wfn.org | Lutheran Killed in Middle East Violence

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ELCA NEWS SERVICE

November 22, 2000

LUTHERAN KILLED IN MIDDLE EAST VIOLENCE
00-289-JB

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A German medical doctor -- a member of Beit Jala
Lutheran Church of the Reformation -- was killed Nov. 15, following an
attack on Beit Jala, a small town in the West Bank near Bethlehem.  The
Rev. Munib A. Younan, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
Jordan (ELCJ) officiated at the Nov. 16 funeral for Harold Fischer, 68.
     Fischer, who was in private practice there for nearly 20 years,
lived in the village with his Palestinian wife and their three children.
News services identified Fischer as the first foreign national killed in
the current Middle East violence.
     Younan had returned to Jerusalem three days before, following a
10-day trip to the United States.  Upon his return, he said he found
"conditions to be much worse."
     "Israeli bombing, shelling and the use of machine guns and
helicopter gunships -- Apaches and Cobras made in the U.S.A. -- continue
to occur in cities and villages, including Ramallah, Beit Jala,
Bethlehem and Beit Sahour where ELCJ congregations are located," he said
in a Nov. 17 letter to overseas friends and partners.  "Many houses and
other institutional buildings have been hit and badly damaged or
destroyed."
     A Lutheran boarding home for boys in Beit Jala was hit by gunfire,
slightly injuring a 10-year-old boy, Younan said.  Palestinian children
are suffering from fear, emotional problems, lack of sleep, and cannot
concentrate in school, he added.
     "The shortage of food is now a serious problem in the West Bank
and the Gaza Strip," he said. "Road blockages have led to food scarcity,
and what little food is available from the outside is not fresh and is
very expensive," Younan reported.
     The Rev. Mitri Raheb, pastor of Evangelical Lutheran Christmas
Church, Bethlehem, was also involved in Fischer's funeral.  In an
interview earlier this month, with ELCA News and Information during a
visit to the United States, Raheb expressed great concern for
Palestinian children affected by the violence.  Raheb also serves as
director of the International Center of Bethlehem, which works to
contribute toward Muslim-Christian understanding and increasing
awareness of the presence of  Palestinian Christians.
     "Children are traumatized," he said. "They are suffering from
psychological problems.  The violence is damaging the souls of our
people."  In addition, many people are unemployed, and tourism -- which
is an important to Palestinians' economic welfare -- is almost non-existent, 
Raheb said.  He said the violence will likely continue through
November, but Raheb expressed hope that the situation would calm during
the December holidays.
     Palestinians need prayer and support "like never before," he said.
Politicians need to make tough decisions, Raheb added.
     "We are never as close to war as we are now, and never so close to
peace as we are now," Raheb concluded.
     In recent weeks, the ELCA has spoken in support of people who are
suffering from the violence in the Middle East, and expressed its
support for Lutheran churches there.  Most recently, the Rev. H. George
Anderson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA), proposed that the church engage in a continuous prayer vigil for
all people affected by violence in the region. The prayer vigil is
expected to begin with the first Sunday of Advent, Dec. 3, and "continue
until the violence ends and we can celebrate a just and lasting
negotiated resolution to the conflict," Anderson said in a Nov. 14
letter to the 65 synod bishops of the ELCA.
-- -- --
     Information about Lutherans in the Middle East is at
http://www.holyland-lutherans.org/ on the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
Jordan Web site.  Details about the Middle East prayer vigil are
available at http://www.loga.org on the Lutheran Office for Governmental
Affairs Web site.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html