The situation of Christians, and Lutherans, in Palestine
In the day of my trouble I call on you
Last month I sent you all information from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL) about violence which has broken out between Hamas and Israel in Gaza. I referred to two items posted by the church and the Lutheran World Federation:
Bishop Younan statement issued from Jerusalem
Holy Land Lutheran Bishop Younan Pleads for an End to Revenge and Bloodshed
From regular news bulletins you will know that the situation continues to deteriorate. Yesterday I received an update from Bishop Younan. It makes for painful reading. Bishop Younan, many may remember, was a star guest at the Australian Conference of Lutheran Educators last year in Brisbane. I recently visited him and his church in the company of Stephen Rudolph, the Director of Lutheran Education Australia. We have been discussing three means of co-operation:
-
School to school linkages
-
Bringing a vicar to Australia for pastoral and theological training
-
Signing an agreement for support, friendship, and prayer
While the bishop’s appeal is mainly to long-established partners in Europe and North American, he shares information which helps us in our prayers for Christians in that troubled area. The bottom line of the appeal is “do not leave us alone”. The sense of isolation is intense.
Bishop Younan writes: “The … military campaign (in Gaza) has been a devastating war. Civilians have been targeted; innocent children, women and men have been reduced to pieces; the destruction of private and public property has been immense. All of this has created a situation of increased hatred, vengeance and further complications.
“The situation in the West Bank including East Jerusalem is also tense and dangerous. Demonstrations and confrontations take place on daily basis… We expect an escalation of violence. Severe confrontations and clashes took place in East Jerusalem and throughout Palestinian areas.
“Many people have lost sources of their livelihood, tourism to the Holy Land has all but ceased, and the whole economy is facing severe setbacks.”
As a small church among a disadvantaged population the ELCJHL relies to a great extent on foreign partnerships and the visits of overseas guests. Its major strategy towards peace is education, offering people a chance to grow in wisdom and learn ways of responding other than with violence.
The current lack of visitors means that both ELCJHL guesthouses are closed. Reduced economic activity means parents are unable to pay school fees while their children, by church policy, are not prevented from attending school. This is putting great stress on the system. There is a suggestion that the new school year might be postponed, leaving students at home or on the streets instead of gaining an education.
At the same time, the church is conscious of the need to increase its psycho-social programming to deal with the negative effects of the present troubles. The ELCJHL remains more convinced than ever that education is the only way to promote political and culture moderation to foster an orientation toward peace.
To compound their difficulties, the local currency, the Israeli shekel, has appreciated in value. That has the net effect of devaluing the donor funds which support the programs of the church. Meanwhile the church is trying to sell land in Ramallah against a declining property market.
All in all the situation grows more difficult and intense as the days go by. The weariness of sustained trauma is setting in.
However, the bishop also writes, “I am pleased to say that a new focus of our ecclesiastical work will be the development of sound Lutheran theology to understand the complexity of our present contextual and regional situation. This is an extremely important activity, which has to be intensively offered to our people due to the fact that Christian emigration has reached an alarming rate. A top priority is to keep our Christian people in their homeland. They need theological ways to understand and respond constructively to present realities.” This is an area in which the LCA is attempting to assist, and we are attempting to prepare the way to receive an ELCJHL vicarage student in Australia.
Bishop Younan concludes: “Your prayers, solidarity and support will enable us to survive and thus strengthen the Christian presence, steadfastness and services in the Holy Land. Thanking you for your continuous prayers and support to assist if difficult times and keep the existence of the living stones in the Holy City.”
|
