City of...

Today, the General Conference of the United Methodist Church voted on a petition to oppose divestment related to Israel and Palestine. The petition was sponsored by the Insitute for Religion and Democracy, a very conservative group that tries to influence mainline denominations to the right. (They started primarily as an anti-commie, anti liberation theology group. They also love bashing gays and campaiging to try to get the UMC to withdraw from the National Council of Churches and to disband the Board of Church and Society.)
 
General Conference OVERWHELMINGLY voted AGAINST this petition by a vote of 763-38!!!! That means that there are only 38 delegates to Conference that are willing to vote strongly opposed to divestment; there are 763 who are willing to give the divestment folks the chance to say their piece.
 
This is AWESOME and gives us a good sense of what we're dealing with tomorrow, which is when the actual vote on the divestment petition itself will take place.
 
Please, if you are one of them there United Methodists and are in contact with your Gen Con delegates or know folks who are in touch with theirs, I'm putting a message down at the bottom of this blog. Could you send it to them to let it know that UM Mission Personnel in Palestine and Israel support divesment? If they have more questions about what that entails, send them to www.unitedmethodistdivestment.com or have them email me!

I am REALLY excited about this, it's a huge step in the right direction and I'm really excited to be a part of it!
 

 
 

 
Subject: United Methodists Want to Give Divestment a Chance
 
Dear Friends,
 
Today, the General Conference of the United Methodist Church voted against a resolution that would have prohibited the UMC from divesting from companies that profit from the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory. 763 delegates voted against the resolution, which would have prevented the church from acting to ensure that it is not making money from an occupation that I see and experience every day. Only 38 delegates voted for the resolution, which means that less than 40 delegates at General Conference are uninterested in giving divestment a chance. This is a huge victory for positive dialogue, peace and justice in regards to Israel and Palesinte. It's a victory for my friends who stand in lines at checkpoints, waiting to be humiliated each morning. It's a victory for my friends whose houses are threatened for demolition. It's a victory for my friends who strive for peace, justice, and reconciliation every day of their lives. I hope that we can act to make this victory complete.
 
We have a historic opportunity to act for peace and justice in the Holy Land, and to make sure that we as Methodists are putting our money where our mouths are. Tomorrow General Conference will vote on a petition calling for a process of phased, selected divestment (which begins with dialogue, then moves into shareholder action, before removal of investments is considered) from companies that profit from the immoral and destructive Israeli occupation, which has dominated the lives of Palestinians for 40 years now. We have already spoken up against the Occupation as a church, and have asked for international law to be implemented, for illegal settlement activity which steals Palestinian land to end, and for forces working for peace, justice, and true security for Palestinians and Israelis to be supported and empowered by the Church.
 
Please, contact your delegates to General Conference. Tell them how proud you are that your church wants to give divestment a chance. Let them know how excited your mission personnel here are for this opportunity to allow a process of phased, selected divestment, beginning with dialogue and positive shareholder action, to work in the church. Let them know that a process of phased, selected divestment from companies which profit from the Occupation:
 
1) Is a moral, nonviolent means to work for justice and peace in Palestine and Israel
2) Begins with dialogue, as can be seen by the case of Caterpillar, which agreed to talk with the Board of Church and Society as a result of their call for divestment from the company
3) Creates a broader dialogue about nonviolent means of achieving peace in the Holy Land
4) Is PRIMARILY a way of "removing the log from our own eye" by ensuring that we are not making money off of behaviors and policies which we as a church have already expressed our concern over
5) Is desired by the Christian community in the Holy Land, and all of those, Palestinian and Israeli, who are working for a just peace for the people of this land
6) Is supported by United Methodist mission personnel in Palestine and Israel, including yours truly!
 
This is an incredible opportunity to act in solidarity with the force of peace in this divided land. There are so many forces acting on behalf of violence and injustice in this place. Please. Let's make sure that our church acts on behalf of peace and justice. Palestinian Christians want it. Israeli peace activists want it. Moderate Palestinians want it. United Methodist mission personnel want it.
 
It's time to start talking to companies that can make a difference in moving this situation towards peace. It's time to stop making money off of the suffering of others.
 
It's time for peace.
 
With love and hope for a future of peace,
David

We recognize that sexuality is God's good gift to all persons. We believe persons may be fully human only when that gift is acknowledged and affirmed by themselves, the church, and society. We call all persons to the disciplined, responsible fulfillment of themselves, others, and society in the stewardship of this gift. We also recognize our limited understanding of this complex gift and encourage the medical, theological, and social science disciplines to combine in a determined effort to understand human sexuality more completely. United Methodists, along with other Christians, have struggled to find principles for applying traditional teachings to contemporary understandings of human sexuality.

We recognize that sexuality is part of the larger human mystery, to be received and acknowledged in grateful responsibility. We reject all sexual expressions that damage or destroy the humanity God has given us. We deplore all forms of the commercialization and exploitation of sexual relations, with their consequent cheapening and degradation of human personality. We call for strict global enforcement of laws prohibiting the sexual exploitation or use of children by adults and encourage efforts to hold perpetrators legally and responsible. We call for adequate protection, guidance, and counseling for children thus abused. We believe that the Church family should support all families in providing age-appropriate education regarding sexuality to children, youth, and adults. We challenge all members of our community of faith to commitment, integrity, and fidelity in their sexual relationships.

We know that all are God's children and of sacred worth; yet we have been, and remain, divided regarding homosexual expressions of human sexuality. Faithful, thoughtful people who have grappled with this issue deeply disagree with one another; yet all seek a faithful witness. We continue to reason and pray together with faith and hope that the Holy Spirit will soon bring reconciliation to our community of faith. The fire in our disagreements points to a deeper human mystery than we knew. We believe that the Spirit has brought our collective conscience to acknowledge this mystery more honestly, and to make our claims with greater humility before God and our neighbors. We therefore ask the Church , United Methodist and others, and the world, to refrain from judgment regarding homosexual persons and practices until the Spirit leads us to a new insight. In the meantime, let us seek to welcome, know, forgive, and love one another as Christ has accepted us, that God may be glorified through everything in our lives.


So, yeah...that's pretty cool. Now we'll see what the whole conference does with it....


...Anyway, more soon, including our trip to the beach in Tel Aviv, Thai food, and my 11 hour work day.

Woot, to the power of 10.

Just thought I'd post this press release from the Methodist Federation for Social Action about divestment at the UMC General Conference.

As far as other issues up before GC...it's probably time we take that whole Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors thing seriously. As in, God loves gay people too.





United Methodist General Conference to Consider Divestment

Washington, DC, April 21, 2008 - United Methodists from Europe, Asia,
Africa and the United States will gather April 23 - May 2 in Ft. Worth
Texas at the denomination*s quadrennial conference. The General
Conference, the church*s official legislative body, will discuss and
act on matters related to polity and social challenges that face the
world today. One issue that has generated much debate already and will
be considered at General Conference is corporate divestment from
companies profiting from the occupation of Palestine.

The Methodist Federation for Social Action, an independent caucus group
of United Methodist laity and clergy working on issues of justice and
peace in the United Methodist Church and world since 1907, has submitted
a resolution to General Conference asking the body to use its moral
authority and take nonviolent action to support justice, peace and
security in both Palestine and Israel by developing a process for
responsible and ethical investment. The Federation calls upon the church
to undertake a process of phased, selective divestment from companies
that support the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories and other
violations of human rights in Palestine/Israel.

On April 17, the United Methodist General Board of Church and Society
withdrew its resolution to begin the process of divestment from
Caterpillar Corporation as a result of Caterpillar*s agreement to meet
with the board to continue dialogue.

Rev. Kathryn Johnson, Executive Director of the Methodist Federation
for Social Action made the following statement in response to the
General Board decision:

*The Methodist Federation for Social Action is pleased that
Caterpillar Corporation is willing to sit down with faith-based groups
to discuss its role in Israel*s illegal occupation of Palestinian
land.  We are hopeful that this dialog will go beyond a discussion of
the Caterpillar code of conduct and produce concrete changes in the
actions of Caterpillar in the occupied territories.

With the withdrawal of the only single-company divestment petition
before General Conference, the way is clear for United Methodist
delegates to focus on the major question before them related to
divestment: Will United Methodists continue to profit from the Israeli
occupation of Palestine, an occupation the denomination is on record
opposing?

Beth Corrie, a United Methodist and cousin of Rachel Corrie (who was
killed by a Caterpillar bulldozer in 2003) issued the following
statement:

 "While I am pleased to hear that my Church has begun productive
dialogue with Caterpillar (CAT) over widespread concern that CAT's
business dealings with the Israeli Defense Forces are in conflict with
international law and CAT's own Worldwide Code of Conduct, I will be
convinced of the company's seriousness by its deeds, not its words.
Since the death of my cousin 5 years ago under the blade of a CAT D-9
bulldozer, a death that was not the first nor the last as a result of
the Israeli Defense Forces* illegal policy of demolishing civilian
homes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, numerous faith and human
rights groups had made it clear to the Company that its products are
being used in war crimes.  Five years is long enough -- we are calling
on CAT to act."

The Methodist Federation for Social Action joins that call, and urges
those at General Conference to adopt a broad-based resolution that sets
clear timelines and procedures for corporate accountability and actions
by all companies, not just Caterpillar. During the four years since the
last General Conference passed a resolution opposing the occupation,
almost 2400 people (168 Israelis and 2209 Palestinians) have been
killed. *Every life is precious,* said Johnson *and we believe
that ending the occupation will help protect Israelis as well as
Palestinians. Waiting four more years to act is not an option.*

*Divestment is consistent with United Methodist Social Principles,
our Book of Discipline, and perhaps more importantly our commitment to
justice for all people,* continued Johnson. *Proposals before
General Conference represent a grass roots effort.  The Methodist
Federation for Social Action and six Annual Conferences have submitted
divestment proposals to General Conference.*

To reach spokespeople from MFSA for comment during General Conference,
call Amy Stapleton at 202-577-8712 or email amy@mfsaweb.org.
  (See Caterpillar*s Worldwide Code of Conduct at
http://www.cat.com/cda/files/89286/7/worldwide_code.pdf.)
For more information on General Conference petitions visit
http://www.unitedmethodistdivestment.com

This past Saturday some friends and I hiked through Wadi Qilt, a valley that runs through the desert hills from east of Jerusalem to the city of Jericho.

The scenery is absolutely and overwhelmingly beautiful--dry hills with hints of green, the valley filled with greenery where an aqueduct carries water through, winding trails (and lack thereof), surprising bays in the hills creating overhangs where we paused for shade. We paused for lunch outside of a monastery, where some of the monks spend time in solitude in caves high on the cliffs.

It's the kind of walk that inevitably inspires bad poetry, if you're someone who is inclined to that sort of thing (I know I am. I suppose if you were inclined to good poetry, it would inspire that instead).

And what use would a blog be if I didn't get to indulge my post-modern penchant for broadcasting my thoughts and you didn't get to indulge your post-modern penchant for intellectual or spiritual voyeurism?

So, here goes:


The desert breeds silence even in the loudest of souls.
  It doesn't swallow my noise, so much as it presses it out of me. Slow. Steady.

I can't fill this space, not with all of my thoughts, not with all of my sarcasm, not with all of my unneccessary...

I am left, with the sound of walking, and breathing.

Birds--swallows. Crows. The bleating of sheep. Bedouin shepherds yell to each other, and it is as if they disappear around the next bend.

But it is us, disappearing...


"I see you leaving us," someone says. And maybe I am.

The metaphors are so obvious as to be painful. 

We walk by the aqueduct, and are followed by the sound of the water. But even this, I know, is against a backdrop of such profound silence.

Life, in small patches, and sound in the midst of all this stillness.


How can I fall, finally, silenced--in awe of all of this.



And I end, as I always do, whispering words written by other hands, whispered by other mouths:

"One day, the water's gonna wash it all away."


And I don't want to mean all of these dry, dusty, beautiful hills. All of these subtle sounds. All of this life.

I want it to mean all of my noise. All of my mountains of broken shards of....

I want it to mean me.




"O God, you are my God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water." Psalm 63

Earlier today, April 17, Israeli military officials decided to place Mousa Abu Maria in Administrative Detention. Though we collected over 300 letters of support from more than 12 countries on 5 continents, the Israeli military seems to have decided that, lacking evidence of Mousa’s involvement in any crime, he should be held in prison without trial.

SUPPORT IS STILL NEEDED!

There will be a hearing to determine how long his stay in detention will be (though this can be renewed indefinitely), after which we will begin an appeal process. The support letters have been collected for submission to the court during this process. Additionally,

PLEASE DONATE TO MOUSA’S LEGAL FUND!

Donate individually, organize a benefit, film screening, or house party or write your own letter of appeal to family and friends. Many of you have met Mousa, stayed in his home, ate meals with him and drank tea with his family. He is in need of your help now.

Donations can be made to:
PSP-NY
and mailed to:

PSP-NYC
P.O. Box 721234
Jackson Heights, NY 11372

or via our website (using paypal):

http://palestinesolidarityproject.org/donate/