Middle East peace needs religious commitment, says WCC leader

By staff writers

2 Sep 2006

-02/09/06

World Council of Churches' (WCC) general secretary the Rev Dr Samuel Kobia has called for a comprehensive ecumenical Christian and interfaith response in seeking lasting peace in the Middle East.

In his report to the meeting of the WCC Central Committee meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, from 30 August to 6 September, Dr Kobia proposed the establishment of a Palestine/Israel Ecumenical Forum that will provide a space for coordination of advocacy based on "moral and theological principles" and "translate recommendations into actions that influence the political process".

He declared: "We need further analysis and deeper engagement on complex issuesósuch as the 'right of return', Israel's legitimate security concerns and its full recognition within mutually agreeable bordersótopics which have impeded previous peace processes."
Dr Kobia's comments, warmly received by the Central Committee, were echoed by the Rev Jean-Arnold de Clermont, who, during a brief report on the WCC pastoral visit which he led to the churches of Lebanon, Palestine and Israel in August 2006, asked if the WCC's member churches had the will and courage to act.

Mr De Clermont, President of the Conference of European Churches, asked the WCC Central Committee to respond to the expectations of the Middle East churches and their leaders, summed up by one person the delegation met: "Do not remain content with praying. Do something!"

He said communities in Lebanon couldn't understand the seemingly indiscriminate violence and destruction in their country, but were certain that a multi-cultural and multi-confessional Lebanon was possible and necessary for peace in the region.

He added that Christian leaders said there could not be peace without respect for the "other" or without justice. Injustices included the arrest of nearly one third of democratically-elected Palestinian politicians and the humanitarian crisis facing the population of Gaza. "Do not forget Gaza," the pastoral delegation was told.

Dr Kobia described the Middle East as the most pressing global issue today. "Violence in Lebanon and northern Israel, and on-going violence associated with the occupations of Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem by Israel, and also of Iraq by forces under US command, have wreaked destruction and suffering on an immense scale," he said.

He referred to the visit of the pastoral delegation to Beirut and Jerusalem, to past statements by the WCC and to calls from member churches and ecumenical organizations for a cease-fire. But more needed to be done, he suggested.

"The most important issue in relation to a lasting and durable peace in the Middle East is when and how the international community will end the Israeli occupation of Arab lands, in compliance with international law and UN resolutions. Ending the occupation will allow different forces to emerge and give a new face to the Middle East."

Proposing the establishment of a Palestine/Israel Ecumenical Forum, Kobia said the WCC could provide a space where the whole ecumenical movement could "mobilize to put our collective energies and resources together".

Speaking to the media, Dr Kobia named practical steps including identifying all concerned ecumenical partners so a global coordinated response could be organized, holding a consultation involving those partners, and a visit led by Dr Kobia to the region in order to engage the churches.

Dr Kobia said he wanted to involve people of other faiths in the process and that "we need to show we can be an honest broker" between Jews and Muslims because "advocacy alone will not do".

He said that he would appeal to funding partners for special resources for the Middle East initiative.

In his report, the general secretary declared: "A way must be found to allow people of goodwill in Israel to begin to rebuild relations with neighboursónot only on the basis of law but also through negotiated solutions to mutual problems, and around mutually beneficial relations in the fields of commerce, culture and the environment."

"The world has a responsibility both to Palestine and to Israel," he said. "They deserve more from the international community than they have received thus far, especially in the fair and impartial application of international law. We need to look beyond the current headlines to the underlying moral issues in the region."

Dr Kobia said the WCC with its rich experience and background in inter-religious dialogue could make a major contribution to the Israel-Palestine peace process.

Proposed programme plans for the World Council of Churches mean that the Middle East will be a high priority in the WCC's future work.

[Also on Ekklesia: WCC to encourage churches' role in the Middle East [0] 28/08/06; World Council of Churches and Vatican to agree code on religious conversion [1];End this blind faith in violence, says WCC leader [2]; Churches call on Indonesian Government to address Malukus violence [3]; Churches urge Sudan government to end hostilities [4]; WCC calls for freeing of Christian peace workers [5]; WCC urges churches to support Middle East appeals [6]; World church leaders strongly condemn Middle East violence [7]; Ecumenists seek to recover evangelistic emphasis [8]; World Mission Conference makes history [9]; WCC has Good News to share, say mission leaders [10]]

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