| WCC-A delegation led by the World Council of Churches (WCC), accompanied by partners from the Middle East Council of Churches, ACT Alliance, and Caritas Internationalis, met online on 7 August with staff from the WCC Jerusalem Liaison Office and with accompaniers from the WCC Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel. |
As he greeted staff from the Jerusalem Liaison Office, WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed gratitude for a team working in very challenging circumstances. “You are under immense pressure as a staff,” said Pillay. “You always have been in this context.”
The meeting was part of a solidarity visit to the Holy Land held online on 7-8 August, a visit that serves as an opportunity to accompany member churches and ecumenical partners, listen to their voices and perspectives, amplify their calls, and remind the world of what is needed to bring about peace in the region.
The WCC leadership was scheduled to visit the Holy Land and Gaza in person on 5-9 August, together with two humanitarian organisations: ACT Alliance and Caritas Internationalis. The visit was postponed, however, in view of the most recent developments in the area.
WCC moderator Bishop Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm expressed appreciation for the opportunity to hear from the staff in Jerusalem and the ecumenical accompaniers online.
“I really hope it’s a postponement without too much time until we meet face-to-face,” he said.
Discussions covered how the WCC ecumenical fellowship can journey with its staff in Jerusalem, and with the ecumenical accompaniers on the ground.
Particularly since 7 October 2023, ecumenical accompaniers have been challenged by security concerns, even as their presence is more needed now than ever. After being temporarily evacuated in October 2023, the accompaniers are now back on the ground, where they have been documenting high rates of settler violence.
Jerusalem Liaison Office coordinator Yusef Daher offered an overview of the daily challenges staff face because they work close to a conflict zone, as well as how the team continues to coordinate with both Israeli and Palestinian human rights organizations.
Pillay said he was glad to hear the voices and stories from the staff and the ecumenical accompaniers. “We know it’s not easy on the ground to live with those tensions,” he said. “We trust that you will continue to do the good work you do in the midst of the challenges you face on a daily basis.”
Pillay particularly thanked the ecumenical accompaniers for their eyewitness reports. “Thank you for really putting yourself into situations where it counts to be present,” he said. “All of these experiences can be quite taxing and traumatic in this context. You are living in a climate of real, volatile uncertainty and yet you are willing to be live witnesses telling your churches and the world what you see and hear on a daily basis.”
Pillay assured them that the WCC will continue to call for an end to the war.
“Your presence there is not only the presence of your church,” he said. “Your presence there is the presence of the international Christian community and also of the WCC. Thank you for being God’s presence in that place.”
The pastoral solidarity visit to the Holy Land takes place online on 7-8 August 2024. The delegation includes Bishop Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, moderator of the World Council of Churches; Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, general secretary of the WCC; Dr Audeh Quawas, member of the WCC central committee and executive committee; Dr Michel Abs, general secretary of the Middle East Council of Churches; Erik Lysén, moderator of ACT Alliance; Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, general secretary of ACT Alliance; Alistair Dutton, Caritas Internationalis secretary general.