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ACNS 3179 - LAMBETH PALACE - 25 OCTOBER 2002

Statement from the Archbishop of Canterbury on Alexandria Meeting

I am delighted and greatly encouraged that we have been able to continue the
process leading on from the First Alexandria Declaration of January this
year. That gathering brought together the leaders of the religious
communities in the Holy Land. For many of them, despite the fact that they
lived very close to each other, this was the first occasion on which they
had met.

We have built much on that first meeting. Although our discussions have been
as those amongst friends, they have been deeper for that personal
friendship. We have had frank exchanges and there is no shrinking from the
difficult issues that confront us all in this conflict. It is painful
sometimes to have to confront the hostility and the anger caused by a
situation in which there is right on many sides, and in which the opposite
of a profound truth can be another profound truth.

Nevertheless, we remain committed to this process and we are planning to
carry it forward and I believe that we have identified some major areas in
which there is work to be done.

First, we have affirmed the first Alexandria Declaration, celebrating its
respect for the three major religious traditions of the region, underscoring
its rejection of violence, incitement to hatred and misrepresentation,
cherishing its call for a just, secure and durable solution for the Holy
Land and support for a religiously sanctioned cease-fire; and promoting its
ambition to create an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect.

Second we recognised that it is essential to work together to establish a
better understanding across the divides; to find ways of enabling each to
see the common problems afresh, with the eyes of the other.

Third, we recognise the significant obstacles presented by the continuing
occupation and the ongoing violence. We acknowledge the fear of communities
that there will never be open acceptance by the other of their right to be
present in the Holy Land and believe that all have a duty to combat the
mistrust that this generates.

Fourth, as a sign of our ability to trust each other and work together, we
believe that establishing the freedom for the faithful to worship each in
their holy places should be a visible outworking of our commitment.

In looking to the future, we recognised the fundamental importance of
ensuring that what we say of one another is free from invective and rhetoric
and is not cast in stereotypes or generalisations. We need also to ensure
that what is passed on to the next generation is not wrapped in fear and
mistrust.

The work of this process will go on. We have looked hard at each other and
at our situation and we understand the scale of the task ahead. I have
already indicated to the other delegates that, following my retirement on
October 31, I am fully prepared to lend my assistance to the quest for peace
and reconciliation in the land known as Holy to all three faiths. We are
here. We are talking, and talking honestly. In a world of malice and
mistrust, this should stand as a sign that, in the face of seemingly
impossible and insoluble difficulties, people of faith have not given up
hope.
_________________________________________________________
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