JERUSALEM – The Justice and Peace Commission released a new book, in Arabic and English, entitled “Is Peace Possible? Christian Palestinians speak”. The book contains a compelling collection of articles and declarations from Jerusalem that provides an in-depth understanding of who the Christian Palestinians are today as well as an original viewpoint on the Israel/Palestine conflict, emerging from the Christian community. The authors are the members of the Justice and Peace Commission of the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries in the Holy Land, presided by Latin Patriarch (emeritus) Michel Sabbah.
As the conflict in the Holy Land rages on without abating, the members of the Justice and Peace Commission, clergy and laypeople, men and women, academics, businesspeople and community activists, have collectively penned twelve short chapters focused on the identity, vocation and environment of Christian Palestinians. These chapters serve as the backdrop to seventeen position papers, formulated by the Justice and Peace Commission, that deal with various aspects of the Israel/Palestine conflict. These position papers aim at helping the Church promote justice and peace as an integral part of her mission.
The Church of Jerusalem, mother of all Churches, makes her voice heard in this volume, calling those of good will to get to know the perspective of the Christian Palestinians. These Christians take up the daily challenge of confronting the difficult political situation, promoting dialogue and reconciliation and nourishing the faith that peace will come. The perspectives in this book on the major issues at the core of the struggle open up a horizon on which hope for the generations of tomorrow, Christians, Jews and Muslims, Israelis and Palestinians, might blossom. The contributors offer a vivid portrait of a community that refuses despair, believing that peace is possible.
