The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: What Can Christians Do?
The morning began with a history of the struggle in the Middle East as Frank Wright, long time former foreign correspondent for the Minneapolis Star Tribune delivered a presentation, "How Did We Get to the Current Situation?" Wright highlighted four main issues: the debate over nationhood for the Palestinians, Israeli settlements across the Holy Land, the human rights struggle for Palestinian refugees, and the question of how Jerusalem specifically would be negotiated. Wright's discussion gave an overview of the US role in the conflict and he concluded that, "in the end if there is to be peace with real justice, there must be a two-state solution."
The conference presented two other perspectives, with Barbara Nordstrom-Loeb, co-chair of Minnesota Jews for a Just Peace (and wife of St. Olaf Professor Bruce Nordstrom), and Ziad Amra, a Palestinian-Academy attorney discussing the issue from their respective backgrounds along with possible solutions. Small group discussions ensued with a mixture of specialists, local congregation members, and students, exploring tactics for church education and involvement in peaceful resolutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict over the Holy Land. Also debated was the influence of the Christian Right in congregations across Minnesota as well as the dynamics that the possible war with Iraq could introduce into the US involvement in the Holy Land conflict. For more information on this conference, go to: www.luthersem.edu/lifelong_learning/peace_holy_land.html.
-Rachel Lyle '03
Frank Wright, Ziad Amra, and Barbara
Nordstrom-Loeb participate in a panel
discussion of differing courses of
action
Barbara Nordstrom-Loeb, co-chair of
Minnesotatens for a Just Peace
St. Olaf grad Rob Grace '02 discusses
the situation with a conference
attendee
Small groups form to discuss local
application of peaceful principles
St. Olaf student Candace Crockett '03
speaks with Frank Wright about his tone as
a foreign correspondent
