29 May - 4 June 2011
© 2011 World Council of Churches
Joint action for just peace convened by the World Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches invites member churches and related organizations to join a week of advocacy and action for a just peace in Palestine and Israel. Congregations and individuals around the globe who share the hope of justice shall unite during the week to take peaceful actions, together, to create a common international public witness.
During the most recent World Week for Peace in Palestine Israel, from 29 May to 4 June 2010, churches in more than 20 countries around the world sent a clear signal to policy-makers, community groups, and their own parishes about the urgent need for a peace settlement that secures the legitimate rights and future of both peoples. Participants planned their activities around the following three principles:
1. Praying with churches living under occupation, using a special prayer from Jerusalem.
2. Educating about actions that make for peace, and about facts on the ground that do not create peace, especially settlements in occupied territory.
3. Advocating with political leaders using ecumenical policies that promote peace with justice.
This annual observance of a week of prayer, education, and advocacy calls participants to seek justice for Palestinians so that both Israelis and Palestinians can finally live in peace. It has been more than 60 years since the partition of Palestine hardened into a permanent nightmare for Palestinians. It is now more than 40 years since the occupation of East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza overwhelmed the peaceful vision of one land, two peoples.
Yet the dream of one nation cannot be fulfilled at the expense of another.
The action week's message is that now:
It's time for Palestinians and Israelis to share a just peace. It's time for freedom from occupation. It's time for equal rights. It's time for the healing of wounded souls.
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