Title: Lutheran Bishop in Holy Land Meets Former President Carter ELCA NEWS SERVICE
November 16, 2007
Lutheran Bishop in Holy Land Meets Former President Carter 07-194-JB
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Munib A. Younan, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL), met in person with former U.S. President Jimmy Carter in Atlanta Nov. 12 to discuss the situation in the Middle East between Israelis and Palestinians. Younan was also invited by Carter that evening to speak about peace and justice to an audience of about 250 people who had been invited to the Carter Center to view the new film about Carter's life, "Jimmy Carter Man from Plains."
Younan, who returned to Jerusalem Nov. 13, had been in the United States for several days with a group of Christian, Jewish and Muslim religious leaders from Israel and the Palestinian territories. They came to the United States as the Council of Religious Institutions in the Holy Land, and met with several members of Congress and religious leaders in Washington, D.C. Younan continued on to Atlanta, where he preached and spoke to area Lutherans before meeting with Carter.
Carter plans to visit the Middle East in January and said he would visit the ELCJHL, Younan told the ELCA News Service in a phone interview. In the meeting with Carter, Younan said he told the former president of the plight of Palestinian Christians and the Council of Religious Institutions.
"President Carter brought peace to Egypt and Israel," Younan said. "We can cooperate with him in waging peace and human rights for all people in the region." The former president has good access to the media and the public and could be an important ally, Younan said, adding that "the message of peace and justice for all people (in the Middle East) must be heard in the United States."
Carter wrote "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid," a book that drew criticism from some people for its assessment of the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Carter's experiences in the Middle East are portrayed in the film, Younan said.
Reflecting on the U.S. visit to Washington by members of the Council of Religions Institutions, Younan said "Lutherans are seen as partners in peace and justice" in the Middle East. "They have seen how much the churches are working with each other for peace and justice." The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), met with the council Nov. 5 in Washington.
Council members released a communique with their priorities for peace. Members are meeting next week to discuss a plan to establish rapid communication procedures to address and advise government officials regarding protection of and access to Holy sites before conflicts arise, Younan said. Other priorities include promoting education for mutual respect and acceptance in schools and in the media, and matters related to the future of Jerusalem, he said.
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The full text of the communique is at
http://www.ELCA.org/advocacy/issues/middleeast/07-11-07- communique.html on the ELCA Web site.
Prayer resources for Middle East peace -- including prayer resources for the upcoming Annapolis peace conference -- are at http://www.ELCA.org/peacenotwalls/pray/index.html on the Web.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org http://www.elca.org/news ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog