Posted on 08/14/2005 4:34:48 PM PDT by SmithL
ORLANDO - The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America denounced the security barrier Israel is building along the West Bank, saying Saturday that Israeli policy throughout the territories has brought "extreme hardship" to Palestinians.
The statement, called "Peace Not Walls: Stand for Justice in the Holy Land," is part of an advocacy plan for Mideast peace that delegates to a churchwide assembly adopted on a 668-269 vote.
It was approved at a time of heightened tension between Protestants and Jews.
Several Protestant groups have angered Jews by protesting construction of the barrier, and some Christian denominations have considered divestment from companies that profit from Israeli control of the Palestinian territories. The new ELCA strategy doesn't mention divestment, but it urges the denomination to move toward "stewarding financial resources - both U.S. tax dollars and private funds - in ways that support the quest for a just peace in the Holy Land." Lutheran leaders insist it is not an endorsement of economic pressure against Israel.
Ethan Felson, assistant executive director of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, said the ELCA position on the barrier shows a lack of understanding about the dangers facing Israel.
"What is indisputable is that it saves lives," said Felson, who contends the barrier is not permanent and will be dismantled when the Jewish state is safe from terrorist attacks.
Rabbi Eric Yoffie, head of the Union for Reform Judaism, the largest branch of American Judaism, urged delegates to the Lutheran assembly Thursday not to "demonize" Israel. Other Jewish leaders said protestants should support Israel as it prepares to withdraw from the Gaza Strip on Monday.
However, Bishop Munib Younan, head of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, told delegates the barrier itself is an obstacle to peace. Many Palestinians can no longer reach their jobs, hospitals and houses of worship, he said.
"The future of the Palestinian church is at stake, because the current conditions are causing our children to leave in increasing numbers," he told the group by phone from Jerusalem.
Palestinians say the barrier, which dips in some places into the West Bank - an area they claim for a future state - is an attempted land grab.
Serena Sellers of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod called the barrier a "form of violence" committed 'against innocent people."
Others said the title of the statement, "Peace Not Walls," implied the denomination was solely blaming Israel for the conflict. Don Lamprecht of the Alaska Synod said the plan contained "inflammatory" language and asked delegates to write a "more neutral resolution."
The ELCA has long-standing ties in the Palestinian territories and throughout the Mideast.
The 4.9 million-member denomination supports sister churches and a hospital in East Jerusalem that primarily serves Palestinians. Lutherans are also deeply concerned about the dwindling numbers of Palestinian Christians, who have been fleeing violence in the territories.
The advocacy plan affirms Israel's right to defend itself and the Palestinian desire for an independent state. It also calls on both Israelis and Palestinians to end attacks on civilians.
The statement was adopted as delegates wrapped up the denomination's weeklong meeting. On Friday, the church rejected a proposal that would have allowed ordination for gays in committed relationships.
Just another Christian denomination thats lost it's way.
I do not think that Israel cares one way or the other what the Luthern Church thinks or does.
Das Lutherans fahren mich wütend. Sie haben ihre Weise verloren.
By apparently believing in cultural equivalency, multiculturalism and moral agnosticism, these church "leaders" have abandoned their roots and are now just as out of touch with reality as Islamist fundamentalists. More so: they obviously believe it's "evil" for the Israelis to make moral judgments and pronounce suicide bombers "evil" and even to defend themselves against them.
Another liberal sect supporting history's losers. Where's the resolution condemning God's unfair treatment of Satan?
True enough, mask's are coming off.
What a crock! Sitting back in the comfort of the U.S.A. and making security and moral decisions for people whose very existence is threatened. Absolutely sickening.
ping
Just like their founder.
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