Resources about Lutheran Palestinians

VIDEOS

· Bishop Payne Interviews Dr. Mitri Raheb, pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem, who was born and raised a Lutheran in “the real” Bethlehem. This 40-minute tape was made in 2001 when Dr. Raheb visited the New England Synod. (V455)

· Global Mission Event July 2000 with guest speaker Viola Raheb, wife of the pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem. 2000, Luther College, Decorah, Iowa. (V448)

· MOSAIC Fall 1999: Palestinian Trilogy, Healing in a Holy Land: Augusta Victoria Hospital; Dreams of the Future: Educating Palestine, and Christians of the Pentecost: Our New Arab Neighbors (V492)

· Peace Dialogue 2002 with Bishop Munib Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL), Rabbi Ron Kronish and Dr. Muhammed Hourani at Trinity Lutheran Church, Worcester, February 2002 (V457)

· Reflections from Pr. Susan Thomas, co-pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church, Old Jerusalem, at the 2001 New England Synod Assembly, 45 minutes (V455)

· The Dividing Wall, 23-minute DVD that explores the humanitarian, social, and political impact of the Israeli-built “security barrier;” study guide and advocacy suggestions, 2004 (D610). A copy is also traveling around the Synod with the Holy Land communion ware (which is now in the Western Massachusetts Conference).

· Through My Eyes, the story of a Lutheran teenage girl from California who visits a Palestinian Lutheran teenage girl in the West Bank to learn about the Palestinian culture and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (V415)

· Voices from the Holy Land. Teens, women, church leaders (including Bishop Munib Younan and Dr. Mitri Raheb) and human rights activists describe the turmoil of their lives during the conflict between Palestine and Israel. (V471)

BOOKS

Ø Bethlehem Besieged: Stories of Hope in Times of Trouble, Dr. Mitri Raheb, pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem, 2004, AFP, softbound, 160 pages (B566). A powerful collection of compelling personal stories of desperation and hope in the midst of lethal conflict during April 2002, bringing the Palestinian-Israeli conflict up close and personal.

Ø Christians and a Land Called Holy, a new resource for everyone concerned about the impact the conflict in Israel and Palestine has had on Christian-Jewish relations. The authors provide a clear account of the situation and a compelling plea for Christian involvement in the area. 

Ø I Am a Palestinian Christian, Dr. Mitri Raheb, pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem, 2000, AFP, softbound, 160 pages (B392). Raheb, a Palestinian Arab, writes about the history of the State of Israel and the Christian reality in Palestine.

Ø In Search of Fatima: A Palestinian Story, 2002, hardbound, 250 pages (B391). The memoir of a Palestinian woman who was exiled from her homeland as a child in the 1940s when the State of Israel was founded.

Ø O, Jerusalem! The Contested Future of the Jewish Covenant (B677). Marc H. Ellis, Fortress Press, 1999. The 20th century has bequeathed to the Jewish people a series of events "with horrific and startling consequences," including the Holocaust, the birth of the state of Israel, and its development into a powerful military state. Ellis argues that the history and identity of the Jewish people are now being decisively transformed and reinterpreted. What is their destiny in the 21st century? Ellis asks, "Are there religious ideals, intellectual concepts, and political movements . . . that will help Jews confront the history we are creating . . . ?" In this profound and provocative work, he finds the answers in the covenant, symbolized by Jerusalem. Ellis offers a renewed theology of the covenant and its justice dimensions, its present "exile," and its future in revolutionary forgiveness.

Ø O Little Town of Bethlehem: What Is Its Future? a 28-page booklet, and Walling in Walling Out: A Bethlehem Story, a video, plus a new educational kit called Bethlehem, We Care” from the International Center of Bethlehem

Ø Walking in Their Footsteps, an account of the December 2002 pilgrimage by the New England Synod and the Southeast Michigan Synod to the ELCJHL. Reflections from Bishop Margaret G. Payne and others. Color photos.

Ø Water from the Rock: Lutheran Voices from Palestine, Ann E. Hafften, ed., 2003, from the “Lutheran Voices” series of AFP, 94 pages (B448). Listen to the stories of Palestinian Lutherans who work faithfully every day for a just peace for all the people of Israel and Palestine.

Ø Witnessing for Peace: In Jerusalem and the World, Bishop Munib Younan of the ELCJHL, 2003, AFP, softbound, 160 pages (B431). Immersed in the turmoil of the Holy Land, Bishop Younan is a prophetic voice as he calls us to join him in a commitment to non-violence as the way to peace.

THE WEB

· www.holyland-lutherans.org for in-depth information on the six congregations in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL);

· www.elca.org/middleeast

· www.annadwa.org for information about The International Center of Bethlehem

· www.elca.org/peacenotwalls

· www.nesynod.org (Partners/Other Ministry Links/Middle East) for photos and reflections from two pilgrimages the New England Synod made in April and Advent 2002 to the Holy Land to walk with our sisters and brothers of the ELCJHL

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

The Rapture Exposed – the Message of Hope in The Book of Revelation by the keynote speaker for our 2006 New England Synod Assembly, Barbara Rossing. The idea of The Rapture – the return of Christ to snatch born-again Christians off the earth – is an extremely popular interpretation of the Book of Revelation and a jumping-off point for the Left Behind books. Most Christian churches and biblical scholars consider rapture theology a distortion of Christian faith with little biblical basis. Yet this interpretation, based on a psychology of fear and destruction, has enormous influence on North Americans’ understanding of dynamics in the Middle East. In The Rapture Exposed, Rossing, an ELCA pastor and professor of New Testament, argues that the Left Behind script for the future distorts the Bible. Revelation does not predict a tribulation war in Israel and the Middle East, Rossing argues; rather Revelation offers a vision of God's healing love for the world – a love that will not be left behind.

Prayer for the Middle East during Lent

This is the sixth year the ELCA has been participating in an ecumenical prayer vigil for the Christian communities in Jerusalem, for all those who are suffering in the Holy Land, for Palestinians and Israelis, and for peace in the Middle East and the world. Why not adopt a discipline of daily prayer for peace in the Holy Land this year during Lent, when there is so much uncertainty, when Jews will be celebrating Passover and having elections, and with new Palestinian leadership. More at www.elca.org/middleeast.