“One of the main goals we hope to achieve is to deepen church understanding of biblical promises concerning the land and its peoples. This will require a holistic approach to the biblical message, promoting common understanding of how theological issues may be related to the conflict,” says Michel Nseir, programme executive for the WCC special focus on Middle East. “Different approaches to biblical and theological issues should not prevent common action for a just peace.”

That’s all very interesting from my perspective, however without Muslim and Jewish involvement the prospect of real progress being made is slim. As my favourite local refugee organisation says, “nothing about us without us!”

The WCC’s “Public Witness: Addressing power, affirming peace” project has laudable goals and some great programmes such as the Decade to Overcome Violence. However, the rubber meets the road at the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel, and it seems like a very one-sided road to this Jewish reader. By effectively taking sides and not acknowledging different perspectives, the Council has turned itself into a political tool rather than an instrument of peacemaking dialogue. To my mind, that’s moving backwards, not forwards, as such exclusion can only lead to more violence on both sides.

For a slightly different but aligned (and more scholarly) perspective, see Frank Crüsemann’s article recently published in Jewish-Christian Relations, 60 Years: The Church and the State of Israel.

Dave

The story from the Standard Newswire reports a Muslim woman from Jordan saying, “I have realized I have much more in common with a Christian from Palestine than [with] a Muslim from the West … The differences are mainly cultural, not religious.”

Three of the participants were interviewed, and you can listen to their stories below:

Razan Abd El Haque, a Muslim woman from Jordan:

Olivier Salagi, a Jewish man from France:

Veranika Shetskaya, a Christian woman from Belarus:

Thanks to MidEastYouth for the link!

Dave