Peace talks end with a commitment to a two-state solution, a deal within one year and regular meetings between Israel and Palestine. President Abbas and Prime Minister Netanyahu agreed to the first such meeting in about two weeks in the region.

Read more about the peace talks and the church's response

New Items

For older items see the Archives Page)

New missionaries begin in Jerusalem

A new team of ELCA missionaries has arrived in the Holy Land! Pastor Fred and Gloria Strickert will serve the English-speaking Redeemer congregation, Pastor Elly McHan will be Bishop Younan's Communication Assistant and Pastor Emily Goldthwaite Fries, a UCC pastor, will volunteer to work with the ELCJHL schools. Six new Young Adults in Global Mission also began their year. Read more about them.

Peace talks begin in context of violence

Even as Palestinian and Israeli leaders gathered in Washington ahead of the scheduled peace talks, violence and conflict threatened to disrupt the process. Hamas' killings of Israelis, internal conflict within both Palestine and Israel and controversy surrounding the building of illegal Israeli settlements are among the hurdles that will have to be overcome.

The Church's Voice:

Bishop Hanson joined other church leaders in a letter organized by Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) to President Obama advocating for the urgency of peace talks and changes on the ground in Palestine and Israel:
CMEP Letter to Pres. Obama | ELCA press release

The Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches, is in Israel/Palestine with a delegation speaking out for peace with justice. He has commented on Hamas' killings of Israelis and on Palestinian Christians, especially Palestinians' fragile residency status in Jerusalem. World Council of Churches Statements:
    on killing of Israelis   |   on Palestinian Christians and Jerusalem

Read more about the background and analysis of the situation.

New Report Questions Reality of Settlement Freeze and Calls for Extension of Freeze "without Exceptions"

Daoud Nassar of Tent of Nations near Bethlehem looks at one of the settlements currently under construction that is threatening to confiscate his land despite a settlement freeze

August, 2010 - Americans for Peace Now released a report whose findings underscore the notion that unless the settlement moratorium is extended – with no new “exceptions” or loopholes – and unless it is enforced – this 10-month moratorium will have been meaningless. Pictured here is David Nassar of Tent of Nations near Bethlehem looking at an expanding settlement that is threatening to confiscate his land despite the settlement freeze.

The Main Findings:

• At least 600 housing units have started to be built during the freeze, in over 60 different settlements.
• At least 492 of those housing units are in direct violation of the law of the freeze.
• During an average year (when there is no freeze) approximately 1,130 housing units start to be built in 8 months in the settlements. The new construction starts during the moratorium constitute approximately half of the normal construction pace in the settlements.
• Some 2,000 housing units are currently under construction in the settlements, most of them started before the freeze was announced in November 2009.

See report, photos of findings and more information about settlements at Americans for Peace Now website.

ELCJHL Bishop Munib Younan
Elected President of The Lutheran World Federation

LWF President Munib Younan On July 24, 2010, the Rev. Dr. Munib Younan, Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL), was elected President of The Lutheran World Federation (LWF). He succeeds the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the ELCA, who was president since 2003.

To learn more, read:

ELCA news release | LWF report
Bishop Younan's July 25 sermon “Who could imagine the Holy Land without Christians?”

In early August, one of Bishop Younan's first acts in his new role was to visit the annual Peace Forum in Lovisa, Finland, organized by the Finnish Christian Peace Movement. In his sermon in the Peace Mass, Bishop Younan encouraged Christians to live as children of light. At the seminar "Jerusalem - City of Peace," he gave the keynote address,emphasizing the importance of dialogue and reconciliation. The Bishop has been instrumental in instituting dialogue among key religious leaders in Jerusalem, including the formation of the Council of Religious Institutions of the Holy Land.

Download Bishop Younan's sermon | See the Peace Forum's website with links
Listen to part of the Bishop's keynote address

Gaza Flotilla Event Draws Sadness, Anger, Church and Quartet Responses

May-June, 2010 - In late May, several ships of internationals attempted to break the blockade of Gaza and bring humanitarian supplies. Israeli commandos boarded one of the ships in international waters, killing eight Turkish and one Turkish-American nationals. The incident drew criticism of Israel and attention once again to the plight of the 1.6 million people in Gaza suffering from a strict blockade that was strengthened after Hamas took control of the area. The Rev. Mark Hanson, Presiding Bishop of the ELCA and President of The Lutheran World Federation, as well as other churches, released statements lamenting the loss of life and asking for a lifting of the blockade in accordance with UN Resolution 1860. The Middle East Quartet said the situation in Gaza is "unsustainable, unacceptable and not in the interests of any of those concerned."

For more information about Gaza

Palestinian Christians Issue Kairos Document

In December 2009, an ecumenical group of Palestinian Christians issued The Kairos Palestine Document: A moment of truth - A word of faith, hope and love from the heart of Palestinian suffering (see right sidebar). The document is a word of hope to Palestinian Christians and a challenge for churches to work toward an end of Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands as well as to re-examine theologies that support the Israeli occupation.
- For more information about the Kairos Document