Christian Palestinians speak in this amazing resource responding to the question “Is Peace Possible?”
The new book “Is Peace Possible in the Holy Land?” reveals Holy Land Christians’ struggle for survival amid the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Written by the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land’s Justice and Peace Commission, this book contains a compelling collection of articles and declarations from the Catholic Church in Jerusalem.
Including a pastoral letter from the former Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah, chapters provide an in-depth, first-hand, authoritative understanding of the identity of Holy Land Christians. In addition, Is Peace Possible? includes numerous perspectives on the Israel/Palestine conflict emerging from the Christian community. The book serves as an excellent resource for background information for those making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
For example, Christians in the region, are called the “living stones” of the Holy Land as their communities date back to the time of Christ. Historically, Christians – predominately Arab Palestinians – made up 18-percent of the overall population. Today, they constitute less than two percent.
The first chapters serve as a backdrop to position papers, formulated by the Commission, that deal with various aspects of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. These position papers were written to help the Church promote justice and peace in the region as an integral part of her mission.
Palestinian Christians confront difficult political situations on a daily basis. At the same time, they strive to promote dialogue and reconciliation and nourish the faith, that peace might blossom for generations of future Christians, Jews, and Muslims, Israelis, and Palestinians.
This book is not for the faint-hearted. It paints an unsettling and frequently disturbing portrait of the life, trials, and systematic persecutions of the Christian Palestinians in the Holy Land. “Finally,” wrote one reviewer, “authoritative answers for those who have wondered where the Church stands on the situation in the Holy Land and its’ Christians!”
To read this powerful resource online, visit CMEP’s website here. The physical book is available at Amazon.com or at your local retailer. The U.S. editor and CMEP Catholic Advisory Council chair, Sir Jeffery Abood, can be reached at jabood@att.net.
A Franciscan Blessing
May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships so that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger, and war, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and to turn their pain to joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in the world, so that you can do what others claim cannot be done, to bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor. Amen.
We hope you will join us for a webinar about this important resource on Thursday, March 3, 2022, at 11:00 am EST. Facilitated by Julie Schumacher Cohen, former Deputy Director of Churches for Middle East Peace and member of the CMEP Catholic Advisory Council, and including representatives from The Assembly of the Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land and Palestinian Christians. Find out more and register here.