Last week, in my Friday Blast, I wrote about Muna Nassar, the International Peacemaker from Palestine who will be visiting with us at the end of the month. Muna will be offering a lunchtime workshop at the meeting of the Presbytery of Los Ranchos (click here for information and here to register), and she will be speaking about her work at our Saturday 5:00 pm and Sunday 9:30 am worship services. As a reminder, Muna is part of a community called Kairos Palestine, which is based on the profession of the Kairos Palestine document (which you can read here.)
This week, I want to lean in to one thing I said last week: “It is hard to find a topic that generates more controversy between Jews, Muslims, and Christians than Palestine/Israel. Even among PCUSA commissioners when the G.A. meets every two years, the conversations are difficult and decisions are negotiated very carefully.” Allow me to mention two areas where the conversations, and even the agreeing to the terms of the conversations, are particularly difficult.
1. One area of serious controversy within our Presbyterian conversations has to do with whether boycotts, divestments, and/or sanctions are legitimate or effective ways of bringing about change. You will hear these approaches referred to as the “BDS movement.” That topic is far too complex for me to address fairly in a short essay. But, let me at least point to a recent example of how it is an active point of contention. Last year the governor of Kentucky signed an executive order that would bar that state from awarding contracts to companies that support the BDS movement. The PCUSA objected and you can read what our Stated Clerk, J. Herbert Nelson, wrote to the governor here.
The Kairos Palestine document address the BDS matter very carefully, saying, “Palestinian civil organizations, as well as international organizations, NGOs and certain religious institutions call on individuals, companies and states to engage in divestment and in an economic and commercial boycott of everything produced by the occupation. We understand this to integrate the logic of peaceful resistance. These advocacy campaigns must be carried out with courage, openly sincerely proclaiming that their object is not revenge but rather to put an end to the existing evil, liberating both the perpetrators and the victims of injustice.”
2. Another space where the conversations regarding Palestine/Israel are difficult is in how one recounts the history and tells the story of the current situation there. For example, the Kairos Palestine document makes reference to the non-violent attempts to bring about change in the First Intifada, while many Jews would recount their experience of violence during the Second Intifada. The Kairos Palestine document say that oppressive actions like the separation wall and settlements have brought about the violence; while supporters of Israel would say the violence has brought about the need for the wall and settlements.
It is very hard for those of us who live in the U.S., with limited or no first-hand experience to fully appreciate how people living in the region experience the struggle. There are learning trips that are organized by Jewish, Islamic, Christian, and educational institutions, each of which offers to help people see the reality of the situation and many of which are suspicious of the real intentions of the others. There are testimonies from Palestinians and from Jews, each of which will rend the heart because of the real pain that people have experienced. And it seems that voices from every side of the controversy feel as if their story is being misrepresented or underrepresented in mainstream channels of information. So, the sources on which we rely, the vocabulary that we use, and the history that we assume are all important. They require both diligent deliberation from us, as well an openness to learning more.
We are welcoming Muna Nassar to our presbytery because she is part of our International Peacemaking program. Her testimony is consistent with the actions that the General Assemblies of the PCUSA have deliberated and have supported fairly consistently over the years. Her testimony may challenge some of our perceptions and assumptions. In that case, we should lean into those challenges hear her story with an open heart. At the very least she will enable us to understand better why the PCUSA has made the decisions that we have over the years. At best she will open our eyes to the gospel’s call for justice and peace in this troubled region of our world.
Mark of St. Mark
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