The Israel-Palestine Situation

The Israel-Palestine situation is definitely one of the most challenging and complex in the world today. We asked LPF board member Kathy Adam to step back and reflect a little on her own journey of understanding and action on the issues, and to share some especially helpful links to information -- including several on well-known Lutheran Palestinian pastor Mitri Raheb. Here is Kathy on her experience:

In 1998, my husband and I went to Israel on a “Footsteps of Jesus” tour.  We were awed, walking where Jesus had walked over 2,000 years ago.  Our spirits soared as we followed those footsteps…. At the same time, more and more questions arose for us about what was happening all around us.

For example, we were overwhelmed by the number of soldiers we encountered everywhere, Israeli Defense Forces heavily armed with automatic weapons.  We didn’t yet understand the real scope of the situation in which we found ourselves.  We were in the lands of Israel and Palestine.  The Palestinians – a people I didn’t even know existed in the 20^th century – were under occupa-tion since 1967 by the State of Israel.  We discovered this was anything but a peaceful land.

Since 1998 I have visited the region five times to learn and observe.  Sadly I have witnessed Palestinian homes bulldozed to make way for Israeli settlements, ancient groves of olive trees uprooted, Palestinian farmers and shopkeepers cut off by walls from their lands and livelihoods.  I have talked with people who have had family members, including children, arrested and jailed and even tortured. 

But during that first trip, having only our Sunday School Biblical knowledge to help us place the contemporary situation into perspective, we found ourselves lost in our limited understanding.  I’m very grateful that our tour group was able to meet with Mitri Raheb, pastor of Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, right up the hill from the Church of the Nativity where it is said Jesus was born.  He invited our tour group into a room with a circle of chairs one evening. It was then that the Biblical story and the contemporary situation started to come together for us.

We learned that for over 2,000 years, there has been a Palestinian presence in the land, and that for most of that time, Palestinians – mostly Christian and Muslim – lived side-by-side with Jews in relative peace.  It was a political movement, Zionism, that from its origins at the end of the 19^th Century has caused the problems that have become so severe ever since.

In the years since meeting Pastor Raheb, I’ve done all I can to inform myself about the region.  Perhaps you too have read or heard Pastor Raheb, and been inspired by this visionary Lutheran advocate of peace with justice.  It was no surprise to me that he recently received the prestigious Swedish Olof Palme Prize of 2015.  He shares this award with Israeli journalist Gideon Levy, who campaigns for his country's withdrawal from Palestinian territories.  They both received the award for offering “a glimmer of hope to a conflict that for too long has plagued and continues  to plague millions of people and affects world peace.” 

A few years ago I began volunteering with “Bright Stars of Bethlehem,”  the US organization supporting the ministries led by Pastor Raheb in Palestine.  I’m often encouraged by Mitri Raheb’s insight into the challenge of peacemaking:  “We’ve been conditioning ourselves to run a hundred yards, but we are in fact in a marathon,” he says.  “Our struggle is neither easy nor short, and we have to condition ourselves for the long challenge ahead.  We need moments of joy and hope in the midst of all this hopelessness.  Otherwise we won’t be able to continue our journey.”

Indeed, peace does not come easily in this part of the world, as with conflicts in so many other regions of the world.  Nor does peace always come easily in our communities, or even in some of our close relationships.  In our efforts to bring about peace in the various areas of life, we need moments of joy and hope.  We also need resources to help us.  I was impressed by the resources offered by LPF when I first explored them a few years ago. 

More recently, I have been grateful for the opportunity to contribute to LPF’s efforts to share information about these issues and struggles. To help frame advocacy options. To help support this valuable and much-needed service.  To offer resources and links through LPF blogs like this one,  as well as posts on the LPF facebook page, program updates, and the rich variety of material on LPF’s website…
 

 by Kathy Adams, LPF board member

Here are some especially helpful, informative links on these issues:

Mitri Raheb, Bright Stars, Diyar Ministries

www.brightstarsbethlehem.org - Bright Stars of Bethleham (Christian,
Lutheran, working with all faith traditions in the Middle East.)

http://www.diyar.ps/?TemplateId=info&PageId=1&MenuId=7&Lang=1

Diyar, umbrella organization of Bright Stars


Mitri Raheb Presentations

Olof Palme Prize Ceremony Speech - Parliament, Stockholm, Sweden
http://www.diyar.ps/?MenuId=0&Lang=1&TemplateId=projects&catId=1&full=1&id=120


"A Tough Calling: the Joys and Struggles of Pastoring in Palestine" Calvin College
http://www.calvin.edu/directory/series/mitri-raheb

"Faith in the Face of Empire: The Bible Through Palestinian Eyes" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMJ49iivAjg


Christian Sources

|www.cmep.org – Churches for Middle East Peace (22 national Christian denominations and organizations)

https://www.elca.org/en/Our-Work/Publicly-Engaged-Church/Peace-Not-Walls - ELCA Middle East information and advocacy program, Peace Not Walls

www.fosna.org – Friends of Sabeel North America, Christian organization

www.sabeel.org – Palestinian Christian Liberation Theology Organization


Jewish and Secular Sources

B’tselem.org – Israeli information center for human rights in the occupied territories. (Israeli, Jewish organization)


www.annainthemiddleeast.com - Anna Baltzer’s (Jewish American woman) web page. Very articulate Jewish American woman.


www.JVP.org – Jewish Voice for Peace (Jewish group that welcomes people of any belief who want peace with justice in Palestine and Israel)


www.ifamericansknew.org – If Americans Knew (secular organization, very well researched information.)

Video: Mitri Raheb | Faith in the Face of Empire: The Bible Through Palestinian Eyes

Giving up War for Peace, Worship and Nonviolent Action at Beale Air Force Base, CA

Are you "giving anything up" for Lent this year?  A group of Christian peacemakers in California took action in an Ash Wednesday civil disobedience to urge the U.S. to give up drones for peace. To turn away from war to work for peace, justice, and the healing of the earth.

In the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. 

“My body is tired but my soul is rested.”

Former LPF Board Chair, retired Lutheran pastor and former U.S. Marine Jerry Pedersen participated in the interfaith worship service and was arrested during the nonviolent direct action against drones at the gate of Beale Air Force Base. Military drones which are remotely controlled by satellite from bases in the US have repeatedly killed and injured scores of civilians abroad.

Actions of faith and conscience are good for the soul.  Rev. Sharon Delgado reports:

"We were quickly detained by Beale officers, taken to the guard station, cited, and released. When entering the station I greeted the officers with the words, 'Peace be with you.' We all treated each other respectfully and with good humor, with the understanding that they were doing their job and we were doing ours." 

"The young guards were impressed with Jerry's military card, which shows that he was part of the Honor Guard on the U.S.S. Missouri during the WWII surrender of the Japanese. As we were arrested, supporters were singing 'I'll be rested when the roll is called,' with the names of people who have worked for peace and justice through the ages. May it be so for all of us. May we find rest for our souls in the midst of the violence of our times."

You can read more about this Ash Wednesday Anti-Drone Protest and Arrest and statements of the issues here: http://sharondelgado.org/tag/beale-air-force-base/, also see KCRA’s coverage of the service here, and a video of the arrests below:



Rev. Sharon Delgado speaks:


see also these resources from LPF:
Resources about Nonviolence
Peace Resource Lists
Peace Links

Fast Tracking of the TPP

The little known Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) threatens to surrender our national, state and local sovereignty to corporate interests. This past Friday, legislation for Trade Promotion Authority, known as Fast Track, for the TPP was introduced in the House and Senate.  The Executive branch has negotiated the TPP in meetings that have been secret to the general public and even most members of Congress, but open to transnational corporations who are deeply crafting it with an eye to increase their profits and protect their interests.

The Fast Track legislation being debated eliminates the time needed for Congress to fully discuss the agreement and their freedom to amend in any way. Fast Track forces Congress to merely rubber stamp the TPP unread, and also takes away citizen and advocacy groups' opportunity to engage in the decision making.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is currently being negotiated between 12 countries around the Pacific Ocean including several of the world's largest economies. The TPP has the potential to extend the negative consequences of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) to nearly 40% of the world's economy. Despite promises of the 90's that NAFTA would improve the economy and provide jobs, history reveals that it forced more people in Mexico to migrate North as it destroyed small-scale farmers' ability to survive, had massively negative effects on labor rights everywhere, and removed environmental regulations deemed to be inconvenient impediments to free trade. Today the Obama administration is reportedly preparing to undermine strong environmental safeguards and critical regulations in order to secure the TPP deal. These include legally binding requirements for pollution limits, logging, and fishing standards.

The TPP is known as "NAFTA on steroids" because it goes much further than trade issues by threatening democratic decisions on laws governing  food safety, financial regulation, energy and climate policy, and establishes new powers for corporations. It is also known as "SOPA on steroids"  because of its threat to internet freedom.

If you are concerned about how any of our laws governing the environment, health and safety, workers rights, etc. could be altered outside the democratic process, then we need to act. In fact, we have every reason to be alarmed about allowing big corporations to use a non-public process to overturn or change democratically-decided rulings and safeguards based on their assertion that it must be done to protect their trade interests, e.g. competitiveness... And it is particularly offensive to allow this to happen with so little public discussion and involvement. We all need to contact our representatives in Congress and let them know that Fast Tracking the TPP is outrageous, especially given its potential impact and all the ways it subverts democratic process. And please consider sharing this with others who can join us in acting soon, before it’s too late. Together we can do something!

Learn more:

Secretive Corporate Deal in the Works Could Establish Special Closed Door Courts for Big Business

http://democracyctr.org/news/getting-action-strangling-democracy/

TPP--the 1% solution to democracy--government by corporate dictates

http://readersupportednews.org/pm-section/78-78/18154-tpp-the-1-solution-to-democracy-government-by-corporate-dictates

If You Thought What ALEC and the Koch Brothers Are Doing Was Bad ...

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/271-38/18438-if-you-thought-what-alec-and-the-koch-brothers-are-doing-was-bad

TPP: A BAD DEAL FOR THE 99%

http://readersupportednews.org/pm-section/212-212/17883-tpp-a-bad-deal-for-the-99

TPP: A Worldwide Corporate Power Grab of Enormous Proportions

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/13444-tpp-a-worldwide-corporate-power-grab-of-enormous-proportions

Monsanto, the TPP and Global Food Dominance

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/271-38/20644-monsanto-the-tpp-and-global-food-dominance

TPP coverage on Democracy Now

http://www.democracynow.org/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&query=Trans-Pacific+Partnership+&commit=Search

Syria: Keeping Our Eye on the Ball

Diplomacy and action around Syria’s chemical weapons are very encouraging.  But we must direct our focus onto tasks that are at least as urgent: First, urge elected officials to oppose US military action which is still a possibility. And more broadly, to advocate for the US to build international efforts to contain and end the fighting, deal with its impact on civilians, aid refugees, and tackle the roots of the conflict – tasks which are still virtually unaddressed by the US or the international community.

Despite the falloff in media and public attention, our role as citizens is at least as vital and compelling, and the issues we face at least as urgent and threatening as chemical weapons.  Here are specific things we can ask of the US:  a) use our diplomatic clout to get all external parties to end the shipment of arms to all sides; b) use the agreement on chemical weapons as a step toward bringing about a ceasefire; c) work on long-term solutions to the roots of the conflict and for a political agreement that is just and ends the war; d) change US budget priorities: the world spends just $1 on conflict prevention for every $1,885 it spends on military resources. As Mark Twain wrote, “when your only tool is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.” (See LPF’s budget priorities activity for more on this key issue) and e) increase USA aid to the United Nations High Commission on Refugees to assist Syrian refugees.

With the International Day of Prayer for Peace (IDPP) on Sept. 21,  this Sunday is a great time to offer or ask for prayers on Syria in church and share what people of faith can do (see LPF’s recent IDPP blog post).

As Christians, our advocacy flows from our commitment to active nonviolence, the Way of Jesus. It’s time to urge the US to show some imagination and not just fall into old habits of military action, but instead, take on the challenge of addressing the roots of the conflict in Syria that could lead to a genuine political solution.
Thanks to the ELCA for the excellent map.

Syrian Crisis

For the US to initiate military action in Syria is a huge  mistake given the already violent complexity of the struggles there. Regardless of the motives, the great majority of times such military intervention has been tried in the past, the result has been to worsen not improve the situation.

Military action would be a sign of our failure as people of faith, a nation, and a global community. It is urgent that people of faith voice their opposition to their elected officials and to join in public ways of lifting up the truth in this matter. The people of Syria have already suffered too much. Let us not add to their suffering.

Many entities and individuals have come out against US military action, including ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson who sent a letter to President Obama asking him to continue diplomatic efforts rather than pursuing military action, and Bishop Munib Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land who urges a political solution not military intervention.

Bishop Younan, and even President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry, stress the fact that there is no military solution out of this morass. So then why up the ante? An alcoholic does not drink his/her way to sobriety; we won’t achieve peace in Syria adding to war.

The use of chemical weapons by Syria is deplorable. But for this, President Assad and others in the Syrian military should be dealt with by legitimate international institutions and processes, not unilateral military action of the kind that has proved so disastrous in the past for the US -- and for the situations we assert we aim to help. . . . .

Our prompt action is needed, since the major news agencies and Capitol Hill sources indicate have said a Congressional vote could happen very soon.

Write to the president and your members of Congress urging them to strengthen international diplomatic efforts instead of authorizing military action that will only escalate an already brutal war.
Please also call the local offices of your senators and representatives (look up the telephone numbers on the FCNL website).

Here are some points to make on your call:

• I oppose U.S. military action in Syria.
• Military action will not stop the killing in Syria or bring those responsible for the use of chemical weapons to justice.
• Diplomatic engagement with all regional stakeholders is what is called for right now.
• The U.S. shouldn't respond alone to the use of chemical weapons. Our country should work through the U.N. and the International Criminal Court.
• What is the member's position is on authorizing military force against Syria? Are there any local public events happening where I could express my views to the member directly?

Please write and/or call today and forward the url of this blogpost to 3 friends who might be willing to call too:
http://lutheranpeace.blogspot.com/2013/09/syrian-crisis.html

After You Call/Write: Go Public

Please consider writing a letter to your local newspaper and posting comments on the newspaper's website. Let your community know that war is not the answer to the use of chemical weapons in Syria, and, most importantly, mention the names of your senators and representative by name in the letter.

* Thanks to Phil Anderson, the ELCA, and the FCNL for writing much of this alert.

More background to the crisis:

Chomsky: Syria Attack Would Be "War Crime"

Natasha Lennard, Salon
Lennard writes: "Chomsky argued that even if the Obama administration can garner Congressional support for its planned missile strikes against Assad's regime, any such incursion would still constitute a 'war crime' in abrogation of international agreements."
READ MORE

Juan Cole | The US Is No Lone Ranger and Should Put That Six Shooter Away

Juan Cole, Truthdig
Cole writes: "The U.S. has had a checkered history in the use of unconventional arms, and is still among the most dedicated to retaining the ability to make, stockpile and use weapons that indiscriminately kill innocent noncombatants."
READ MORE

Even the mainstream press is raising some of these points:

9 questions about Syria you were too embarrassed to ask

Max Fisher, The Washington Post
READ MORE

A New Vision of Peacemaking – LPF strengthens its core focus

Lutheran Peace Fellowship held four conference calls in recent weeks with LPF leaders in every part of the country.  We discussed issues we care about:  gun violence, conflicts around the globe, militarism. . . -- and how LPF might be more effective in confronting these challenges.  We also discussed how we can make the most of LPF’s national gathering this summer to strengthen our program and our connections and friendships with one another.
More of what we explored is shared in a new resource entitled, “A New Vision of Peacemaking” – and a letter to you and LPF members more widely. Here are some highlights:

• To strengthen our core focus:  to confront violence and war, militarism and injustice; and to share the alternative Jesus taught – the biblical vision of Shalom, of active nonviolence. 
• To support LPF members in taking effective action on today’s pressing issues – gun control and soaring military budgets, veterans’ issues and youth facing military service. . . .
• To share LPF activities and resources with friends and co-workers, and also with our congregation to encourage their use in adult forums, youth group, etc.

We also noted that in some cases, there are relatively few Lutheran voices lifting up these issues and offering advocacy opportunities and resources.  LPF re-committed to changing that.  You can help Lutheran congregations, groups, and leaders better support peace with justice.  Share the New Vision resource, consider attending the national LPF gathering this summer. For more information, click on the links above.

The Legacy of the War in Iraq

A lot of attention is being given to the 10th anniversary of the Iraq War.  Such a landmark offers an opportunity to help our friends and colleagues and congregations hear some of the less visible stories. Here are a few that are also of vital importance if we are to avoid Iraq's mistakes in Iran and elsewhere.  They appeared in a variety of publications and assembled by our friends at Foreign Policy in Focus, and offer some concise, crucial lessons from the war:

America's Other Dark Legacy In Iraq by Joy Gordon -- Putting aside even Iraq's horrifying descent into sectarian violence, the United States did a spectacularly poor job of governing the country.

Way Worse Than a Dumb War: Iraq Ten Years Later by Phyllis Bennis and others (Nation magazine) -- It didn't take long for the world to recognize that the US invasion and occupation of Iraq was a big mistake. But "dumb war" wasn't the half of it.

Visions: America after Hegemony by Cole Harrison -- The peace movement needs to make it clear not only what we are against, but what we are for.

As Iraq Anniversary Fades, “Strategic Narcissism” Stands Out by Jim Lobe -- Virtually none of the retrospectives or assessments of the war in major U.S. publications have been written by Iraqis. The inability of both voters and policymakers to imagine the world from any perspective other than their own has left tremendous wreckage in its wake. 

Ten Years Later, U.S. Has Left Iraq with Mass Displacement & Epidemic of Birth Defects, Cancers by Democracy Now! How the U.S. invasion of Iraq has left behind a legacy of cancer and birth defects suspected of being caused by the U.S. military’s extensive use of depleted uranium and white phosphorus.

See also LPF resources on Iraq

Support a strong Arms Trade Treaty

Time is running out. The final week of negotiations for an Arms Trade Treaty is now underway. The treaty presents a great opportunity to prevent the world's worst catastrophes by keeping weapons out of the hands of warlords, war criminals, and genocidal dictators. Urge President Obama to support a strong Arms Trade Treaty.

Quick Action Needed on War Supplemental

War Supplemental Expected in the House This Week
Supplemental spending for the war in Afghanistan will be voted on later this week, perhaps as early as Wednesday. The Majority Whip sent out a whip question Friday asking Democrats whether they would vote in favor of a) the Afghanistan war money, and b) all the other supplemental funding, a sign that a vote is imminent.

Please contact your Representative, and ask him or her to 1) vote "NO" on the war money 2) co-sponsor the McGovern bill and vote for a corresponding amendment, requiring the President to establish a timetable for military withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Call:
The Capitol Switchboard is 202-225-3121. Ask to be connected to your Representative's office. Try to get the Foreign Policy Legislative Assistant on the phone; tell whomever you get to speak with that you urge the Representative to vote no on war funding and to co-sponsor McGovern's bill and vote for McGovern's amendment; try to get them to say how the Representative will vote.
Please report back to us any result of your query at the following two places: for LPF, please email ggersmehl@hotmail.com and if you can, also send your email to: www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/feingold-mcgovern

for more information see: http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=wh0LUZik0%2BkRJ7ICYIHKwyN%2BUO6c5syB
Lutheran Peace Fellowship, www.lutheranpeace.org, Afghan Resources

Urgent Action: Defend Democracy in Latin America

The future of democracy in Latin America is at stake: do we continue on the road to democratic norms and the rule of law, or are we to head back down a dark path where power is seized and held through violent means. read more . . .