WASHINGTON, D.C. (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson,
presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA), joined five other Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders in
a meeting Jan. 29 with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
Representing the National Interreligious Leadership
Initiative for Peace in the Middle East (NILI), the faith leaders
met with Rice to express their strong commitment to a two-state
solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and to strong U.S.
leadership toward lasting and just peace between Israelis and
Palestinians.
During the meeting, members of NILI were invited into
regular conversations with the State Department, according to
Hanson. "This will allow us to hold each other accountable for
taking steps toward achieving lasting and just peace between
Israelis and Palestinians," he said.
NILI consists of 35 religious leaders affiliated with 25
Jewish, Christian and Muslim national organizations. It was
formed in December 2003. In December 2006 NILI released a joint
statement, "Arab-Israeli-Palestinian Peace: From Crisis to Hope,"
which was sent to Rice along with a letter requesting the
meeting.
"What is most needed now is a renewed commitment by the
United States to provide active, creative and determined
leadership, in coordination with the Quartet, as a top priority
of U.S. foreign policy," the leaders wrote in the letter. "While
Palestinian and Israeli leaders have essential roles, U.S.
leadership is crucial to halting the violence, and restarting and
successfully completing Israeli-Palestinian and Israeli-Arab
negotiations for peace."
The Quartet consists of the United States, European Union,
Russia and United Nations.
Rice traveled to the Middle East in recent weeks, meeting
with Israeli and Palestinian leaders in an effort to restart
talks between the two sides. A meeting of the Quartet is
scheduled for Feb. 2.
"We left the meeting confident of and thankful for this
administration's commitment to build upon Secretary Rice's
efforts in recent weeks," Hanson said in an interview following
the meeting.
"All participants acknowledged the immediate need to end the
human suffering while pursuing the long-standing, vexing issues
that have prohibited peace from being achieved thus far," said
Hanson. "I urged Secretary Rice to hold both Israelis and
Palestinians accountable for advancing steps toward negotiations
immediately."
Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Roman Catholic archbishop
emeritus of Washington, spoke as the leader of the delegation in
a news conference following the meeting.
"This morning we had substantive and excellent discussions
with Secretary Rice. But the real measure of our meeting can only
be taken in the coming weeks and months as actions and events
unfold," he said.
Others at the meeting were:
+ The Most Rev. Katherine Jefferts Schori, presiding bishop,
Episcopal Church
+ Rabbi Paul Menitoff, executive vice president emeritus, Central
Conference of American Rabbis
+ Rabbi Amy Small, past president, Reconstructionist Rabbinical
Association
+ Sayyid Muhammad Syeed, national director, Islamic Society of
North America
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The NILI statement, "Arab-Israeli-Palestinian Peace: From
Crisis to Hope," is at http://tinyurl.com/3x8fd9 on the Web.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
