PEACEMAKING TRIP: Part I

Bishop’s Holy Land diary

byBISHOP HOWARD J. HUBBARD

From Dec. 16-23, 2009, I had the privilege of being part of a 19-person delegation from the National Inter-Religious Leader-ship Initiative for Peace in the Middle East (NILI).

NILI, organized in 2003, has brought together the leaders of more than 30 religious denominations in the United States (Jewish, Christian and Muslim) to work within our own religious denominations and with the U.S. government to support presidential and congressional initiatives on the part of the U.S. governmental leaders for comprehensive, just and lasting Arab-Israeli/Palestinian peace.

As part of NILI's efforts, our delegation journeyed to Amman, Jordan, to Israel and to the West Bank to hear firsthand the perspectives of religious and governmental leaders in these areas, as well as their sense of challenges and opportunities for peace in an area where hostility, conflict and polarization have been so inextricably embedded.

Our primary purpose was to listen respectfully to all sides, with openness to avoiding quick judgments, gaining new information and insights and searching for common threads that might help bring the different parties and perspectives together.

The following diary is an account of our delegation's six-day trip. It does not purport to provide a comprehensive picture of the present Israeli-Palestinian situation, but a summary of what we heard based upon the input and assessments of the individuals and organizations we had the opportunity to meet during this brief visit. Certainly, other perspectives would need to be heard to gain a complete picture.

THURSDAY, DEC. 17
After an 11-hour flight from Kennedy Airport in New York City, we arrived at 5:15 p.m. in Amman, Jordan, to a 45-degree temperature and light rain.

It was surprising, to say the least, to arrive at our hotel greeted by Santa Claus - who was just leaving following a pre-Christmas party for hundreds of Jordanian children. I felt as if I was at a U.S. mall.

After unpacking, our delegation was hosted to a sumptuous banquet by Rajai Muasher, a senator from the upper house of Parliament. He was accompanied by Zied Rufai, former prime minister of Jordan and father of the newly-appointed prime minister; Fayez Tarawnek and Abel Biltaji, senators in the upper house of the Jordan Parliament; and the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Fouad Twal, a native Jordanian.

These men shared their perspectives on the situation, given the important role Jordan has played and continues to exercise in Mideast peacemaking.

Jordan is the cradle of the three monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Patriarch Twal emphasized that peace is possible in the region, if we can muster goodwill on the part of all parties. He stressed the importance of the Christian presence in the Holy Land and beseeched our prayers and advocacy to assist this beleaguered minority.

The prime minister's father underscored that Christians and Muslims have lived together for centuries in this region and that Arabs and Jews need not be adversaries. Indeed, they are both Semites. Arabs can be Muslim, Christians or Jews, and can learn to live together in peace and harmony.

He opined, however, that the Israeli-Palestinian stalemate can only be broken by a withdrawal of Israel from the occupied lands and a commitment by the Palestinians to recognize the right of the State of Israel to exist with safe and secure borders.

Mr. Rufai concluded his presentation by noting that we must not fail in our efforts to achieve peace. He pointed out that the United States is the only party acceptable to both the Israelis and the Palestinians to broker a peace agreement.

While there were great hopes for the Obama administration because of his early appointment of George Mitchell as special envoy for peace in the Mideast and because of the president's inspiring address in Cairo last spring, nevertheless, there is a growing concern that the Israeli-Palestinian issue is not at the forefront of the president's agenda, given the domestic challenge he faces and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Senator Tarawnek, who was the lead negotiator in the 1994 Madrid peace agreement between Jordan and Israel, stressed how the 1995 assassination of Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin was devastating for peace negotiations - the results of which still linger.

It is his assessment that the only hope for peace being achieved is if both the Israelis and Palestinians conclude that the present impasse is primarily a political, not a religious issue, and mutually accept the fact that a political solution could benefit both sides immensely.

He also highlighted the importance of mutual recognition and collective security as the key to a viable resolution. His vision of peace is 21 Arab embassies in Tel Aviv and no tanks on either borders.

Senator Biltaji noted that, under the initiative of the Jordanian King Abdullah II, there are 57 Arab nations willing to recognize Israel, if Israel would withdraw from the occupied territories and recognize the Palestinian state. He noted further that the actions of Iran are inhibiting a peace settlement, creating fear in Israel as Iran pursues nuclear weapons and continues to arm the terrorist groups Hamas and Hezbol-lah.

He felt it is important that we in the West understand that the present posture of Iran is an Iranian agenda, not an Arab agenda. If Iran could reach an agreement with the U.S., it would probably reduce Iran's support of Hamas and Hezbollah and make Israel and Palestinian peace negotiations easier.

Our host, Rajai Muasher, a member of Jordan's upper parliament, expressed the opinion that too often, political forces were hijacking religion to divert religion's legitimate purposes and goals by injecting religious tensions into political debates. He pointed out that the borders for a secure Israeli and Palestinian state must be determined by politicians, not by appeals to biblical texts.

Dr. Sayyid Muhammad Syeed, national director of the Islamic Society of America and a member of our delegation, described for our group a fatwa (religious ruling) which he issued on behalf of the Muslim community and which was supported by the members of NILI. This declaration condemned unequivocally any form of terrorism in the name of religion.

FRIDAY, DEC. 18
On Dec. 18, our delegation left the hotel at 9 a.m. and travelled on a windy, chilly, rainy day from Amman, Jordan, down a steep mountain slope to the Allenby Bridge - which is below sea level - in order to enter Israel. We had to pass first through the Jordanian passport control, and then that of the Israelis.

One of our Muslim companions, Imam Yahya Hendi, the Muslim chaplain at Georgetown University, was denied entrance into Israel because even though he presently has American citizenship and an American passport, he was born in the occupied territories and is considered a Palestinian.

Imam Hendi was separated from the delegation for two days until the U.S. embassy was able to secure his admission to Israel.

Shortly after the border crossing, our bus entered Jericho, along the Dead Sea and at the foot of the Mount of Temptation where a beautiful Orthodox monastery is located. Jericho is one of the most ancient cities in the region and is famous in Gospel lore for Jesus' parable about the Good Samaritan who cared for the man left on the road to Jericho after being beaten by robbers, and its lesson about who is the true neighbor.

It is also in Jericho where Jesus sighted the rich but diminutive Zacchaeus perched in a Sycamore tree and then invited Himself to dine at Zacchaeus house that evening.

After a light lunch in Jericho, we stopped at Masjid Nebi Masa (Mosque of the Prophet Moses), who is an important prophet in Islam, where we participated in midday prayer with the members of the mosque. It was explained that we would pray toward Mecca, reminding us there is one God and one human family.

We stood in a straight line, recalling that we must live correctly and ethically, as well as foot to foot and shoulder to shoulder as a symbol not to let anything come between us and our brothers and sisters.

Bowing to the floor, we acknowledged that to God belongs all the glory, and prostrating ourselves we acknowledged with humility that it is from dust we have come and it is to dust we will return.

In his sermon, the imam reflected on the solidarity we must have if we are to achieve peace, even if, like Moses, we may not enter the Promised Land ourselves. The service concluded by offering each other a sign of peace.

As we drove from the desert area surrounding Jericho up the craggy mountains to Jerusalem, there were ample sights of camels, donkeys and shepherds guiding their flocks on the barren hillsides - a scenario reminiscent of how little had changed from what Mary and Joseph encountered in that midnight cave in Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago.

We entered the city of Jerusalem by Mount Scopus, from which vantage point we were able to view the old walled city, the Holy Sepulchre and the Dome of the Rock.

At 5 p.m., our delegation attended Shabbat service at Kol Haneshama. The service began with Psalm 95: "Come sing to Adonai. Let us come before God's presence with thanksgiving, let us shout for joy to God."

In a penitential rite similar to our own liturgy, the rabbi invited the congregation to review the past week day by day and then, with a deep breath, let go of the past week.

We sang Psalms 121-122: "May there be peace in your cities, tranquility in your homes; may there be peace for us and everyone; peace for us in all the world; salaam, shalom." These psalms certainly reinforced the centuries-old longing of the peoples of this region and the very purpose of our trip.

Since we were in the middle of Hanukkah, we prayed the following prayer: "We give you thanks for the redeeming wonders and the mighty deeds by which our people were saved and comforted in the days of old and for this season."

In conclusion, we prayed that "every inhabitant of the earth shall recognize and know that we are all partners in preparing the world, for the dominion which is yours....Grant peace to your people Israel and let there be only great love and peace among us all."

I was deeply impressed by the number of young adults in the congregation and by their lively participation in singing the songs of the Shabbat service.

As we were leaving the synagogue, a young man approached me and asked if I was a Catholic priest. We exchanged greetings and he told me his name was Valentine, a Catholic from Hungary who is serving as an intern with the Sisters of Zion, who devote themselves to promote better Christian-Jewish relations in Israel.

Next year, he intends to enter the seminary in Hungary. As part of his ministry, Valentine visits a different synagogue each week and has a Shabbat meal with one of the congregation's families.

We concluded our second day with a Shabbat meal together at our hotel, a former YMCA. The rabbis of our delegation led us in the traditional Shabbat prayers and Dr. Syeed proceeded to point out that today was the first day of the Muslim calendar, which had its origin in the Hygeria, Mohammed's migration from Mecca to Medina 1,431 years ago.

Isn't it amazing how the feasts of our three traditions come together at this time of year: Hanukkah, the Muslim New Year and Christmas.

SATURDAY, DEC. 19
Saturday broke with a beautiful blue sky and sunshine, unusual for Jerusalem in December. Along with three other members of our delegation, I walked to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where Jesus was laid following His crucifixion and before His resurrection.

Entering the old walled city by the Damascus gate, we wandered through the narrow, cobbled streets filled with the sights, sounds and smells of vendors selling their wares: vegetables, fruits, meats, fish, candy, coffee, shoes, boots, clothes, toys and household appliances.

Becoming lost near the Coptic Patriarchy, we were rescued by a kind guide who directed us through their church, which opened to the square in front of the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre. This massive structure was a Crusader addition built over the original church which housed the tomb of Jesus.

A huge mosaic of Christ being carried from the cross and laid at the tomb covered the front of the edifice. Inside the dark basilica, illuminated by oil lamps and candles, pilgrims lined up to enter the room where the burial sarcophagus is located. A Greek monk stood guard by the tomb, allowing the visitors to enter four at a time to venerate the burial site where Jesus rose from the dead.

At noon, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick and I were driven by Matt Davis of Catholic Relief Services to have lunch at the Vatican embassy in East Jerusalem with the Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Antonio Franco.

The archbishop played a prominent role in Pope Benedict's visit to the Holy Land last spring, where the pontiff ministered to the dwindling Christian community in this area, paid tribute to the victims of the Holocaust at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum, placed a prayer for peace in a crevice of the Western Wall and encouraged Palestinian and Israeli leaders to shun violence and find a diplomatic solution to the political stalemate which has produced such heartbreak and grief for both sides.

Also present at the luncheon was Bishop William Kenney, the auxiliary bishop of Manchester, England, who is preparing for a summit of Catholic bishops from Europe and North America which will be conducted next month in Jerusalem. Bishop Gerald Kicanas, the bishop of Tucson and vice president of our U.S. bishops' conference, will represent us at this important gathering.

Archbishop Franco discussed the continued obstacles to an Israeli-Palestinian resolution and presented each of us with a beautiful gold medallion of Pope Benedict XVI, commemorating his trip to the Holy Land earlier this year.

After lunch, the cardinal and I returned to the hotel for a three-hour meeting with the other members of our delegation to discuss the purpose of our gathering, the hopes we have for our mission, the motivations - both personal and institutional - that underlie our participation and the challenges we face.

Our evening dinner guests were Dr. Mordechai BarOn - a former member of the Knesset, bureau chief for General Moshe Dayam, a wounded war veteran and a founder of Peace Now - and his wife, Dr. Sari Nusseibeh, former PLO liaison for Jerusalem and president of Al Quds University.

Dr. BarOn, now 81 years old, addressed the delegation and fielded our questions. He stated that, in seeking Israeli-Palestinian peace, we must not only consider what should be done, but what is possible politically in light of what has transpired over the past 60 years.

Dr. BarOn noted that some today are still promoting a one state solution with majority rule. This, he believes, is impossible because Israel would never accept a state where the Jewish community would be a minority and not in control of its own destiny. The other option is one state with an apartheid arrangement, which, he contends, is untenable.

Therefore, Dr. BarOn strongly endorses a two-state solution along the lines of the 2003 Geneva Accord, an unofficial framework for peace developed by former officials of the Israeli and Palestinian governments. In his opinion, borders should be restored to the pre-1967 arrangement with slight modifications for what has happened over the past 40 years.

If there is an appropriate land exchange, six to eight percent of the Israeli settlers would have to be relocated from their present homes to the Israeli territory. Even now, compensation could be provided settlers who voluntarily move from these areas.

Jerusalem, Dr. BarOn suggested, must be the capital of both the Israeli and Palestinian states. The Temple Mount (which has been under Arab rule for 1300 years) and East Jerusalem would be under Palestinian control, and the temple wall and West Jerusalem under Israeli control. The old city should be open, with free travel inside guaranteed to all.

He suggested further that Israel should make a corridor for traffic between the West Bank and Gaza, which would remain under Israeli sovereignty but have a Palestinian administration and run in accord with Palestinian law.

Regarding the issue of the "right to return," Dr. BarOn believes refugees should be compensated for loss of property and suffering, and have options: return to the Israeli state, especially if they have immediate relatives there (but this option would have to be under Israeli supervision and control, and not mandated to do so at any particular number); be resettled in the Palestinian state; remain in the host countries where they currently reside (e.g. Lebanon); or be relocated to other countries which are willing to accept them.

Dr. BarOn noted that not everyone will be able to achieve his or her first option, but such a process would go a long way toward resolving the refugee problem.

Some maintain that the peace process is stalled because the Israelis have no partner with whom to negotiate since the Palestinians are not united. Dr. BarOn opined that, in a sense, there is no Israeli partner either, because there has been such a swing to the right in the government of Israel.

He stated that what we need presently is not a peace process but a process committed to action. More specifically, he urged the Arab world to show concrete gestures toward implementing the Oblique Proposal and for the United States to be more proactive in inviting the quartet of the European Union, Russia, the United Nations and ourselves in pressing the Israelis and Palestinians for a resolution.

Further, he maintained, the Israelis and Palestinians must take additional steps toward cooperative security measures which would disband all non-governmental bands or militias within their territories and make Palestine a non-militarized state with a strong security force that would maintain border security, police functions and prevent terrorism.

Dr. BarOn concluded that, from his perspective, the Israelis should be willing to speak to Hamas and that long range, the wall which has been erected must be demolished so that there can be freer movement between the peoples of both states.

SUNDAY, DEC. 20
Today, the fourth Sunday of Advent, the halfway point of our trip, was another sun-splashed day and I was privileged to commemorate our final liturgical preparation for Christmas by concelebrating the Eucharist with Cardinal McCarrick at the Crusader Chapel of the Knights of St. John in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Two of the staff from Catholic Relief Services, Matt Davis and Karina O'Mara, joined us for Mass and did the readings.

Walking to the Sepulchre, I was struck by the contrast from yesterday, as the ancient streets were empty since the merchants had not yet opened their shops. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, however, was bustling with activity and a cacophony of chants from many Masses being celebrated in the various chapels in the Egyptian, Coptic, Ethopian, Greek Ortho-dox and Roman Catholic rites.

After Mass, Karina, who is a CRS intern, accompanied me to the Western Wall and the Dome of the Rock. It turns out she has a brother living and working in Saratoga Springs.

It is a small world! Just yesterday, I learned that one of the members of our delegation, Rabbi Paul Menitoff, the executive vice president emeritus of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, hails from Albany and attended School 19, Hackett Junior High School and Albany High School.

As we entered the square of the Western Wall, Orthodox Jews with their prayer shawls, distinctive headgear and sidecurls were praying before the wall.

Jewish tradition teaches that the temple rock is the focal point of creation. The Ark of the Covenant set up the foundation of this stone. Jerusalem was chosen by David as the place to begin the temple, which Solomon completed 3,000 years ago.

The temple was eventually destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and a second temple was built on the ruins 70 years later. That temple was razed by the Romans 1,900 years ago. The present Western Wall is the remnant of this temple, reminding Jews through the centuries of the divine presence which still remains here.

I prayed before the wall and followed the ancient custom of putting a sheet of paper in a crevice of the wall, containing specific prayers. My prayer requests were for the people of our Diocese, for peace in the Mideast, for wisdom and guidance on behalf of our spiritual and governmental leaders, for the success of our mission, for an increase in vocations to the priesthood and religious life, for an end to poverty created by unjust structures and climate change and for my own personal intentions.

Further, I fulfilled a promise made to Mrs. Sowalsky and the third-grade class of Skano Elementary School in the Shenendehowa School District, which includes my grandniece, Rachel Ruddy. I read a Christmas story to the class the day I embarked on my trip, and the students informed me that they would be studying about Israel later this year.

Already, they knew the tradition of placing a prayer in a crevice of the Western Wall and asked that I remember their class in my prayer note.

I also prayed for Jonathan Schwartz, a young man who I know from his days at LaSalle Institute in Troy and who is presently serving in Iraq. Jonathan is a former student of Mrs. Sowalsky and her class has embraced him as a project, communicating with him regularly and sending care packages.

I then walked over to the Dome of the Rock beneath the Mount of Olives and the Old Jewish Cemetery, a magnificent, beautifully manicured site and edifice sacred to the Muslims as the place where Mohammed was taken up to heaven.

It was at this site that King Abdullah I of Jordan was assassinated in the 1940s. He had a vision for harmony between Arabs and Jews which was destroyed with his death, creating a blow similar to that dealt to the peace process years later with the assassination of the Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

After returning to the hotel, I joined Bishop Elaine J.W. Stanovsky, Rev. Dr. Sharon Watkins and her husband, Dr. Rick Lowery, to attend an Anglican service at St. George's Church presided over by another member of our delegation: Bishop Barry Beisner, the Episcopal bishop of Northern California.

I was struck by the structural similarities of the Anglican and Roman Catholic liturgies: the entrance procession, the penitential rite, the same Scriptural readings, the prayer of the faithful petitions, eucharistic prayer No. 2, the exchange of peace, communion and the concluding rite.

The fact that I was not able to partake of communion is a painful reminder of the scandal of Christian disunity which remains unhealed.

I must confess, however, I was not unhappy to miss the Greek Orthodox service with our confrere, Father Mark Arey, which took place earlier at the Holy Sepulchre - beginning at 11 p.m. Saturday evening and concluding at 3 a.m. Sunday.

Sunday afternoon, we travelled to Ramallah, the headquarters for the government of the Palestinian Authority. What immediately struck us in exiting Jerusalem was the imposing concrete wall capped with barbed wire separating the State of Israel from the Palestinian Authority.

There are many newer buildings and much construction underway in Ramallah, but also areas of blight and deterioration. The streets were teeming with workers and young students. Cell phones and the internet are omnipresent. We had to pass a checkpoint in front of the Palestinian government headquarters, where our bus was scrutinized by armed guards.

A major question hanging over the city and the authority is whether Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas will fulfill his promise to resign after the first of the year, throwing both the Palestinian Authority and the possibility of negotiations for peace into further chaos.

In Ramallah, we received two briefings. The first was offered by Dr. Khalil Shikaki, director of the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, which was founded in 2000. Dr. Shikaki received his bachelor's degree in political science from the American University in Beirut and his doctorate in political science from Columbia University. He also has served as a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institute.

His research indicates that presently about two-thirds of Palestinians support a two-state solution and the compromises that this resolution would entail. Twenty percent support a one-state solution. The rest think the situation is hopeless.

Sixty-eight percent support the Saudi initiative for a two-state solution, but almost 50 percent still support violence against Israel because 70 percent of Palestinians believe there will be no Palestinian state in the next five years, or don't believe a two-state solution is near.

Palestinians are very upset about the continuing settlements on the West Bank and in East Jerusalem. They oppose negotiations with Israel until there is a moratorium on these settlements.

According to Dr. Shikaki, there are three driving elements among the Palestinians:

• the traditionalists (50 percent), who form the base for Fatah, the political party which rules on the West Bank - who, while eschewing violence, have become leery of a negotiated settlement after years of failed attempts;

• political Islamists (35 percent), who form the base of Hamas, the present ruling party in Gaza, which believes that violence is the only way to peace; and

• liberal secularists (15 percent), who believe Israel's goal is security and that a diplomatic solution is possible.

During the years of the intifada, many Palestinians felt that Hamas' use of violence against Israel was justified and were disgusted with the corruption of the Palestinian government. Since Hamas' takeover of Gaza, however, the support for Hamas has dropped to about 30 percent. Fatah support is still about 40 percent, while another 20 percent say they are affiliated with neither.

Dr. Shikaki's surveys indicate that the credibility of the Palestinian Authority has improved in the past few years, even though the international community has boycotted the Palestinian government because of Fatah's inability to implement diplomatic agreements and Hamas' unwillingness to negotiate diplomatically.

According to Dr. Shikaki, on the issue of refugees, Palestin-ians distinguish between two elements. Ninety percent of Palestinians believe in the principle of the right to return and that Israel must recognize this principle; however, only 10 percent would exercise this right and only one percent would want Israeli citizenship. The Palestinians believe further that East Jerusalem should be their territory except for the Jewish holy places.

Dr. Shikaki's research reveals that Islamic Jihadists are a very minor group, with little presence in the West Bank and only two to three percent in Gaza.

A major question is whether there is the possibility of a unity government between Fatah and Hamas. Fatah wants to negotiate with Israel and will not interact with Hamas, whose leaders refuse to accept the legitimacy of Israel.

In this regard, Egyptian diplomats are proposing a national unity government: that is, to have Fatah and Hamas work together for six months, continuing their rule over the West Bank and Gaza respectively, and then let the people decide who they will support in a national election.

While initially most Palestin-ians were optimistic about the leadership which President Obama might give to the peace process, that has faded considerably because of President Obama's failure to demand an absolute freeze on Jewish settlements and for preventing the Goldstone report, outlining war crimes committed both by the Israelis and Palestinians in last year's Gaza conflict, being presented to the U.N. Human Rights Commis-sion in Geneva.

Eight months after President Obama's administration, 64 percent of Palestinians say U.S. policy favors Israel; seven percent say it favors Palestine.

On the other hand, 61 percent want the U.S. to play a stronger role in the peace process, while only 29 percent do not want the U.S. to intervene. There is also concern that our CIA may be involved in the arrest and torture of Hamas detainees in the West Bank and Gaza.

It is Dr. Shikaki's opinion that President Abbas will neither resign nor enter into negotiations with Israelis until Israel actually begins to fulfill commitments they have already made.

Our second meeting was with Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, a Palestinian democracy activist who finished second to Mahmoud Abbas in the 2005 presidential election for the Palestinian National Authority with 10 percent of the vote.

Born in Jerusalem, Dr. Barghouti is a physician, trained in the former Soviet Union and Jerusalem. He also received a degree in management from Stamford University and currently resides in Ramallah. In 1979, Dr. Barghouti founded the Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees, a non-governmental organization which provides health care and related services in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Dr. Barghouti supports a Palestinian state in all the territories occupied by Israel prior to the 1967 war, with a capital in Arab East Jerusalem, and with recognition of the right to return - but implemented in a way that would be mutually acceptable to both sides.

Despite this vision for resolution, he is growing impatient and believes that we are in danger of losing a two-state solution and are on the verge of apartheid. He cited many statistics to document the growing suffering and injustice afflicting the Palestinian people and believes that unless the international community intervenes in negotiating a solution soon, there will be the need for diplomatic sanctions against Israel.

His presentation was the most provocative to date and stirred up some vehement discussion among the members of our delegation, especially since the video he showed graphically captured Israeli forces brutalizing Palestinians, but there was no corresponding footage of the violence on Israelis perpetrated by suicide bombers and missiles launched from within Palestin-ian boundaries.

Leaving Ramallah, we returned to Jerusalem to meet with members of the Council of Religious Institutes of the Holy Land. This Council is the Israeli-Palestinian mirror of our NILI group, composed of the official religious institutions in the Holy Land, the Chief Rabbinate of Israel; the heads of local churches in the Holy Land; the Sharia Courts; and the ministry of Religious Affairs and the Palestinian National Authority.

Founded in 2005 under the leadership of Dr. Rev. Trond Bakkevig, this organization is committed to reflect together on the future of Jerusalem; to the designation of the old city of Jerusalem as a world heritage site; to maintain permanent relationships between religious leaders in the Holy Land; to take a public stand against derogatory representations, defamation, and disrespect or attacks on any of these faith communities; and to work closely with Israel and Palestinian political leadership to bring about a durable and just peace in the Holy Land.

Besides Dr. Bakkevig, a Lutheran bishop, a Jewish rabbi and a Muslim imam shared with our delegation how they have been working closely in very tense circumstances to break down stereotypes, to nip conflicts in the bud, to refute rumors and to find non-violent ways to break the vicious cycle of prejudice and intolerance that is all too palpable in the Holy Land.

All of the presenters urged the members of our delegation to become more aware about the realities in the Holy Land as they truly are, not as they are often portrayed superficially in the media, and to advocate vigorously with the president and Con-gress to make brokering a peaceful solution to the Israeli Pale-stinian conflict a top priority for the Obama administration.

HISTORICAL SYNOPSIS
The creation of the State of Israel in 1948 was preceded by more than 50 years of efforts to establish a sovereign nation as a homeland for the Jewish people. These efforts were initiated by Theodore Herzl, founder of the Zionist Movement, and were given added impetus by the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which asserted the British government's support for the creation of a Jewish homeland in Palestine.

In the years following World War I, Palestine became a British mandate and Jewish immigration steadily increased, as did violence between Palestine's Jewish and Arab communities. International support for Jewish national aspirations grew following the near extermination of European Jewry by the Nazis during World War II.

This support led to the 1947 U.N. Partition Plan, which would have divided Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states, with Jerusalem under U.N. administration.

In 1948, the State of Israel proclaimed its independence and was immediately attacked by armies from neighboring Arab states which rejected the U.N. partition plan. The conflict, Israel's war for independence, was concluded in 1949 by an armistice agreement between Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria and resulted in a 50-percent increase of Israeli territory.

In 1956, French, British and Israeli forces engaged Egypt in response to its nationalization of the Suez Canal, and, after an Israeli withdrawal, the U.N. set up an emergency force in the Gaza Strip and Sinai.

In 1967, Israeli forces struck targets in Egypt, Jordan and Syria in response to Egyptian President Nasser-ordered withdrawal of U.N. forces from the Sinai Peninsula and the building up of Arab forces along Israeli's borders. After six days, all parties agreed to a cease-fire, under which Israel retained control of the Sinai Peninsula, the Golan Heights, the Gaza Strip, the formerly-Jordanian-controlled West Bank of the Jordan River and East Jerusalem.

On Nov. 26, 1967, the U.N. Security Council adopted Resolution 242, a "land for peace formula," which called for a just and lasting peace based upon Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied in 1967 in return for the end of all states of belligerence, respect for the sovereignty of all states in the area and the right to live in peace with secure, recognized boundaries.

Even with these efforts to halt conflict, however, there was the 1973 Yom Kippur war launched by Egypt and Syria against Israel and the 1982 invasion of Israel into Lebanon to fight the forces of Yasser Arafat's PLO, which had initiated a series of cross-border terrorist attacks against Israel.

Over the past 42 years, numerous attempts at negotiating peace, reducing hostilities and establishing treaties have been made, including the Camp David Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty brokered by President Jimmy Carter, the 1991 Madrid Conference in which Israeli, Lebanese, Syrian, Jordanian and Palestinian leaders laid the foundation for peace and economic development in the region; the 1993 negotiations to transfer authority from Israel to an interim Palestinian Authority; and the 1994 Israeli and Jordanian peace preaty witnessed by President Bill Clinton and the historic 1995 Israeli-Palestian agreement which broadened Palestinians' self-government and provided for cooperation between Palestinians and Israelis in several ways.

But there have been failures as well. The year-2000 summit hosted by President Clinton to address the permanent status issues including the State of Jerusalem, Palestinian refugees, Israeli settlements on the West Bank and Gaza, final security arrangements and borders and relations with neighboring states failed to produce an agreement.

Despite initiatives by President George W. Bush to disengage Israeli forces from Gaza and halt settlements on the West Bank, domestic problems within the Palestinian Authority, including rampant corruption within the Authority and the rise of the violence-prone Hamas, have militated against an agreement with Israel. In June 2007, Hamas effectively orchestrated a violent coup in Gaza.

This led to an Israeli invasion of Gaza in late 2008. Shortly after his election, President Barack Obama named former senator George Mitchell as special envoy to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. To date, negotiations have been at a stalemate.

List of delegates
The delegation on the Holy Land trip included Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the retired archbishop of Washington; Rev. Mark Arey, director, Office of Ecumenical Affairs, Greek Orthodox Church of America; Dr. William Shaw, president, National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.; Reverend Dr. Sharon Watkins, general minister and president, Christian Churches; Dr. Rick Lowery; Bishop Margaret Payne, representing Bishop Mark Hanson, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; Bishop Elaine Stanovsky, representing the Council of Bishops, United Methodist Church; Bishop Barry Beisner, bishop of Northern California; Rabbi Paul Menitoff, executive vice president emeritus, Central Conference of American Rabbis; Dr. Carl Sheingold, executive vice president, Jewish Reconstructionist Federation; Rabbi Amy Small, past president, Reconstructionist Rabbinical Assembly; Dr. Sayyid Muhammad Syeed, national director, Islamic Society of North America; Rafia Akhtar Syeed; Dr. Shaheer Yousaf, Islamic Society of North America; Khadija Sheikh; Imam Yahya Hendi, Muslim chaplain at Georgetown University; Dawud Assad, president emeritus, Council of Mosques; and Ronald Young from the National Interreligious Leadership Initiative for Peace in the Middle East.

(Editor's note: Part II of the Bishop's Holy Land diary will appear in next week's issue.)

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