A Call to the Anglican Church to Refuse to Divest from Israel

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As men and women who long for peace and mutual respect to prevail among the peoples of the world, we call on you to repudiate the initiative of the Anglican Peace and Justtice Network to adopt an anti-Israel divestment policy. Divestment is morally wrong because it unfairly singles out the nation of Israel for opprobrium, and it is bad policy because it is likely to lead not to peace but to war.

Professor Michael Walzer of the Princeton University, a moral philosopher, is the leading scholar in the world today of the Just War theory developed by generations of Christian theologians. He has written, "The current boycott campaign against Israel, modeled on the 1980s campaign against South Africa, aims at a very one-sided delegitimation. And because the other side isn't led by an organization remotely like the African National Congress, or by a man remotely like Nelson Mandela, the success of this campaign would be disastrous. It would strengthen the forces fighting the (Palestinian war to destroy the state of Israel)."

Nor has the Anglican Communion been an honest broker in the Middle East. A study released on Sept. 26, 2004 by the Institute on Religion and Democracy shows that fully one-third of church statements on human rights issues are aimed at Israel. Another third are aimed at the United States.

By contrast, "Only 19 percent of the church criticisms were aimed at nations deemed "not free" in the 2004 Freedom House assessments. Many of the countries rated lowest by Freedom House-such as China, North Korea, and Saudi Arabia-were not criticized even once. Of the fifteen worst human rights abusers listed by Freedom House, only five received any criticism during the four years studied."

The Anglican Church has not divested from China in protest over its illegal occupations of Tibet and Eastern Turkmenistan. It has not divested from Syria despite that nations occupation of Lebanon and massacres of minority Kurds. It has not divested form Nigeria despite brutal efforts to impose shaaria on unwilling Christians. It has not divested from Iran where Bahai are murdered by their own government for their faith. Against this background, the initiative to divest from only one nation state, the national state of the Jewish people, is highly suspect.

As Harvard University President Lawrence Summers said with regard to another effort to promote divestment from Israel, such actions are anti-Semitic in their effect, if not their intent.

The Catholic Church has officially stated: We oppose anti-Semitism in any way and form, including anti-Zionism that has become of late a manifestation of anti-Semitism.

This is a moment when Canterbury would do well to listen to Rome.

1302 Signatures

  • Sherman M
    • city, state, country
    • Scottsdale, AZ, USA
  • marian b. t
    • city, state, country
    • virginia beach, va. usa
  • Donald O
    • city, state, country
    • Quogue, New York, USA
  • William Firshein, P
    • city, state, country
    • Middletown, CT, USA
    • comments
    • Hypocrisy at its most heinous..NO boycott of China for Tibet, orSudan for genocide against Blacks
  • Miriam F
    • city, state, country
    • Jerusalem, Israel
  • Jeffrey N
    • city, state, country
    • Phila., PA, USA
  • labron k. s
    • city, state, country
    • Narberth, Pennsylvania, USA
  • elliott h
    • city, state, country
    • pARADISE vALLEY, AZ 85253
  • Frances S. G
    • city, state, country
    • Harrisburg, PA USA
    • comments
    • The Anglican Church is being discriminatory.
  • Melanie K
    • city, state, country
    • Newton, MA USA
  • Carol D
    • city, state, country
    • Framingham, MA - USA
  • James R
    • city, state, country
    • Boston, Massachusetts, USA
  • Cindy F
    • city, state, country
    • Las Vegas, NV, USA
    • congregation or parish
    • Temple Beth Sholom
    • comments
    • Shame on you to support antisemitic, terrorist propaganda!
  • Sybil S
    • city, state, country
    • Wingate, N. C. USA
    • congregation or parish
    • Follower of Jesus Christ
    • comments
    • I will support Israel until Jesus takes me home.
  • Jeffrey S
    • city, state, country
    • Brooklyn, NY USA
    • comments
    • Israel is a liberal democracy in a sea of dictatorships, all of which, including the Palestinian Authority, are its avowed enemies. She has not only the right, but the moral obligation to defend herself. Your "stance" is nothing but thinly veiled Jew-hatred. Shame on you.
  • Levana S
    • city, state, country
    • Toronto, Ont, Canada
    • comments
    • The Church should, in principal, not meddle in Politics. Especially when they are so misinformed. Before you take such an aggressive action against a small beleageurred nation, try to learn first about the real facts, and look perhaps, if you must, for constructive ways to help rathr than hurt.
  • Esther S. B
    • city, state, country
    • Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
    • comments
    • If the church is worried about companies doing harm to people, why single out companies doing business with Israel. How about the companies doing business with terrorist countries and countries that have no religious or political freedom and where women have no rights and in fact are abused and killed for so-called dishonoring their families like Iran, Syria, and all Arab and Muslim countries, countries in Africa, Southeast Asia. If the church is really interested in human rights etc. they better divest themselves of any and all companies doing business in every country in the world. It is time to stop anti-Semitism in the guise of human rights.
  • Dora S
    • city, state, country
    • Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
  • John W
    • city, state, country
    • San Antonio TX - USA
    • congregation or parish
    • St. Mark's, Episcopal
    • comments
    • We should condemn Saudi Arabia for murdering Christians, not Israel for defending itself.
  • George F
    • city, state, country
    • West Newton, MA, USA
    • comments
    • The Anglican Church should side with the victims of terror, not the perpetrators.
  • B. D
    • city, state, country
    • Haverford, PA, USA
    • comments
    • Here we go again! Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
  • Deborah G. S
    • city, state, country
    • Newton, MA, USA
  • herbert j
    • city, state, country
    • orchard lake, MI, United States
  • Adam H
    • city, state, country
    • Hoboken, New Jersey, United States
  • Bruce S
    • city, state, country
    • New York New York
    • comments
    • This Divestiture plan would displease Jesus!!
  • Philip F
    • city, state, country
    • Las Vegas Nevada
    • comments
    • These people do not know the history of the middle east. Plus they still hold the Jews responsible with the death of Christ.
  • Scott W
    • city, state, country
    • USA
  • Elizabeth
    • city, state, country
    • Tel Aviv Israel
    • comments
    • As usual Ant-semitism reigns.Islam does not pretend to hate the jews it actively does. One must not throw stones unless he is without sin. Remember those words
  • Mollie F
    • city, state, country
    • Teaneck NJ USA
  • Deborah H
    • city, state, country
    • Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA
  • Alan G
    • city, state, country
    • Bradenton, Florida, USA
    • congregation or parish
    • First Presbyterian Bradenton
  • Lawrence K
    • city, state, country
    • Water Mill, NY, USA
  • Bela G
    • city, state, country
    • Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, USA
    • comments
    • Stop your one-sided antisemitism
  • Jason K
    • city, state, country
    • Kingston, Ontario, K7M 3T5
    • congregation or parish
    • St. Thomas' Anglican
    • comments
    • The Church should stay out of politics.
  • EPHRAIM G
    • city, state, country
    • BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA,USA
  • Susan C
    • city, state, country
    • Sharon, MA USA
  • Monte F
    • city, state, country
    • East Hampton, NY 11937
    • comments
    • Please don't administer collective punishment to the people of Israel
  • Rafael R
    • city, state, country
    • Metuchen NJ USA
    • comments
    • What do you realy want to happen in this world?
  • Tzippy S
    • city, state, country
    • Hollywood,FL U.S.A
  • Joanna S
    • city, state, country
    • Ft. Worth, Tx, Tarrant
  • Morris J. B
    • city, state, country
    • Columbia, South Carolina, USA
  • David ben A
    • city, state, country
    • New York, NY, USA
  • lily r
    • city, state, country
    • hollywood, florida USA
  • Jeanne T
    • city, state, country
    • Brookline, MA USA
  • Michael H
    • city, state, country
    • GO TO..
    • congregation or parish
    • http://www.
    • comments
    • whatreallyhappened.com/forget.html
  • gale m
    • city, state, country
    • la. ca
  • Maury G
    • city, state, country
    • READ....
    • congregation or parish
    • http://www.
    • comments
    • nowarforisrael.com
  • eve t
    • city, state, country
    • ny
  • Collin H
    • city, state, country
    • See...zionism...
    • congregation or parish
    • AT...
    • comments
    • http://www.rense.com
  • mike t
    • city, state, country
    • s.d.