To answer God’s calling to “seek justice” and to be peacemakers for the people of Israel/Palestine, we must learn some accurate history and the current realities on the ground. For many readers, Americans in particular, that will require questioning many long-held and widely supported assumptions and cutting through decades of misinformation that we have heard in our news and entertainment media.
However, doing that is not as difficult as many of us have been told! We so often hear that this conflict is “very complicated,” which makes it seem impossible to develop an understanding that can lead to prophetic action for justice. It is worth noting that statement most often arises to dissuade people from engaging in powerful actions such as boycotts and divestment. Rest assured, the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is not too complex for any of us to understand.
So we invite you first to do some exploring in the section “Israel/Palestine: The Basics.” Take the time to read some History and also to look at some Maps so you can understand the layout of the land and how it has been changing over the last century.
As you have time, come back to read about one or more of the Key Issues, especially The Occupation and The Settlements.
That should give you a foundation to take you into the specific issues or advocacy campaigns you are interested in and groups with which you would like to work.
Want to do some deeper learning, perhaps with a study group and a class? See the materials in our Curricula section for a variety of learning tools for congregations, community groups and classes of different age groups. These tools can be used by an individual as well.
For Christians, our faith inspires and motivates our justice activism, and the Theology section offers a wealth of material to plant our advocacy in the roots of solid Christian theology. You also will find resources that dispel misunderstandings and misuse of the Bible that are so often applied to modern day Israel.
Interfaith Issues loom large in faith-based advocacy, and we have several good sources to help us unwrap the emotional and ethical issues of interfaith relations as they apply to the quest for justice in Israel/Palestine.