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Kairos
Document
A Word of Faith, Hope and Love
from the Heart of Palestinian Suffering
Introduction
We, a group
of Christian Palestinians, after prayer, reflection and an exchange of opinion,
cry out from within the suffering in our country, under the Israeli
occupation, with a cry of hope in the absence of all hope, a cry full of
prayer and faith in a God ever vigilant, in God’s divine providence for all
the inhabitants of this land. Inspired by the mystery of
God’s love for all, the mystery of God’s divine presence in the history of
all peoples and, in a particular way, in the history of our country, we
proclaim our word based on our Christian faith and our sense of Palestinian
belonging—a word of faith, hope and love.
The Kairos Document is an
extraordinary statement by the Christian Churches, written, signed and published in Jerusalem on December 2009. Before
mentioning some of the insights—which reflect on
over 60 years of struggle—it’s helpful to offer a capsule history of the
Israeli/Palestinian debacle.
History
Sabeel, the Palestinian Liberation Center
founded in Jerusalem in 1989 by Naim Ateek, a Palestinian native and Episcopal priestpublishes a quarterly, Cornerstone, wherein we can gain a point of reference for
the Kairos Statement. No one can understand the
plight of the Palestinian people without understanding their history. There
is a constant need to dispel myths that have clouded the reality on the
ground—myths that serve neither the Palestinian nor the Israeli need for
reconciliation.
As Naim Ateek
succinctly states, “The conflict over Palestine can be described as a Greek
tragedy composed of two acts. The first act happened in 1948 when over three
quarters of the land was lost and over 750,000 Palestinians (Muslim and
Christian) were ethnically cleansed…The second act took place in 1967 when
the rest of Palestine was occupied by the Israeli army, and several hundred
thousand Palestinians were dislocated.” Since 1967
the Palestinians live under Israeli occupation in East Jerusalem and the West
Bank until this day. While Israel no longer occupies Gaza, it is a virtual
prison with a quality of life that is totally
unsustainable in any human context.
The population of Israel proper is
7.5 million, of which 6 million are Jews and 1.5
million are Palistinian/Arabs. The West Bank and
Gaza number 4 million Palestinians under Israeli occupation, the longest in
modern history.
The loss of Palestine and the dispersion of the
Palestinian Christian community throughout the world created a physical and a
spiritual tragedy. (Ateek)
The following is Ateek’s
assessment:
For Muslims and Christians, the loss of Palestine in
1948 was the result of the interplay of world politics among the western
powers, the victorious allies of WW2. Although by then Zionism had been in
existence for over 50 years and the British government was
already conditioned and influenced by the ideology of Zionism, it was
the impact of the holocaust that facilitated and accelerated the creation of
the ‘Jewish State. [A. Burg, an Israeli, has recently published an important book, The Holocaust is
Over, on the impact of the holocaust on the creation and
sustaining of Israel.]
As the Israeli army clamped
down with an iron fist and as the occupation became more entrenched, the
confiscation of Palestinian land spread, the illegal settlements multiplied,
the settlers became unruly and fierce, the oppression of the Palestinians
became noticeably clear, the situation became helpless and desperate, and the
international community, including the U.S., was unable to pressure the
Israeli government to respect and implement International Law.
Against this backdrop, the most significant force in
the Christian community seeking creative alternatives to the oppression of
the past 20 years has come from Sabeel, always in a
non-violent dynamic. At times the odds have appeared
insuperable, beyond the human capacity to rectify, especially after the
construction of the “apartheid wall.” Other Palestinian organizations, such
as Hamas, have on occasion chosen violent means of resistance as part of the
two intifadas.
What is exciting and historical about the Kairos Document is the wholly ecumenical composition of
the churches; in the past they have not been a
cohesive force, a sign of unity.
Joe
Bradley
Excerpts from the Karios Document
1.
The reality on the ground
1.1.1 The separation wall erected on
Palestinian territory, a large part of which has been confiscated for this purpose,
has turned our towns and villages into prisons, separating them from one
another, making them dispersed and divided cantons. Gaza, especially after
the cruel war Israel launched against it during December 2008 and January
2009, continues to live in inhuman conditions, under permanent blockade and
cut off from the other Palestinian territories.
1.1.2 Israeli settlements ravage our land in
the name of God and in the name of force, controlling our natural resources,
including water and agricultural land, thus depriving hundreds of thousands
of Palestinians, and constituting an obstacle to any political solution.
1.1.3 Reality is the daily humiliation to
which we are subjected at the military checkpoints, as we make our way to
jobs, schools or hospitals.
1.1.4 Reality is the separation between
members of the same family, making family life impossible for thousands of
Palestinians, especially where one of the spouses does not have an Israeli
identity card.
2. A
word of faith—We believe in one God, a good and just God
2.1 We believe in God, one God, Creator of the universe and of humanity. We believe in a
good and just God, who loves each one of his creatures. We believe that every
human being is created in God’s image and likeness
and that every one’s dignity is derived from the dignity of the Almighty One.
We believe that this dignity is one and the same in
each and all of us. This means for us, here and now, in this land in
particular, that God created us not so that we might engage in strife and
conflict but rather that we might come and know and love one another, and
together build up the land in love and mutual respect.
3.
What is the meaning of hope?
3.2 Hope within us means first
and foremost our faith in God and secondly our expectation, despite
everything, for a better future. Also, it means not
chasing after illusions—we realize that release is not close at hand. Hope is
the capacity to see God in the midst of trouble, and to be co-workers with
the Holy Spirit who is dwelling in us. From this vision derives the strength
to be steadfast, remain firm and work to change the
reality in which we find ourselves. Hope means not giving in to evil but
rather standing up to it and continuing to resist it. We see nothing in the
present or future except ruin and destruction. We see the upper hand of the
strong, the growing orientation towards racist separation
and the imposition of laws that deny our existence and our dignity. We see
confusion and division in the Palestinian position. If, despite all this, we
do resist this reality today and work hard, perhaps the destruction that
looms on the horizon may not come upon us.
4.
Love—The commandment of love
4.1 Christ our Lord said: “Just as I have
loved you, you also should love one another” (Jn
13:34). He has already showed us how to love and how to treat our enemies. He
said: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall
love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I say
to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you
may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the
evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:45-47).
Resistance
4.2 This word is clear. Love is the commandment
of Christ our Lord to us and it includes both friends and enemies. This must
be clear when we find ourselves in circumstances where we must resist evil of
whatever kind.
4.2.1 Love is seeing the face of God in every
human being. Every person is my brother or my sister. However, seeing the
face of God in everyone does not mean accepting evil or aggression on their part. Rather, this love seeks to correct the evil
and stop the aggression.
The injustice against the Palestinian people which is the Israeli occupation, is an evil that
must be resisted. It is an evil and a sin that must be
resisted and removed. Primary responsibility for this rests with the
Palestinians themselves suffering occupation. Christian love invites us to
resist it. However, love puts an end to evil by walking in the ways of
justice.
5.
Our word to our brothers and sisters
5.4 Our numbers are few but our message is
great and important. Our land is in urgent need of love. Our love is a
message to the Muslim and to the Jew, as well as to the world.
5.4.1 Our message to the Muslims is a message
of love and of living together and a call to reject fanaticism and extremism.
It is also a message to the world that Muslims are neither to be stereotyped as the enemy nor caricatured as terrorists but
rather to be lived with in peace and engaged with in dialogue.
5.4.2 Our message to the Jews tells them: Even
though we have fought one another in the recent past and still struggle
today, we are able to love and live together. We can organize our political
life, with all its complexity, according to the logic of this love and its
power, after ending the occupation and establishing justice.
9. A
call to our Palestinian people and to the Israelis
9.1 This is a call to see the face of God in
each one of God’s creatures and overcome the barriers of fear or race in
order to establish a constructive dialogue and not remain within the cycle of
never-ending manoeuvres that aim to keep the
situation as it is. Our appeal is to reach a common vision, built on equality
and sharing, not on superiority, negation of the other or aggression, using
the pretext of fear and security. We say that love is possible and mutual
trust is possible. Thus, peace is possible and definitive reconciliation
also. Thus, justice and security will be attained
for all.
9.5 Jerusalem is the foundation of our
vision and our entire life. She is the city to which God gave a particular
importance in the history of humanity. She is the city towards which all people
are in movement—and where they will meet in friendship and love in the
presence of the One Unique God, according to the vision of the prophet Isaiah
(Is. 2: 2-5). Today, the city is inhabited by two peoples
of three religions, and it is on this prophetic vision and on the
international resolutions concerning the totality of Jerusalem that any
political solution must be based. This is the first issue that should be negotiated, because the recognition of Jerusalem’s
sanctity and its message will be a source of inspiration towards finding a
solution to the entire problem, which is largely a problem of mutual trust
and ability to set in place a new land in this land of God.
10.
Hope and faith in God
10. In the absence of all hope, we cry out
our cry of hope. We believe in God, good and just. We believe that God’s
goodness will finally triumph over the evil of hate and of death that still persist in our land. We will see here “a new
land” and “a new human being,” capable of rising up in the spirit to love each
one of his or her brothers and sisters.
return
to 10/06 CPF Newsletter
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