Global Ministries

Over six thousand protestors took part in the weekly Great March of Return along the Gaza/Israel border on Friday, the 6th of September. Several protestors breached the fence and incendiary devices were thrown at the Israeli soldiers. Israeli forces responded with live ammunition, shooting dead two Palestinian teenagers, Khaled Al Raba’i, 14 and Ali Al Ashqar, 17. There were 70 other protestors wounded, including 38 by live fire.

Lord, we pray for the families of Khaled and Ali as they mourn the loss of their young lives. We continue to pray for a peaceable and just end to the siege of Gaza and for relief from the deprivation suffered by the people of Gaza. Lord, in your mercy...hear our prayer.

Representatives Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and John Lewis have introduced a resolution affirming that all Americans have the right to participate in boycotts in pursuit of civil and human rights at home and abroad. Let us encourage your representatives to join them in standing up for our civil liberties by cosponsoring H.Res 496! 

Kairos Palestine issued this statement on home demolitions on August 28, originally in Arabic. The following is its English translation.

Everywhere, and throughout the occupied Palestinian Territories, the Israeli authorities demolish the houses of Palestinians, which the international law stipulates that they be protected and preserved by the occupying authority. In violation to the said law and to implement colonial plans, the Israeli authorities demolish houses, confiscate lands and build settlements on their ruins.

In 2018, the Israeli authorities demolished 2775 Bedouins’ houses in the Negev. People resisted such measures and had their homes rebuilt. The town of al-Araqib, for example, was demolished and rebuilt 145 times. The Jahalin Bedouins of East Jerusalem have suffered a similar ordeal.

At least 94 Palestinians were injured by Israeli forces during the Great March of Return protest on the Gaza/Israel border on Friday, the 30th of August. Nabil Musa Abu Musa, 25, was critically injured by live ammunition and died of his injuries the following day. More than 300 protestors from Gaza have now lost their lives as they sought the right to return to their homeland, since the mainly peaceful protest began in March 2018.

Dear Lord, we pray for Nabil’s family as they grieve their loss. We pray for a just and peaceable end to the desperate siege of the enclave and to the shootings and deaths at the border. Lord, in your mercy...hear our prayer.

During the 71st Great March of Return, 149 civilians were injured as a result of the Israeli military’s continued use of excessive force against mainly peaceful protesters along the Gaza Strip’s eastern border; 66 children, 7 paramedics, including a female paramedic, were among those injured. This week’s protest marked a spike in the number of civilian injuries especially ones caused by live bullets and shrapnel; as well as targeting medical crews in an indication of the Israeli military’s escalated use of excessive force against protesters. An increase in the number of protesters came despite the protest organizers issuing instructions for civilians to maintain the peaceful nature of the protests and stay away from any areas open to soldiers and snipers and avoid friction in today’s protest.

Lord of the suffering, we pray for a commitment to human rights by all sides and the protection of all lives. We pray for effective international intervention to ensure justice. We pray for humanitarian aid and rebuilding where destruction has occurred. We pray for peace and for justice in our homes and on our city streets. Wrap all and each of these your people in your love. Let them hear: “Come to me you who suffer and are burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer.

The Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center in Jerusalem is delighted to have published the latest edition of the Cornerstone publication ‘Christians in Community‘. This publication explores the Christian communities in Israel and Palestine. Inside this edition you will also find information about the upcoming Sabeel International Gathering which will run December 2-7, 2019, in Bethlehem, Palestine, which will explore the local communities, nonviolent action, and spend time in fellowship together.

The services of the Department of Service for Palestinian Refugees (DSPR) of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) aim at enabling people to better organize their lives so that they can live with dignity in spite of the various difficulties and constraints that seek to inhibit them from "normal" living. Over 70,000 Palestinians benefit from the health clinics in DSPR areas of operation.

DSPR shares reflections on its work, written by Damaris, appointed by Bread for the World (Germany) to work with DSPR, following visits she made recently to Gaza, Lebanon, and Nazareth.

On the 70th Great March of Return, 66 Palestinian civilians were injured due to the Israeli military’s continued use of excessive force against peaceful protests along the Gaza Strip’s eastern border. At least 20 children, 3 women and a volunteer paramedic were among those injured this Friday, 16 August 2019. Twenty-nine civilians were shot with live bullets; 2 of them were deemed in a critical medical condition. Each protest has its own theme with this one being titled “Palestinian Youth Friday” and involving activities such as speeches by political leaders and theatrical performances.

Lord, we continue to pray for the right to protest peacefully in Gaza without the threat of injury or death by the use of live ammunition and dispersal methods by Israeli forces. We are grateful for those who continue to find new ways to protest in a creative and nonviolent way. Lord, in your mercy...hear our prayer.

On July 30, the US House of Representatives passed a non-binding resolution that expressed its opposition to the global Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, while at the same time, affirmed “the right of U.S. citizens to free speech, including the right to protest or criticize U.S. or foreign government policies.” The resolution (H.Res.246) passed 398-17.

In a letter co-addressed to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Council and the United Nations special rapporteur on situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory, the World Council of Churches expressed concern over the high rates of human rights violations and violence currently taking place in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

"During the last few weeks, our Ecumenical Accompaniers on the ground have witnessed frequent and systematic human rights violations,” reads the letter signed by Prof. Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri, acting general secretary of the World Council of Churches.