As war rages between Israel and Hamas, the Peacemakers in Action have issued a statement of lament and longing for a cessation of the devastating violence. Individual reflections from the Peacemakers can also be found here.
Please read their collective statement below. The full statement can also be downloaded here.
“With one voice, the Peacemakers in Action Network expresses its deep compassion and solidarity with the suffering peoples of Israel and Palestine. We grieve together as yet another generation of Palestinian and Israeli children lose their lives, their sense of security, and their hope for a better future.
Our hearts break again and again in this time of profound loss, pain, and trauma on all sides of this tragic conflict.
As religiously motivated Peacemakers:
We LAMENT the agonizing consequences of intense and protracted violence: the loss of human life on a massive scale, the loss of empathy and compassion as hearts are embittered, and the crippling of our imaginations;
We LAMENT the forces that drive this and other conflicts, as grief hardens into grievance and desires for vengeance, which then engender new conflict, suffering, and grief.
And as religiously motivated Peacemakers:
We PRAY for Israeli and Palestinian peacebuilders, that their efforts may open gateways to a better future beyond the current painful reality;
We YEARN for leaders who can foster the healing of broken hearts and the reconciliation of fractured and despairing communities, and who are wise and far-sighted enough to bolster mutual respect, acceptance, and trust;
We CRY OUT to people everywhere to affirm and celebrate our shared humanity and the right of every person to a life blessed by love, happiness, freedom, and dignity;
We LONG for the day when the violence will cease and negotiations will resume, so that historic wrongs can be acknowledged and addressed through the pursuit of inclusive justice, collective traumas can begin to heal, and both Palestinians and Israelis will know genuine security and wellbeing.
In all our faith traditions, every human life is considered sacred. Both Islam[1] and Judaism[2] teach that to save one life is to save a whole world and that to take one life is to destroy a whole world, while Christianity urges us to adopt mercy and forgiveness on the path to justice [3]. In this time of intense pain and polarization, we Peacemakers in Action stand together in lamentation, yearning, and hope.
“For there is always light,
If only we’re brave enough to see it.
If only we’re brave enough to be it.”[4]
Dr. Sarah AK Ahmed – Iraq/Canada
James Lual Atak – South Sudan
Abuna Elias Chacour – Israel/Palestine
Jose “Chencho” Alas – El Salvador
Azhar Hussain – Pakistan/USA
Dr. Ephraim Isaac – Ethiopia
Father. Sava Janjić – Kosovo
Dishani Jayaweera – Sri Lanka
Hind Aboud Kabawat – Syria
Dr. Yehezkel Landau – Israel/USA
Dr. William Lowrey – South Sudan/USA
Rev. Jacklevyn Manuputty – Indonesia
Friar Ivo Markovic – Bosnia & Herzegovina
Yeny Nolasco – El Salvador
Pastor James Movel Wuye – Nigeria
[1] Qur’an 5:32
[2] Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 37a
[3] Micah 6:8
[4] Amanda Gorman, The Hill We Climb, 2021
About the Peacemakers in Action Network
We are Tanenbaum’s Peacemakers in Action Network: Religiously motivated peace activists from armed conflicts across the world and recipients of the Peacemakers in Action Award. Spanning different religions, beliefs, and conflicts, we have experienced violence and reconciliation. We know the pain of loss, the destruction engendered by hatred, and the possibilities of peace.
The Peacemakers in Action Network is dedicated to conflict transformation and reconciliation. Our vision is to build a more peaceful, just, and sustainable world. As individuals who work to resolve armed conflict, we stand together and raise our collective voice to denounce developments that threaten peace and human security.