altJERUSALEM – From April 29th to May 1st, 2014, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land and the Evangelische Kirche im Rheinland continued the discussion started in 2013.  The Jewish-Christian dialogue, led by Bishop Munib Younan of the ELCJHL and Rev. Barbara Rudolph and Rev. Dr. Volker Haarmann of the Evangelische Kirche im Rheinland, was a  conference on the meaning of land and water to both faith traditions.  The participants spent three days of discussion on land and water in Scripture and what the passages means for Jewish and Christian self-understanding, the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, and the occupation. Participants included Jewish and Christians leaders from around the world, including Germany, The United States, Palestine, Israel, and Holland.

Bishop Munib Younan opened the conference with readings from the Book of Isaiah and a greeting to all of the participants. The participants not only discussed water and land, but also visited the Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour, where they learned about the ELCJHL Schools and the Vocational Program in Beit Sahour.  Bishop Younan was grateful for the civility and openness of dialogue and stated that he hoped the discussion with the Evangelische Kirche im Rheinland would continue.

By: ELCJHL