Dr. Bernard Sabella, Executive Director of the Department of Service to Palestinian Refugees for the Middle East Council of Churches, giving a workshop at the CMEP conference on the situation of Palestinian Christians. Photo: Martin Shupack/CWS

May 19, 2008

On April 20-22, Churches for Middle East Peace hosted 150 church-based advocates from throughout the United States at a Washington, D.C., conference focused on seeking a just peace between Israelis and Palestinians. On the final day, participants met with members of Congress or their staff aides to advocate for greater congressional support for the peace process.

Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP), is a coalition of 21 national churches and agencies – Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant – including Church World Service. CWS and CMEP advocate for a viable two-state solution in which Israel and Palestine live side-by-side within secure and recognized borders and share an undivided Jerusalem with open access to the three religious communities that call it sacred – Jewish, Muslim and Christian.

The conference entitled, "Calming the Storm: Middle East Peacemaking in a Turbulent Time,” opened Sunday evening with a keynote address given by Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Bishop Hanson spoke to the assembly of “renewed resolve to join with others in daily prayer for, consistently advocating for, and working for a lasting, just Middle East Peace.”

On Monday morning, Shibley Telhami of the University of Maryland and the Brookings Institute and Gary Sick of the Gulf 2000 Project placed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict within the broader context of regional dynamics. They also reported on public opinion polls in the Middle East showing majority support for a two-state solution to the conflict. The polls also indicate skepticism about the likely success of the current talks initiated by President George W. Bush at December’s Annapolis conference. Telhami and Sick spoke about the urgency felt by everyone to resolve the conflict soon if disastrous consequences are to be avoided.

Later in the day B. Todd Deatherage of the U.S. State Department provided an updated account of the Annapolis process and the Bush administration’s work to achieve an agreement by the end of 2008.

Throughout Monday, participants chose from numerous workshops. Dr. Bernard Sabella, Executive Director of the Department of Service to Palestinian Refugees of long-time CWS partner the Middle East Council of Churches and Associate Professor of Sociology at Bethlehem University, spoke on the plight of the historic Christian community in the Holy Land. Palestinian Christians are migrating from the Holy Land at an alarming rate, primarily due to the political and economic hardships associated with the ongoing Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories. During his time in Washington, Dr. Sabella also met with members of Congress.

At Tuesday morning’s prayer breakfast, conference participants heard from U.S. House of Representatives chaplain Reverend Daniel Coughlin, Bishop John Crane of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, and Archbishop Vicken Aykazian of the Armenian Church of America. And Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Archbishop Emeritus of Washington, sent a personal message commending the participants for their “good work” on behalf of peace and justice for Israelis and Palestinians. Congressmen Jess Fortenberry (NE) and Chris Van Hollen (MD) addressed the breakfast gathering, and Rep. David Price also sent a message.

On Tuesday afternoon, conference participants held more than 75 meetings with congressional offices. They asked for vigorous U.S. leadership in the Annapolis effort, expressing the urgency of reaching a just resolution to the conflict. They urged support for comprehensive, multi-lateral diplomacy across the Middle East. They also asked Congress to vote for adequate funding, an essential element in the creation of a sustainable Palestinian state. Advocates also drew attention to the need for a peace agreement in order to stem the outflow of Palestinian Christians and to improve life for all people in the Holy Land.