Here is the entire report in the Presbyterian Layman:
With the Presbyterian Church (USA) already under fire for its one-sided policy calling for divestment of funds in corporations that do business with Israel, another delegation from the PCUSA met recently with the leader of Southern Lebanon's Hezbollah, a reputed terrorist organization.
The meeting had a highly partisan political flavor, with the Hezbollah leader criticizing the policies of President George W. Bush and the spokesman for the Presbyterian delegation assuring his host that none of the members of the delegation had voted Democratic or supported the U.S. policies in the Mideast.
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), a highly respected, nonpartisan organization that monitors and translates Arabic publications and broadcasts, reported the October visit of the Presbyterian delegation with "Shiekh Nabil Qawug," a variant spelling from Nabil Qaouk. The full text of MEMRI's report is posted on the organization's Web site.
The PCUSA delegation was led by the Rev. Nuhad Tomeh, whose work as the associate general secretary of Middle East Conference of Churches in Beirut is profiled on a PCUSA Web page. Tomeh is also the regional liaison for the PCUSA for Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and the Gulf.
The spokesman for the PCUSA delegation was Robert Worley, a retired professor at McCormick Theological Seminary. Worley also taught part-time from 1980 to 1998 at the near East School of Theology in Beirut. He received the first McCormick Seminary Service Award in 2003. The award said Worley "reflected McCormick's commitments to global ecumenical interfaith, multicultural (immigrant) and urban faith in communities, and to the values of love, justice, peace, and disciplined and critical reflection."
After Qawug (Qaouk) delivered a harsh indictment of President Bush, MEMRI said Worley responded: "We do not wish to defend the U.S. administration. We all elected the Democratic Party against the Republican Party. Rest assured that we will return to the U.S. in order to continue our activity for peace, and we want to hear about the charity activities and the cultural and social activities organized by Hizbullah in south [Lebanon]. The Americans hear in the Western media that Hizbullah is a terrorist organization, and they do not hear any other opinion. They know nothing about the party's concern for the people of the south. We have suffered much pressure on the part of Jewish organizations in the U.S. because [of our help in] divesting corporations working with Israel. We want Jerusalem to be a united city, just as we encouraged the Palestinians and the Jews to work for peace, and we demanded that our administration adheres to this position."
MEMRI's report also included a recap of a Presbyterian delegation's meeting with Hezbollah – more commonly spelled Hizbollah in the Middle East – last year.
"A year previously, on October 17, 2004, a Presbyterian Church USA delegation visiting Lebanon also met with Qawuq. MEMRI TV translated excerpts from a report on the meeting that was aired by Hizbullah's Al-Manar TV. During the meeting, church elder Ronald Stone said, 'We treasure the precious words of Hizbullah and your expression of goodwill towards the American people. Also, we praise your initiative for dialogue and mutual understanding. We cherish these statements that bring us closer to you. As an elder of our church, I'd like to say that according to my recent experience, relations and conversations with Islamic leaders are a lot easier than dealings and dialogue with Jewish leaders.' The release received extensive coverage by media outlets in the West; the delegation was condemned by U.S. congressmen, and ultimately two delegation members were dismissed from their positions in the Church."
MEMRI's Web site includes a video clip of Stone's comments. Stone, a retired professor of Christian ethics at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, was a member of a Presbyterian delegation that was sponsored by the denomination's Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy.
Denominational officials said they advised the group not to meet with Hezbollah. After the trip, John Detterick, executive director of the General Assembly Council, fired two of the delegation's leaders – Peter Solyuk, director of the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy, and Kathy Lueckert, Detterick's deputy executive director.
Another Presbyterian delegation from San Francisco Theological Center also met in Lebanon with Hezbollah leaders. But the Arabic press reported no political statements similar to the remarks of Stone and Worley.
The ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) representatives were probably scrambling to get in line right behind them.
National Council of Churches.
This group is clearly a bunch of islamofascist "lap dogs" and apologists. A disgrace even to the presbetarian denomination. I'm surprised jimmy carter didn't attend with them.
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I'm sure John Knox would be proud.
Here is more on the history of Presbyterians visiting Hezbollah in an open letter to PCUSA leaders Kirkpatrick and Detterick
http://www.faithsforfairness.org/pdf/KirkpatrickaDeterick.pdf
The Presbyterian Church USA is consistently losing members, but the headquarters in Louisville does have a lot of money from past investments. Many of their churches are in cities and in danger of closing. They have sunk so low they give pastors abortion coverage in their medical insurance.
ping