cooperate and support each other in faith and ministry.
ALAMEH is an organization of the ELCA for members of this 5.2 million
member-church who trace their heritage to Arab and Middle Eastern
countries.

Participants in the conference hoped to inform the Lutherans from
America about social, cultural, political, and religious issues
concerning Palestinians.

The conference received greetings from the ELCJ Bishop Munib Younan;
the mayor of Bethlehem, Hanna Nasser; the president of ALAMEH, Ms.
Grace El-Yateem; Sami Mussallam, Chief of Staff of Palestinian
President Yasser Arafat; and Rev. Fred Rajan and Bishop Will Herzfeld
of the ELCA.

In his address, Bishop Younan spoke of the ELCJ's work among
Palestinian Lutherans and Arab Christians in general, and of the
church's ministries in education and its work for reconciliation and
dialogue with Jews and Muslims. "We wish this conference had occurred
twelve years ago," Younan said. "The ELCJ wants to energize the Arab
and Middle Eastern churches and to mobilize ourselves to fully
support the witness we have to offer," he added.

Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb, pastor of Bethlehem's Christmas Lutheran
Church, spoke of the unique aspects of Palestinian Lutheranism
compared to Lutherans in other parts of the world. "We are the only
Lutherans in the world who call God 'Allah' in our liturgy and
prayers," he said, "and we are the only Lutherans who share culture
and language with Muslims and can seek positive relationships with
our Muslim brothers and sisters through this connection."

Speaking on "Exclusion to Inclusion", the ELCA's Rev. Fred Rajan
stated: "I believe the sons and daughters of the Arab-speaking world
should have the right to live without racism. I believe this will not
be possible without all of us working together."

Subjects presented by other speakers included: the ELCJ's youth
programs; an analysis of the current Palestinian political situation;
the work of the Lutheran church among Palestinian women; issues in
Judaism; the relationships between Islam and Christianity and their
positive aspects in Palestine, and the Muslim-Christian relations in
the United States.

Throughout the meeting, participants noted the general ignorance
among Americans of Palestinian issues, and discussed ways to educate
them on these issues.

At the conclusion of the conference, participants developed goals for
future efforts. They identified the following objectives:
strengthening the relationship between the ELCA and ELCJ; developing
educational and worship material for use in both the ELCJ and the
Arab-speaking communities of the ELCA; planning and carrying out
exchange programs; and advocating for local leadership.

The organizers of the conference hope this will be the first of a
number of joint international meetings on these topics.

(This article was contributed by the Rev. Bassam J. Abdallah, a
pastor of the First United Lutheran Church, Hammond, Indiana, USA. )

(The LWF is a global communion of 131member churches in 72 countries
representing 59.5 million of the world's 63.1 million Lutherans. Its
highest decision making body is the Assembly, held every six or seven
years. Between Assemblies, the LWF is governed by a 49-member Council
which meets annually, and its Executive Committee. The LWF
secretariat is located in Geneva, Switzerland.)

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Lutheran World Information
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