- Locals, tourists and believers mingle on Via Dolorosa on Good Friday. Photo: Peter Williams/WCC
Tourism presents a strategic avenue for just peace advocacy in Palestine and Israel. PIEF has worked to promote pilgrimages of transformation by supporting the establishment of guidelines and a Code of Conduct for Tourism in the Holy Land based on Biblical perspectives.
PIEF is part of a growing movement of people and groups in Palestine, Israel and around the world that share the conviction that pilgrimages to The Holy Land should seek encounters with local Palestinian Christians as a response to the call of the gospel to "come and see". Thus, pilgrims themselves can be transformed and become instruments for and witnesses to peace and justice upon their return.
Guidelines for Christians Contemplating a Pilgrimage to the Holy Land - A Journey for Peace with Justice
Written by a group of theologians, Palestinian Christian activists and professionals in the tourism industry, these guidelines are a call to Christian pilgrims to live their faith as they visit the Holy Land.
A pilgrimage, they suggest, should go beyond an homage to ancient sites. Visitors should seek authentic, face-to-face human encounters with the people living in the Holy Land, especially the Palestinian Christians – the “Living Stones” who share their faith.
The guidelines contain tools including Biblical reflection and a Code of Conduct for Tourists in the Holy Land to help plan and prepare – practically and spiritually – a "pilgrimage of transformation".
Download the guidelines from the Alternative Tourism Group website (pdf)
The Nativity Trail
Leading from Nazareth to Bethlehem, the Nativity Trail provides and opportunity to walk in the footsteps of Mary and Joseph, calling in on monasteries and mosques, villagers' homes and bedouin tents. The hikes are organized by the Siraj Center for Holy Land Studies and the Alternative Tourism Group (ATG), and led by professional local guides.
"The Nativity Trial is not just a trip; it is a journey of dialogue, openness and interaction with new people."
Visit the ATG website for more information
Statement on the International Tourism Conference – Jerusalem, March 29-31, 2011
A group of Palestinian 170 NGOs has highlighted the fact that the scheduled International Tourism under the aegis of the Israeli government and its departments and agencies should be boycotted because of Israel’s ongoing violations of human rights and international law against Palestinians. In a letter to prominent participants’ they argue that “an occupying power which has been involved in entrenching a process of de-development and decimating economic prospects in the occupied Palestinian territory should not be allowed to preach to the world about the “latest industry buzz topics ranging from economic sustainability, hotel design, culture and media to aviation, technology, branding concepts and conference tourism,”[2] especially whilst this same power denies not only this information but also the most fundamental rights to millions of Palestinians under its colonial rule – not to mention the millions of Palestinian refugees still denied their right of return to their homes. Read the full statement
