Stated Clerk and others express their support for Gaza partners

The Rev. Jihyun Oh reaffirms the PC(USA)’s solidarity with peace-seekers in Israel and Palestine

by Scott O’Neill | Presbyterian News Service

The Dar al-Kalima University Glass Dom restaurant, currently under construction, was fired upon by Israeli troops in a Sept. 16 attack on the university. (Photo courtesy of Dar al-Kalima University)

LOUISVILLE — As the one-year anniversary of the horrific actions committed by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, approaches, and the subsequent sustained response by Israel in retaliation for the taking and killing of hostages commenced, there appears to be no let-up in the violence that’s left more than 40,000 killed and nearly 2 million people displaced within Gaza. Neither does there appear to be any increased hope for a ceasefire in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, and fears of a wider war within the region increased when Israel launched ground operations targeting Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and Iran launched ballistic missiles into Israeli territory earlier this week.

A recent incursion by Israeli forces into the Bethlehem Governate and the Dheisheh Refugee Camp resulted in “random” firings at Palestinian cultural and educational institutions, including Dar al-Kalima University, a grant recipient from the PC(USA)’s Peace and Global Witness Offering in 2021. In a letter to friends of the university posted on its website, Dar al-Kalima described the actions as being  “subjected to an intense period throughout the day, as gunshots, fired by Israeli troops, targeted its newly under construction Glass Dom restaurant and its CCTV cameras, which were recording the assault. This attack, with all the noise generated by the fired bullets, caused severe panic among students and staff during their daily routine of activities and lectures at campus.”

Fortunately, there were no reported injuries from the attack by Israeli troops. The incident, however, did result in a pastoral letter of support from the Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Rev. Jihyun Oh, who reaffirmed the Church’s solidarity with the people of Palestine and Israel who seek peace. The letter, addressed to the Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb and the students and staff at Dar al-Kalima, shared the Church’s alarm and concern for the faculty and staff as well as anger at the humiliation suffered by young Palestinian men taken from the refugee camp, stripped of their clothes and paraded through the streets by Israeli soldiers.

An excerpt from the Stated Clerk’s letter reads:

“All of you remain in our prayers. We pray for God’s strength and guidance for all of you and give thanks for your perseverance and steadfastness. It has been our privilege to accompany you on the journey as you have built Dar Al-Kalima to where it is today — a center of education, learning, and hope in the midst of so much destruction and despair. As your partners, we will continue to tell your stories of hope and success.”

The Dar al-Kalima University Glass Dom restaurant, currently under construction, was fired upon by Israeli troops in a Sept. 16 attack on the university. (Photo courtesy of Dar al-Kalima University)

Oh concludes the letter with words from Isaiah 2:2, 4:

“In days to come the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established as the highest of the mountains and shall be raised above the hills; all the nations shall stream to it. [God] shall judge between the nations and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation; neither shall they learn war any more.”

The entire letter can be read here.

Another church partner also suffered reprisals from Israeli government officials after a speech at the U.N. Security Council. Yuli Novak, executive director of B’Tselem, a nonprofit organization located in Jerusalem that documents, researches and reports on human rights violations committed by Israel in the occupied territories, told the Security Council in a Sept. 4 presentation that the occupation and settlements matter more than human life to the Israeli government. She also described how thousands of Israelis took to the streets after Hamas executed six of its hostages to display their anger, desperation and betrayal over their government. Novak told the gathering that her government is exploiting their collective trauma to advance Israeli control over the entire land by waging war on the Palestinian people.

As a result, Novak was harassed and subjected to reprisals by government officials, including Israel’s Ambassador to the U.N., Danny Danon, who falsely claimed that Novak omitted the hostages from her speech. Likud MK Tali Gottlieb called for her arrest and trial for aiding the enemy during wartime (an offense that carries the death sentence, or life imprisonment), and Likud MK and Knesset Deputy Speaker Knesset Nissim Vaturi demanded the Ministry of the Interior revoke her citizenship. The incitement spawned thousands of violent and hateful messages on social media.

“These horrific attacks on our partners in Palestine and Israel are attempts by the Israeli state to shut down any public criticism of their war against Palestinians, whether in Gaza or the West Bank,” said Luciano Kovacs, area coordinator for World Mission’s Middle East Europe office. “The PC(USA) has called the actions and policies of the state of Israel apartheid and the 16 years’ war on Gaza collective punishment. These episodes are part of their strategies to dehumanize Palestinians and force them off the land.” 

In his recent letter to subscribers titled “Walk on the West Side,” Doug Dicks, PC(USA) mission co-worker and regional liaison for Israel, Palestine and Jordan, described some of the tragedy that has engulfed Israel and Gaza recently and over the past year.

“Here, in West Jerusalem, symbols of hostages — and hasbara — are visible everywhere. Hasbara refers to the public relations efforts or propaganda to defend and positively portray the point of view and policies of the State of Israel. Here, the anger and anguish of what many, if not most, Israelis are feeling regarding the events of last October are on display for all to see,” writes Dicks. 

He continues, “The Palestinian residents of Gaza have been displaced from the northern part of the strip to the southern part of the strip, south of Wadi Gaza. They have been moved again, back to the north, and also to the west, along the Mediterranean Sea. Now, they are being told once again to flee to the south. No place in Gaza is safe; not even those zones that have been declared ‘safe zones’ by the Israeli military. Only days ago, a school where people were taking shelter was hit in the pre-dawn hours, killing at least 93 Palestinians.”

To read all of Dicks’ letter and subscribe to his Mission Connections page, click here.

PC(USA) offers a multitude of resources for study and reflection by congregations and individuals. Click here to visit the page.

To support Presbyterian Disaster Assistance’s crisis response and recovery efforts in Israel/Palestine, click here. To support World Mission’s work with our partners in the Middle East, click here.