Lutheran Responses to the Humanitarian Crisis in the Holy Land
It has been one month since Hamas’s deadly attack and Israel’s corresponding bombardment of the Gaza strip. As a humanitarian crisis unfolds in the region, several of our Lutheran organizations are mobilizing to help. Collected here are excerpts from around the Lutheran world, and at the bottom of the page is a list of ways YOU can help our brothers and sisters in Israel and Palestine.
ELCA World Hunger, October 31 — Reflections on the Israel-Hamas Conflict: Scarcity, Abundance, and Imagination
Dr Peter N. McLellan, with our friends at ELCA World Hunger, writes on the difficulty and necessity of serving our neighbors. Read the full article here.
“When, on the edge of exhaustion, it can be difficult to consider a Christian response, but Bishop Eaton has laid down a challenge to Lutherans: “God has called us to be a people who stand with others amid suffering.” From the Hunger Education desk, this notion boils down to two key words: scarcity and abundance. Indeed, confronted with death around the world we often turn to comfort in distractions. This is scarcity, the limitation of our own opportunity to seek justice for the other. But to see and read about 2 million people imprisoned and besieged in a warzone, while we as Western Christians have the ability to turn away? This is indeed a sign that we have the resources to participate in full, abundant life with and for our neighbors.
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To this end, Bishop Eaton’s challenge to Lutherans to hold “tension between two truths” highlights the actual need for those of us with the privilege of resources, voice, and time: “God has called us to be a people who stand with others amid suffering.” … Partisan back-and-forth, “both sides are to blame” narratives, and public vitriol benefit people in power, because these things require little material resources of us as citizens: we can protect our common good(s) while blaming the other. Complaint and blame demand little of us, as Christians, while advocacy and activism require use of our resources and focus. Retreating to traditional lines of difference and tired tropes can feel easy, like reciting a script, but doing so also prevents those with privilege from seeing and treating the needs of the marginalized, the thirsty, and the hungry.
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Rev. Dr. Raheb [president of Dar al-Kalima University of Arts and Culture in Bethlehem,] calls back to the faithful imagination necessary to break out of the U.S.’s current stance of “managing conflict” in Israel and Palestine through Israeli military aid,[2] to the imagination called for by faith “to have life and have it abundantly.”[3] The current stance that prizes national security over the abundant life demanded by Palestinians under occupation is the same one that makes it acceptable to cut of 2 million Gazans from food, water, and energy—while killing thousands of people in Gaza. Scarcity means rocket attacks, terrorist killings, airstrikes, ground invasions, and imprisonment.
“Security” and its accompanying violence are parts of a scarcity value system, while belonging, memory, love, and care can exist only with abundant, imaginative, faithful life. There is always room for home. Ancestors “can worship on this mountain” and “in Jerusalem” (John 4:19). We can give water from a well and “water from a spring gushing up to eternal life” (4:14). When world leaders tell us, “Security first!” our Christian response must always start with life, and life abundantly. ”
Lutheran World Federation, October 16 — A Catastrophe is Imminent: Inside Augusta Victoria Hospital in East Jerusalem
Lutheran World Federation (LWF) interviewed Dr. Fadi Atrash, CEO of Augusta Victoria Hospital in East Jerusalem, about the struggles the hospital is now facing. The hospital was established in 1948 to care for refugees after the 1948 War, and is owned and operated by LWF. Read the full interview here.
“ Dr Fadi, can you give us an update on the situation at the hospital?
We are in an emergency, and we do not know how things will develop. I have set up an emergency team in the hospital to coordinate our work. We have enough staff on board 24 hours a day, to guarantee the operation of the hospital and reduce the need for staff travel between the hospital and the West Bank villages where they live. Traveling between home and hospital is becoming increasingly risky these days because of the increasing settler violence in the West Bank.
Our mission is humanitarian, we are on the side of our patients and those affected by war and conflict.
Augusta Victorian Hospital on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem
Most of the cancer patients who are treated at AVH come from the West Bank and Gaza. How is the situation affecting them?
40 percent of our cancer patients come from Gaza. Since the start of the war last Saturday, 44 patients from Gaza were scheduled for chemotherapy and 28 for radiation. None of them got out. We have another 60 scheduled for chemotherapy and 20 for radiation this week, but they will not come.
We have 71 people from Gaza in the hospital right now, patients and their companions. They cannot return home. We have put them up in a nearby hotel or accommodated them in the hospital.
The West Bank patients also have great difficulty reaching the hospital, because of the closure between the West Bank cities and villages, and reports of violent clashes between settlers and the local population. People moving between the settlements are in danger of being shot at. On Thursday, we had radiation sessions scheduled for 140 patients from the West Bank, but only 40 of them could reach the hospital. If the treatment for cancer is interrupted, it will of course affect the prognosis negatively.
What are you doing at AVH?
We offer accommodation for patients who need it. We keep the patients for hemodialysis in the hospital, because they need a session every other day, and if they miss it, they will die. It’s a life-saving treatment. We are keeping almost all the children from the West Bank who receive hemodialysis in the hospital, to guarantee the continuity of their treatment, and the safety of them and their families.
Apart from these special measures, we continue operating as usual, treating cancer and kidney patients.
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In previous years, AVH has sent medical teams to Gaza to care for the wounded after air strikes. Is that possible?
No, it is not possible. This time is different. Yesterday morning I called a friend who works for UNOCHA [United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]. He is now in a United Nations shelter in Gaza, and told me: “There is no electricity, no water, and no humanitarian access, not even for blood transfusions. The hospitals are overwhelmed with injured and causalities. Lightly injured people die because there is no medicine, there are no blood products, or they cannot get to the hospital in time.”
We from Augusta Victoria Hospital together with the East Jerusalem Hospital Network appealed to the international community a couple days ago, warning that the situation is overwhelming for the hospitals in Gaza and a catastrophe is imminent.
People are very afraid in Gaza, their voices are not heard, they are worried about tomorrow and what will happen to them.
How does the situation affect the staff at AVH?
Three of our employees here in Jerusalem are from Gaza, they cannot go home. One of them lost two cousins after the destruction of their apartment. They are in a very difficult situation, they want to go back to their families, and we know no one can go in.
It affects them deeply, to see their relatives, their fellow Palestinians being killed in Gaza, and to know they are helpless. We cannot send anything to Gaza. What we are trying to do is increase the daily communication with our staff, trying to put them together so they can talk and support each other. We also have 7 staff inside Gaza.
What is your message?
Most importantly now is a ceasefire and to open a humanitarian corridor for injured and sick people to be treated and for supply, fuel, water and food to enter. Everyone here is against killing of civilians. There is no doubt about this, whatever your origin, your race, your religion, as a human being. The human response should be equal on both sides: Guarantee the safety of children, women and innocent people, in Israel and Palestine, and allow for humanitarian and medical aid to reach those who need it.”
Lutheran World Federation, November 2 — Bishop Azar: Keeping Hope Alive in the Holy Land
On Reformation Sunday, Bishop Sani Ibraham Azar preached on keeping hope alive amidst conflict and violence. The head of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Holy Land calls us, his fellow Lutherans, to service. Read the full article on the Bishop’s remarks here.
Bishop Dr Azar at Church of the Redeemer in Jerusalem on Reformation Sunday. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
“ “It is very hard to speak about hope here in Jerusalem,” says Bishop Sani Ibrahim Azar, leader of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land… “This year should have been a special event because we are marking the 125th anniversary of the Redeemer Church and we would normally have a reception after the service,” he says. “But all the plans were cancelled due to the war in Gaza where so many people are suffering and fighting for their lives.”
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While Reformation Day recalls the work of the 16th century reformers in Europe… today, he says, “reformation means looking after the needs of people and renewing their lives. The mission began with education and schools for girls, so we continue to take the lead in women’s rights and gender justice today – this is the beauty of reformation work.”
But the war in Gaza has brought life to a virtual standstill in Jerusalem, with people living in fear for themselves and their families. “The Christians in the Holy Land are all related or closely connected to each other, so each family here has members and friends in Gaza,” the Lutheran leader says. “I personally know friends who have lost family members and I know that many in our congregation lost relatives in the airstrike that hit the grounds of the Orthodox church compound.”
“As Christians and as human beings, we are against all violence, what is happening in Gaza and the Hamas attack. Nobody has the right to end the life of another. But the problem for the Palestinians did not start with the Hamas attack, it has been there since 1948.” Nowadays, he says, the biggest challenge is to accompany our church members, as many of them are asking, ‘When will it be our turn?’ “It is difficult to speak about hope in this context,” he adds.
It is important to make a distinction between Palestinians and Hamas, he insists. “As Palestinian Christians, we have been here for many years, not recognized, but calling for reconciliation. We are serving people’s needs and we are working for the future of the whole human family.”
“The priority right now is to end the war, to stop the killing of women and men, children and the elderly,” Bishop Azar emphasizes. “We hope that our Christian brothers and sisters elsewhere in the world are praying for us, praying for Christians in the Holy Land and for the rights of Palestinians to exist here.” ”
Lutheran World Federation — Crisis in the Holy Land
Last month, LWF began an ongoing campaign in support of those suffering in the Holy Land. in addition to the following statement, the page has updated statements, outlines of humanitarian aid, prayer resources, and more. Find it all here.
“ There is a rapidly developing humanitarian crisis in Gaza that needs urgent attention. The ongoing hostilities have created an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, with homes, schools, medical facilities, and critical infrastructure being extensively damaged or destroyed, and a large number of people, including children, being killed. The conflict has led to mass displacement of people within a very narrow area of land. There is shortage of water, electricity, fuel, and food as border crossing remains closed and only the Rafah crossing via Egypt is accessible for humanitarian aid . There are also reports of increased violence in the West Bank.
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LWF is part of the ACT Appeal PSE231, where support is requested to rehabilitate the diagnostic center, to distribute life-saving cancer medication in Gaza; to support patients, companions and staff from Gaza and the West Bank; and provide mental health and psychosocial support to patients, students and staff of the LWF Jerusalem Program. ”
How YOU Can Help Our Neighbors In Need
Our fellow Christians, and our other neighbors throughout the Holy Land are calling upon us to help them. Use this list of resources to take action!
Get Educated
Read the latest statement from LWF calling for a ceasefire and safe passage for civilians: Gaza Is On the Brink of Disaster
Read news from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land and statements on the conflict from Bishop Azar: ELCJHL News
Learn about LWF’s Jerusalem Program and how it addressing the medical needs of people in and around Jerusalem: LWF Jerusalem Program
Read Lutheran Disaster Response’s situation report on Gaza: Gaza Situation Report
Read Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton’s remarks on the conflict: Presiding Bishop's Statement on Israel-Hamas
Advocate
Join with us, and with Lutherans all over the world in advocating for a ceasefire. On Thursday, the House passed a military aid package for Israel, with no directive to find a road to peace. As we wait for the Senate to vote on the bill, use your voice to call for an end to the indiscriminate violence.
Find our action alert and sample letter here: ELCA Action Alert: Ceasefire
Join more than 2,500 Christians calling for ceasefire and sign on to Sojourner’s open letter to President Biden: Tell Biden to Call for Cease-Fire in Gaza
Donate
If you have the ability to donate, several Lutheran organizations are looking for donations to support immediate and long-term relief efforts.
Donate to the ELCJL— Support our sister church and Bishop Azar as they work to provide psychological care and safety to those in harms way. Designate your donation to “Work in the Middle East & Europe” and specify your designation to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and The Holy Land
Donate to LDR to Support the Augusta Victoria Hospital— The Augusta Victoria Hospital is calling for help securing supplies and providing accommodations for staff and patients that are now displaced. Lutheran Disaster Response is mobilized to help them for the long haul.
Donate to the LWF’s Jerusalem Project— In addition to running the Augusta Victoria Hospital, the Jerusalem Project does structural work to create a more stable society. This includes working for affordable housing in Jerusalem, facilitating medical & vocational training, providing scholarships, and distributing material aide to those in need. The Jerusalem Project’s work is sure to be needed long after the current crisis ends.
Support the Act Alliance’s Appeal PSE231 (pg 6)— The LWF and the ELCJH are both part of the ACT appeal, which seeks to rehabilitate medical facilities and telecom infrastructure, open roads, provide jobs, support psychosocial and mental health needs, find shelter, and offer direct cash assistance to displaced persons.
