“We carry the cross with dignity and hope.” These were the opening words as Middle East Christians stood to bear witness at the World Council of Churches central committee meeting, to the burdens and challenges – but also the resilience – that they live on a daily basis in the land where Christianity was born.
The latest group of World Council of Churches (WCC) ecumenical accompaniers reported incidents between 14 April and 22 May that ranged from violence to displacement, from harassment to intimidation in the West Bank.
World Council of Churches (WCC) Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed concern over a violent protest by rightwing Jewish activists against an Evangelical Christian event in Jerusalem on 28 May.
World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay shared joyful congratulations with Archbishop Hosam Naoum, who was installed as new primate of Anglican Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East.
Während der Gedenkveranstaltung anlässlich der „Katastrophe“, die vom palästinensischen Volk als „Nakba“ bezeichnet wird und daran erinnert, dass Hunderttausende Menschen nach der Gründung des Staates Israel 1948 ihre Heimat verloren haben, hat sich der Generalsekretär des Ökumenischen Rates der Kirchen, Pastor Dr. Jerry Pillay, solidarisch mit den Mitgliedskirchen im Heiligen Land erklärt.
Marking 75 years since Al-Nakba—the Arabic term for the events of 1948, when many Palestinians were displaced from their homeland by the creation of the new state of Israel—religious leaders reflected on what Al-Nakba means today.
During the 75th commemoration of what Palestinians refer to as the nakba, or “catastrophe”—when hundreds of thousands of people were uprooted during Israel's creation in 1948—World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed solidarity with member churches in the Holy Land.
In a statement commemorating the Palestinians on the 75th anniversary of the “Al-Nakba,” the Council of Patriarchs and Heads of the Churches in Jerusalem reiterates the churches’ call to strive for a just and lasting peace for in the Holy Land.
„Die Soldatinnen und Soldaten gingen weg, weil ihr hingesehen habt.“
„Ich kann meine Schafherde nahe der Militärbasis weiden, weil ich mich in Anwesenheit der ökumenischen Begleitpersonen sicher fühle und die Schikanierung durch Siedlerinnen und Siedler viel weniger ist, wenn ihr da seid.“
„Wir fühlen uns sicher, wenn die ökumenischen Begleitpersonen da sind.“
Der Ökumenische Rat der Kirchen (ÖRK) veröffentlichte ein Datenblatt zu Abrissen in Ostjerusalem, das ÖRK-Mitgliedskirchen, ökumenischen Begleitpersonen und der Presse als Quelle zuverlässiger Informationen dient.
Marking 10 years since the kidnapping of archbishops of Aleppo Paul Yazigi and John Ibrahim, the Middle East Council of Churches held an “Ecumenical Day for the Abducted and the Forcibly Absented” on 24 April.
"The soldiers went away because you were watching.”
“I am able to herd my sheep near the military base because I feel safe in the presence of ecumenical accompaniers, and settler harassment is much less when you are around.”
“We feel safe when the ecumenical accompaniers are present.”
The World Council of Churches (WCC) released a fact sheet on demolitions in East Jerusalem that serves as a source of credible information for WCC member churches, ecumenical accompaniers, and the media.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) joined the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, Custody of the Holy Land, and Armenian Patriarchate in expressing serious concern about the restrictions imposed by the Israel Police on the celebration of the ceremony of Holy Fire, in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on the forthcoming Holy Saturday.
The World Week of Peace in Palestine and Israel, which will be observed from 16-23 September, will invite the world to pray and reflect on the theme “No place to lay my head.”
In an Easter message, the Patriarchs and Heads of the Churches in Jerusalem conveyed greetings to faithful Christians around the world, both far and near.
Six ecumenical accompaniers participated in a Palm Sunday procession from Bethphage on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, entering Jerusalem with hundreds of faithful from around the world—commemorating the journey taken by Jesus some 2,000 years ago.
In the aftermath of the attack against the Gethsemane Orthodox Church on 19 March, the World Council of Churches (WCC) Jerusalem Liaison Office co-organized a solidarity visit to the church.
Die Gemeinsame Arbeitsgruppe für den Dialog zwischen dem Dikasterium für den interreligiösen Dialog und der Palästinensischen Kommission für den interreligiösen Dialog hat am 8. und 9. März in Rom getagt.
Für die 380.000 Palästinenserinnen und Palästinenser, die in Ostjerusalem leben, ist der Alltag oftmals getrübt durch die Benachteiligungen in Bezug auf so ziemlich alle Aspekte des Lebens – angefangen bei den Wohnungen, über das Gesundheitswesen, die Kinderbetreuung bis hin zur Müllentsorgung. Auch wenn 39 % der Menschen in der Stadt Palästinenserinnen und Palästinenser sind, gibt es große Unterschiede bei den Dienstleistungen, die ihnen zur Verfügung stehen.
