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2004 Faith, Reason and World Affairs Symposium at Concordia College Moorhead, Minnesota Oct. 31, 2004 Bishop Dr. Munib Younan I. A Brief History of the Reformation in the Middle East II. The Impact of the Theology of Reformation
in the Middle East
1) The translation of the Bible into Arabic 2) Evangelical movement introduced education, social work, hospitals 3) Evangelical movement initiated ecumenism 4) Establishment of Universities III. Evangelical Lutheran Theology Molded My Palestinian Christian
Identity V. Roles for a Reforming Church
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ, It is an honor to attend the 2004 Faith, Reason and World Affairs Symposium. It is very important and helpful to study the impact of the Reformation in the Middle East, in the past, present and future. In this lecture, I ask: What difference did the Reformation make in the Middle East? A Brief History of the Reformation in the Middle East One of the questions that I hear is: Why didn't the Augustinian monks and the German theologians ever visit the Middle East? I am not sure if they even knew that there were Arab Christians witnessing for peace. It can be that Eastern Patristics were not very well known to German Catholic Reformers. The Reformation did not enter the Middle East through the reformers themselves, but through the German, British, Danish, Swedish and American missionaries of the Evangelical Church in the 19th century. Their active mission with the consent of the Ottoman Sultan helped the teachings of the Reformation find fertile ground. The American mission work that started early in the 19th century didn't succeed in Palestine, but it succeeded in Lebanon, Syria and Egypt. In 1841, the joint Evangelical bishopric was established and given official recognition, with the position of bishop alternating between the Anglicans and Lutherans. The first bishop was an Englishman, Michael Solomon Alexander, a Jewish convert who built Christ Church in 1849, next to the British Consulate near the Jaffa Gate. His announced strategy was to target the Jews for evangelism. When it was the Prussian Lutheran's turn, Bishop Samuel Gobat chose a different strategy. The church was to provide education and social ministry, including hospitals and schools – some for Jewish converts and others for Arab Christians. This program was developed further by the Swabian missionary Johann Ludwig Schneller, who developed the well-respected Schneller School for boys west of the Old City of Jerusalem. In 1860, he brought ten orphans from the area that is now Lebanon to launch the Syrian Orphanage for Christians and Muslims throughout the region. At the same time, the Kaiserswerth focused on diaconia and instituted the Talitha Kumi School for Girls in Jerusalem, which was the first to provide education for girls in all of Palestine. The mission of the Reformation had several political ramifications in the region. First, the relationship with the Turks and the traditional protectors of Catholicism in the Holy Land (France, Italy and Spain) deteriorated, and they wanted to find other allies to support them. Second, Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm IV had a fervent desire that the Evangelical Church of Jerusalem enjoy full civil rights, which he thought would only be possible through a united front on the part of Evangelical Christianity. To achieve this he sent his emissary, Baron von Bunsen, to the Archbishop of Canterbury and Bishop of London to set up an English-German bishopric in Jerusalem. Peter Schenkel writes: "Bunsen's idea, and that of Friedrich Wilhelm, too, was to find some way to form a world-wide Protestant League of National Churches, whereby the possibility of a political alliance between the countries might also be considered. This plan immediately betrayed the dangers of trying to mix spiritual and secular aims, but, on the other hand, it could not help but win respect for the firm desire of church reformers and ecumenical action. Two State churches were establishing a common church outside their national borders." The task of the joint bishopric was defined by the London agreement "to find out the possibility of establishing the 'United Church' to interest himself in the English mission to Israel, and to care for Christians and communities of German origin, allowing them to keep their own confessions and language. It was in this politicized environment that the missionaries started to proclaim the Gospel in its purity to the Arab community. The Gospel that started from Jerusalem and went to the ends of the earth works in a circle. As we in the Holy Land neglect it, it comes back with the message of justification by faith, the central doctrine of the Reformation. This also reminds us that even if we fail in some attempts to proclaim the Gospel, God will use simple people or politicians or anyone else to work through. Here the call of Christ transcends self-interested political schemes and national interests to assure one and all that we are justified freely by God's great love. In this history of the well-established churches of the Reformation – be they Lutheran, Anglican, Presbyterian, Congregational or Armenian Evangelical – Luther's statement rings true: "some statesmen and legislators have a special star before God. They are also the ones who have good luck and success. God raises them among the godless and the heathen – in Persia He raised up King Cyrus; in Greece, the nobleman Themistocles and Alexander the Great; among the Romans, Augustine, Vespasian and others."
During the past 150 years, reformation theology has enriched and improved faith and life in the Middle East in several key ways: 1) Translation of the Bible into Arabic Just as Luther's translation of the Bible into the people's language was a key step in the Reformation, so was the translation of the Bible into the vernacular Arabic. The Orthodox Churches had already translated certain pericopes, but it wasn't until 1864 that the American Orientalist Smith and the Dutch Orientalist Van Dyke, supported by the Arabist Butrus Boustani, introduced the complete Arabic translation of the Bible, faithful to the Hebrew and Greek manuscripts. This prompted other churches, such as the Roman Catholics, to provide their believers with the Jesuit translation. Traditionally, such an act was then considered to be competition, but I believe it enriched the biblical literature and study in the Arabic language. Furthermore, the translation of the Bible stimulated and inspired a local cultural awakening, producing literature in a variety of genres. This is parallel to what happened in Germany in the 16th century as one outcome of the Reformation there. 2) Emphasis on Education, Social Work and Hospitals The Evangelical movement introduced its three major foci: education, social work and health care. The Reformation approach to education utilized a wholistic system that included but was not limited to spiritual dimensions. A fundamental novelty was that girls were offered education, which was a significant improvement for the role of women. Education for the family was stressed, following in the tradition of Dr. Martin Luther, who wrote the Small Catechism for that purpose. Our church still operates 5 schools. Education has been and continues to be a foundational Lutheran contribution to the community. This is a key to the future of the Reforming Church and Chirstianity. The educational aims of our schools are the following: 1) To mold Palestinian Christian identify in a secularized,
multi-religious, multi-cultural society; Education continues to be one of the main factors for the future of the Reforming Church in the Middle East. 3) Introduction of Universities The establishment of universities, such as the American Universities in Beirut and Cairo, brought us a new generation that was spiritual but at the same time national. It educated such prominent Christians as Yaziji, Shidiak and Boustani, who established the Arab literature renaissance. They played a key role in creating the movement toward Arab national thought and identity. This is an essential stream in the movement and progress towards the Arabization of the church in the Holy Land and the whole of the Middle East. The efforts and intellectual contributions of evangelicals like Naseef al Yiaziji, Butros al Bustani and later the Orthodox Michael Aflaq emphasize the Arab nationalist inclinations of indigenous Arab Christians. The Turkish government had emphasized smaller localities in the Millet system that kept communities confined in their small locales. Evangelicals began to question this arrangement. They sought to reach beyond boundaries to unite the Arab world and to speak to universal Arab concerns. Pan-Arab nationalism is a product of the Reformation thinking. It united Christians, Muslims and others in one framework. It set in motion the idea of working together for a societal and political project that is broader than the Millet system and that is all encompassing. This Arab nationalism that was initiated by Arab Christians was revolutionary. It clearly said that citizenship is not built on the claim of religion but on the basis of equality in all the rights and responsibilities. In a sense, then, the beginning of democratic thinking in the Middle East was rooted in the Reformation. This motif of Arabization empowered the local church to develop its own pastors and workers, gradually leading to the full indigenization of the church leadership. 4) Development of the Ecumenical Movement The Evangelical churches initiated the ecumenical movement in the whole Middle East. It was the Arab evangelical leaders of this movement who started to meet and who saw the necessity of ecumenical endeavors. We established the Near East Council of Churches (NECC) in the 1950s, in response to the enormity of the Palestinian refugee plight. The churches had to learn to work together in times of emergency and crisis and to promote social justice. Later, our bodies thought that it would not be a true council of churches without the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Catholic churches. In 1974, we established the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), which the Catholics joined in 1989. This ecumenical endeavor is unique in bringing together the four families of churches in the Middle East, namely, the Eastern Orthodox, the Oriental orthodox, the Catholics and the Evangelicals. Despite the challenges, it has been vital to speak with one voice and act together in unity to address the needs of our communities regardless of religion or gender. In so doing, we demonstrated that the Reformation is not exclusive but ecumenical. To be a good evangelical means to be a good ecumenist. The Evangelical Lutheran Theology Molded My Palestinian Christian Identity My identity is Arab Palestinian Christian Evangelical Lutheran.
Most people would not understand such a combination of identities
because the common perception is that all Arabs are Muslims
and that Arab Palestinians certainly are Muslims. But that is
not true. 1. The first premise is incarnational theology, which is essential to us as Palestinian Christians. Though many do not understand, our identity is the one we have developed since the early church. It has never been hidden or disquised. Rather it has been incarnational, in the flesh, very open. My Palestinianity and my Christianity kiss each other. My Palestinianity is something deeply rooted in biblical culture, both Old and New Testaments. If you study present day Palestinian culture, you will find many of our traditions rooted in the Bible. For example, when a Palestinian puts a roof on a new house, it is still common that a ram is slain and the ram's blood should touch the concrete of the roof. This tradition is rooted in a long Biblical tradition. Another vivid example is the continuation of the Biblical model of hospitality to the stranger and the sojourner. Sometimes I think we are the living remnant of the biblical traditions. My Palestinianity extends to my Christianity because Palestine was after all the place in the world that our God chose to become incarnate in Jesus of Nazareth. This is the place of Jesus' birth, ministry, death, resurrection and ascension. In addition to that, Jerusalem is the birthplace of the Christian church. It was here the Holy Spirit came in great power upon the followers of Jesus and enabled them to preach the Gospel. The early church was a multicultural church. The gospel was also preached in Arabic (Act. 2:11) and the apostles and believers were called to witness to Christ in Jerusalem, Palestine and all parts of the world. Turning it around, my Christianity extends to my Palestinianity through the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Jesus taught us to be peacemakers, to be light and salt and to share ourselves with others, no matter who they are, to feed the hungry, to welcome the stranger, to care for the sick, to visit the prisoner and to liberate the oppressed. The incarnation has to do with relationships: the divine to the human, the human to the divine. God chose to transcend the boundaries between the human and the divine. God became Incarnate on earth; God did not remain in heaven. Christ taught us that the incarnation gave a meaning for Palestianian Christian identity – never exclusive, but inclusive – molded by love, forgiveness and reconciliation. Our relationships on this earth are shaped by the incarnation of our Lord Jesus. 2. The second premise has to do with Lutheran history in the Middle East. It is certain that Lutherans cannot claim an historic tradition in Palestine. We cannot claim that Martin Luther came to visit the Holy Land – Thank God! Rather than a staid tradition of Christianity in the Holy Land, the Evangelical Lutheran doctrine brings us the freshness of the Gospel. This means that no nation or land can claim a monopoly on preaching the Gospel and administering the Sacraments. The circle is continuous – out of Jerusalem to the whole world, but when Jerusalem neglects the freshness of the Gospel, it returns through mission to Jerusalem. 3) The Evangelical Lutheran tradition has rooted us in the theology of grace. This grace we receive freely from the cross of Christ. We Christians in the Middle East live in an ocean of Islam and Judaism, which means we are steeped in the theology of merit. In both the Hebrew scriptures and the Koran, there is a strong theology of retribution, of a punishing God who must be pleased through works of merit. But as Christians living in the theology of grace, we know the love of God in Christ that justifies us freely by faith, a love which extends to all people and sinners, the marginalized, the oppressed and the oppressor. It is the grace of Christ that embraces me and others, drawing me nearer and nearer to my Savior. Through kerygma, diaconia and mission, the love of Christ is given freely to all and we become the Church of martyria, the Church of witness. This is the freshness of the Gospel. 4) The Evangelical Lutheran tradition has rooted us in the theology of the cross, which is the center of Lutheran identity. This humbles me so that I am not a master in my country, but a servant – a servant not only for my own community but for everyone. The theology of the cross molds my entire identity and equips me for witness, enabling me, in addition, to take a strong role in mediation and dialogue with other Christian confessions and other religions, or between conflicting parties. These premises – the incarnation; a dynamic, ever-renewing gospel; the theology of grace and the theology of the cross – are the foundation of the theology and tradition of the early church. They continue today in the Lutheran and other Evangelical churches in the Middle East. They still mold my Arab Palestinian Christian Evangelical Lutheran identity.
The essence of Martin Luther's theology was his experience of justification by grace through faith, of being set free from his bondage by the love of God in Christ so that he could live to serve God and others in joyful freedom. The question that drove him, and others of his day, was "How do I find a merciful and gracious God." Though that question, of course, remains, we are aware that there are also other questions. Where is God in a world torn apart by violence, war and injustice? Will we ever live in justice and peace, reconciled to God and one another, as equal human beings despite differences in faiths, privileges and politics. What does justification by grace look like to people who live
under occupation and oppression? If there is a future for the Reforming Church, it lies in our ability to continue to speak God's liberating Gospel so that it is relevant for today's brokenness and human condition. It lies in our ability to look theologically at our modern day world, interpreting the human condition and the questions of the times. Then listening to and giving fresh voice to God's saving activity in the midst of the brokenness. What are the questions of today from the perspective of this Palestinian Christian? How do we live together in tolerance, peace and justice? Justification today must go beyond the freed and forgiven individual, to bring God's liberation and healing to communities trapped in oppression, injustice and fear. Justification today must go beyond eternal salvation, to set free and to restore right relations in this world. Justification today is about healing and reconciling this broken world with the grace of God's forgiving and saving love. Justification today means realizing the Biblical message of shalom and salaam which the Risen Christ brought to the disciples locked in their upper room behind doors of fear. The Biblical message today must speak to us in our locked rooms of dehumanization, oppression, demonization and perversions of truth.
Justice and righteousness – right relations with people – are grounded, according to the Hebrew scriptures, in God's divine nature. And as God is the God of justice, He cares deeply for the well-being of every human being. Professor Gerhardt von Rod says there is no concept more important in the Hebrew Scriptures than justice. The worship expected of the righteous, those who practice justice and righteousness, is rooted in obedience to the covenant. When Isaiah called the people of Israel to repent and turn back to their covenant relationship with God, they were reminded that it would mean seeking justice and correcting oppression (1:17), letting the oppressed go free, breaking every yoke (58:6). The prophet Micah spells out clearly: "What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with your God." (6:8) People often tell me: religion shouldn't interfere with politics.
For me, justice is not political, it is biblical. Being justified by grace through faith returns us to the real meaning of biblical justice. It describes the ambiguity in which we human beings find ourselves. We are at the same time sinners and saints, always in need of justice and liberation, which God graciously gives us. It means being simultaneously judged and set free. Those of us experiencing injustice in the world have the wonderful hope of justice from the cross and resurrection of Christ. Yes, we are victims of injustice, but as we are saved by God's grace, the God of justice will never allow injustice to have the final word. For this reason, the struggle for justice is always a spiritual struggle. Dr. Ishmael Noko, the General Secretary of the Lutheran World Federation, explains the relationship between justice and justification. It is a call to all those who are baptized into Christ to take part in building community across the barriers that exist between nations, ethnic groups, genders and generations. Because we are justified by God and not by our own qualities or actions, we should all receive each other as God receives us. The gift of justification that we are given in Christ is an affirmation that we are all made in God's image, that we are each of value as individuals. As long as human beings are far from God, true justice is far from the world. As long as the world's justice is deeply rooted in self-interest, power and economics, God's justice is far from the world.. As long as justice has double or triple standards, then it contradicts the power of the cross: that God has redeemed all humanity equally regardless of gender, ethnicity or race, whether powerful or weak, rich or poor, from the north or south, east or west. This is the reason that the future of the theology of reformation – justification by grace through faith – calls the church to be prophetic and even swim against the waves of injustice in the Middle East.
"It is part of the church's office of guardianship that she call sin by its name and that she shall warn men (and women) against sin; for "righteousness exalteth a nation" both in time and eternity, but sin is perdition for the people, both temporal and eternal perdition." (Prov. 14:34). If the Church does not fulfill this role, she bears part of the guilt for the blood of the wicked… The intention of the preacher here is not to improve the world but to summon it to belief in Jesus Christ and to bear witness to the salvation which has been accomplished through Him. The theme of the proclamation is not the wickedness of the world but the grace of God through Jesus Christ." Role of a Reforming Church in the Middle East A reforming church, then, will have these roles: o To be prophetic: to speak God's truth to those of power and
privilege; To be Prophetic In our context, we have clearly stated the occupation is a sin against God and against humanity. For it deprives people of their human rights and dignity. It demoralizes first the occupier and then the occupied. To demand an end to the occupation is to demand liberation for both Israelis and Palestinians from the sin of occupation. What Israel and Palestine both need is justice. We also condemn spiral violence and terrorism whoever is the perpetrator. Proclaim and Practice God's Vision of Justice, Peace and Reconciliation Proclaiming and practicing the Gospel of Christ for the Palestinian Church is to show how God's love in Christ brings joy, hope, peace, equality, harmony and justice. The Palestinian Christian church contributes to earthly peace and justice in a public role. In recalling our identity in baptism, celebrating the Lord's Supper, telling the biblical narrative and in teaching faith, hope and love in Christ, the church in the Middle East provides the basis of prophetic peacemaking for all life. Our vision of justice advocates the liberation of Palestinians from occupation and a viable, contiguous Palestinian state with international legitimacy. We still envision a two-state solution, which means having the state of Israel and the State of Palestine living side by side in peace, equality, justice and reconciliation. We call for a shared Jerusalem and a just solution to the settlements, allocation of water resources; and the right of return for Palestinian refugees. When we advocate ending the illegal occupation, we are advocating liberation of both Palestinians and Israelis from the occupation. We are convinced that the security of Israel is dependent on the freedom and justice of the Palestinians; and the freedom and justice of the Palestinians is dependent on the security of Israel. Only when we understand this symbiotic relationship will a just peace be realized. Our vision calls for justice within our Palestinian society – a justice that will respect every person's human and civil rights; a state that provides equality and freedom of religion for every human being; a modern, democratic, civil society that lives out the premise that justice must begin at home. Our vision calls the global church to seek and speak the truth and work for justice and peace in their contexts and in Middle East. The test for justice in our world today is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Unfortunately, the world understands justice to be narrow – self-interested justice. The world looks at the superpower and its concept of justice. People in the Middle East question whether the US can be an honest broker for justice in this conflict because of its unequivocal support of one side. The test of the US is not how powerful it is in this world or how mighty its military may be. The test is whether the US can implement justice with one standard for all nations of the world including itself. I believe the church in the North and the South are equally responsible for justice in this world. We are thankful for those prophetic voices, for together we create a symphony of justice that disturbs injustice and oppression. With this symphony we are saving the humanity of the world and creating a future for the church in the Middle East. It is the prophetic role of the Christian church to break the vicious cycle of violence, hatred and retaliation. It is the mission of the Christian church now to work toward healing, peace-making, reconciliation and restoring God's image of humanity. Here justification by grace through faith calls the Palestinian church to educate the grassroots of both nations to see God not only in itself but also in the other. When we see God in the other, we can accept the humanity of the other and even the otherness of the other. When the humanity of the other is rediscovered, then we can mutually recognize each other's human, civil, religious, political and national rights. Only then will the Holy Land become a promised land of milk and honey for both Palestinians and Israelis. Marks of the Future Reforming Churches Unity of the Christian Church Through Dialogue and Reconciliation The Reforming Church of the Future will be committed to unity through dialogue. The Reformers in the 16th century encouraged Christians to be masters of dialogue with others of differing views. So must we of the 21st century encourage Christians to listen to one another and to seek God's truth together. Unity through dialogue will be critical for the survival of the Christian church. Either we learn to live together, or we will die separately. Unity with Other Evangelical Churches Dialogue among mainline evangelicals has enabled greater unity and shared mission. In the Middle East, the Evangelicals - Lutherans, Episcopalians and Reformed - are joined in the Fellowship of the Middle East Evangelical Churches ( FMEEC). Since the beginning of this century, we have had many things in common and worked together without any agreement of mutual recognition. We believe that our Evangelical tradition is to enfold us under the same wing. One of the examples was the establishment of the Near East School of Theology (NEST) that is owned by the Lutherans, Anglicans, Presbyterians and Armenian Evangelicals. Another example is the establishment of the ecumenical movement through the establishment of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC). Working across denominational lines in the Middle East is not without its complications at the moment. Differing viewpoints about the use of the term "evangelical" have introduced new challenges to the dialogue. Some fear association with the evangelical right , that they will be linked to fundamentalist and Christian Zionist movements. Others believe retaining the term is crucial to the mission. Inter-denominational politics can confuse theological matters with practical issues. Our Lutheran Church (ELCJ) has taken the initiative to further develop the working dialogues on two levels: Lutheran-Anglican dialogue and Lutheran-Reformed dialogue. The Presbyterian Synod in Syria and Lebanon and the National Church in Beirut established with the ELCJ such a committee and we are discussing all matters including the historic episcopate. Our aim is to succeed in both these two tracks, in order to build bridges between Anglicans and Reformed churches in the ME. We would be preparing fertile ground for a multilateral full recognition agreement in the future such as the Anglican – Lutheran – Reformed agreement in France called the De Reiully agreement. We can also learn in those dialogues from the ELCA that did not emphasize doctrinal nuances but rather focused on witness and service with the mainline Evangelical churches. Why is the dialogue and full recognition agreement important among the Evangelicals in the Middle East? A: As a minority among minorities, evangelical churches urgently need common strategies for mission, evangelism, education and development to more effectively witness and proclaim the Gospel. B: Division or disagreement among Evangelical churches will create a fertile ground for right-wing evangelical groups or other free churches to mushroom in our Middle East and create either conflict among civilizations or assist in the growth of the evangelical extremism. C: Mutual agreement among the mainline evangelical churches will bridge between South and North and between Eastern and Western cultures and churches. D: Mutual agreement will also assist us to be salt in our society
and continue our educational, diaconal and dialogical approaches.
Only full recognition and mutual agreement will secure the strong
future of the ministries of the Evangelical churches of the
Reformation in the ME and will ensure that the evangelical churches
will continue to play their vanguard role in ecumenism. All
of us are responsible to achieve this. Contact between Lutherans and the Orthodox Church began as early as the first generation of the Reformation Church. Tradition tells us that the Orthodox Deacon Mysos and Philip Melancthon translated the Augsburg Confession into Greek. This history provides the basis on which further dialogue and joint service can be built. Dialogue with Orthodoxy is essential in the 21st century. We need to take into consideration the hurt that they had to endure for several centuries, either from the Crusaders or the Turks, or even from active proselytizing by the Evangelical movements. When I gave my Arabic translation of the Augsburg Confession to the Syrian Orthodox Patriarch and to the Coptic Orthodox Pope, they saw the common ground on which to work together. I believe it is a challenge for us Lutherans at this very time to have active dialogue not only with the Eastern Orthodox but also with the Oriental Orthodox churches. This kind of dialogue is essential with these ancient churches, for they assist us in a deeper spirituality and also in strong liturgy, as well as an understanding of martyria and Eastern church fathers and mothers, After all, the Historical Reformation was in the western church, not in the eastern church. There is thus no historical reason why we should be apart from the other. We dare to discuss with orthodoxy the difference between mission and prosyletizing. We should also dare to take courageous steps, like agreeing on a joint understanding of baptism, and then allow the Holy Spirit to find ways and means that would lead us further toward visible unity and a sharing of the Table of the Lord. If the evangelical churches in the Middle East can serve as a bridge between reformation and orthodoxy, we will have gone even further than our 16th century reformers. We will also have secured an historical reconciliation between the Western church and Eastern and Oriental orthodoxy, which is no longer limited by geography but is a global reality. Our challenge in the 21st century is: can evangelicals and catholics in the Middle East be this bridge for reconciliation? If they can play that role, then an historical momentum lies ahead of us. We pray that the Holy Spirit may use Eastern Christianity to be the bridge-builders with the West. The regional dialogues for unity are not separate from the international ecumenical convergences. One supports the other and gives it a new, fresh theological dimension. The international dialogue that takes place through the Holy See, LWF, WCC, WARC, Orthodox churches and others is very significant for the ecumenical movement in the world and especially in the Middle East. Mutual recognition agreements between confessions are signposts that show us the way of unity. In John 10, Jesus spoke about "one flock and one shepherd." These agreements embrace us churches and help us to have common strategies pertaining to emigration, immigration, living together with other religions, influencing the progress of democratization of the Middle East. The international agreements and the regional ones sharpen the unified mission of the one church. And it provides a future framework not only to the evangelical movement but to all the ecumenical church families. The future of God's mission in the Middle East is more than
dialogue among Lutherans, Catholics or Orthodox. There is one
mission for the one, holy, universal, Apostolic church. How
can the love of God penetrate into the Middle East through grace?
How can we be enabled to heal our brokenness, our different
doctrines and our theological disagreements? The church in the
Middle East is called for one and the same mission – to
carry the love of God into our societies and our churches using
our diverse gifts to lift up one another.
There is tension in Jerusalem between local churches and the expatriate churches. Too often the expatriate churches declare they want and need a "presence" in Jerusalem, and then establish themselves with buildings, congregations, programs and influence. Very often there is a considerable amount of money available to the expatriate congregations to maintain their power and presence. At times we even notice a kind of paternalistic attitude from the expatriate churches toward the local churches. Some of the expatriate churches are actually encouraged by the local governing authorities. In some cases, it even borders on a neo-ecclesiastical colonialism that gives the impression that Christianity is western and alien to this context. What we as local Palestinian Christians fervently desire and need from the expatriate congregations is a healthy theology of accompaniment and communion. Such a communion would support the local Palestinian Christian Church and see it as an expression of the worldwide Christian Church. Such a communion would not think about "presence" but would ask how the witness of the remnants of the remnants in Jerusalem can be strengthened so that the Church of Christ will not seek power but the glory of Christ, and be a light to the other religions with whom we are living. With accompaniment, partnerships are equal and effective. With accompaniment, there is no rich or poor, strong or weak, no large or small, nor majority or minority. Instead we walk together as Christ walked with the disciples on the way of Emmaus. Accompaniment assumes a process: churches accompany each other on the way, sharing with each other as equals, empowering the local church mission, bringing healing to each other, sharing each others' resources and learning from each other. Only this theology of accompaniment will secure the future of the mission of the local evangelical churches in the Middle East. I want to say that the ELCJ's experience with the ELCA has been very positive because it is based on the theology of communion and accompaniment, not presence and power. I was privileged to send the call, be part of the selection process and to install the new ELCA pastor for the English-speaking congregation at the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer. This shows a respect for the local bishop and the local church. In turn, we as local Christians give support to the expatriate church, demonstrating our interdependence. We as the ELCJ are fully recognized by the ELCA as a world-wide church and are strengthened by our relationship with the American church. The same is true with ELCJ relations with the Finnish and Swedish churches. One month ago, I got an invitation from Pakistan to come and share the Gospel with them as an Arab Christian evangelist. This letter has challenged me and created a call in my heart. Of course, the reality is that the ELCJ is a small church and funds are meager. How can I present my Church Council with such a request? Then I thought about the meaning of mission and accompaniment. If the Lutheran world is serious about its emphasis on the theology of accompaniment, then the sharing of resources, personnel and strategy make such a vision possible. If the evangelical church in the Middle East limits itself to its traditional work and does not reach out and listen to the call of Christ in doing mission, I am afraid that the future will be dim. God calls each church community to live out the gospel in its context. Our mission as Palestinian Lutherans is to proclaim God's grace and love in the Arabic language and use our long experience with Islam to reach out in Arab and Muslim countries wherever we are called. The Call to Prophetic Interfaith Dialogue One of the most disturbing elements of faith and life today is that religion and the Holy Writings of the respective religions are being misused to justify injustice, violence, terrorism and war in the Middle East. Nowhere is this more evident than in the Palestinian/Israeli conflict. The Christian Bible and the Torah have been used by some as the very foundation for violence and injustice. Some Jewish people say in the Torah God has given the land to Israel for all of eternity. By this reasoning, occupation of the land and the building of illegal Israeli settlements on confiscated Palestinian land are justified. In a similar way, the Koran has also been used by certain groups to justify actions to oppose these same activities. Some Christians, both mainline and sects, insist on reading the bible in eschatological and dispensationalist frameworks. Some use the apocalyptic books to justify the destruction of the Dome of the Rock in order to build the Third Temple on the same site in Jerusalem. They believe that this will hasten the second coming of Jesus and thus are hoping for the Armageddon War. In that war, they believe, the Messiah will punish - even kill - those who never believed In Him. For me, this is a sick ideology and perversion of the word of God, because it seeks Christ the military general, not the Messiah of the cross. The Catholic bishops of Illinois in 2003 declared this kind of thinking to be false prophecy. I call it heresy. The proponents seek war and other strange scenarios for the fulfillment of prophecy. But, in fact, the Bible teaches us what Martin Luther emphasized, that we are to seek Christ, (was Christum treiben) and only Christ and not scenarios of bloodshed, oppression and war. When the Holy writings are perverted and twisted in these ways, then religion becomes a cause and source of the perpetual injustice and brokenness of the Middle East, rather than a path to peace and wholeness. Since September 11, 2001, the Middle East has changed. Extremism has spread and grown more violent. Narrow religion can be a cover and a tool to create the extremism that adopts intolerant positions or biased attitudes with exclusive claims on truth. Such groups succeed where poverty and injustice prevail. We are challenged and obstructed by religious fanaticism and extremism, because people who hold these positions think they are the sole defenders of God and God's true religion. They forget that God does not need defenders. These groups spread intolerance and turmoil and also create conflict among civilizations and religions. No one religion has a monopoly on intolerance and extremism; one can find it in Christianity, Judaism and Islam. We Christians in the world have to clean our own kitchen before we criticize the homes of the others. All of these intolerant groups are hijacking religion and justice in the Middle East. Our challenge as a Reforming Church in the Middle East is to encourage and initiate prophetic interfaith dialogue. We need to inspire faith leaders to stand up and speak clearly to their own and other faiths that violence, hatred, occupation or war done in the name of God is blasphemy. We also need to unite in a common mission to heal and reconcile people everywhere. Interfaith dialogue begins with a theology of creation. God created human beings in diversity and equality, out of which came different cultures, beliefs, doctrines, traditions and norms that differ. Interfaith dialogue does not change these things nor does it erase them. Rather, interfaith dialogue helps us to see God's presence in the other adherent of the other religion. When we see that, then we can admit that the Creator granted every one of us equal human rights and equal life. We evangelical Christians are called in our interfaith dialogue to challenge the Middle East with a strong theology of creation and redemption. God created all human beings equally. Through his son, Jesus Christ, on the cross, God saved all the world equally. This is the basic theology that drives us to combat any kind of racism, extremism, superiority, anti-semitism, Islamophobia, Arabophobia, Europphobia, xenophobia or Americanophobia wherever it exists. The aim of interfaith dialogue is to seek common values among the respective religions. Like the Western, affluent world, the Middle East is becoming mired in consumerism, materialism and secularism that strips away community and human values, and in their place imposes principles of self-interest. For this reason, I call on all these religions in their dialogue to seek and encourage common values that promote family, equality, justice, peace, tolerance and reconciliation. A Middle East without human values is a land of chaos. It is only through shared humanity that we will build a Middle East that embraces pluralism, equality, democracy, human dignity and respect for other religions and civilizations, even those that are strange to us. In our Alexandria Dialogue group, Israeli Jews said that the root cause of the conflict is spiral violence and terrorism. Palestinian Muslims and Christians said that the root cause is occupation. We agreed to study how each religion - Judaism, Christianity and Islam - perceive both occupation and terrorism. In such a dialogue, we are calling religious people to work together to bring justice and peace to the Middle East. We are neither to please politicians who seek war nor religious extremists who pervert the image of the other. A reforming church will promote prophetic, interfaith dialogue that will encourage the long-standing, peaceful means of religion to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the core problem of the Holy Middle East. Interfaith dialogue can challenge world politicians that the way for just peace in the ME is not through Baghdad but through Jerusalem! Interfaith dialogue ought to challenge world powers with authority: • Stop the War! • Money spent on power and militarization is better spent eradicating poverty, providing education, building the infra-structure of society, democracy, justice and equality. These are the bridges to peace and reconciliation. Prophetic interfaith dialogue promotes peace education. We truly need to learn about other religions as they want to be perceived and not as we want them to be. Peace education helps the adherents of one religion to have a positive picture of the adherents of different religions and to avoid any kind of stigmatization, demonization and dehumanization. Such understanding helps everyone to co-exist with equality, love and hope. When people of faith name, recognize and repent the times when their religion has distorted God's loving intention, it heals bitter wounds and leads to reconciliation. The Middle East will be safer, richer, stronger, if dialogue with other religions guides us to build a just and peaceful new world order with security and reconciliation, freedom and tolerance, civility and a culture of peace. CONCLUSION: Is there a future for the Reformation tradition in the Middle East? I would quote Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: "Love is the most durable power in the world. This creative force, so beautifully exemplified in the life of our Christ, is the most potent instrument available in humankind's quest for peace and security." Yes, there is a future for the reformation, when we are: instruments of that sacrificial love, brokers of just peace, bridge-builders between Israelis and Palestinians, accompaniers for unity among the Churches, initiators of dialogue among all three monotheistic religions, ministers of reconciliation and apostles of love. When the love that justified us on the cross can be shared with the power of forgiveness, there is indeed a future for the Reforming Church in the Middle East. May God bless you.
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