Note: For those wanting to view the texts of the resolutions go here: https://www.vbinder.net/resolutions?house=hd&lang=en&v=524254 and plug in the resolution number in ‘Find by Resolution Number’ and hit ‘Search’.
B003 On the Status of Jerusalem: affirm Jerusalem as shared capital of State of Israel and future Palestinian State; support respect for civil rights & religious interests of Christians, Muslims & Jews, with free & secure access to holy sites. Passed.
B016 Adopt ELCA Action on Israel: join with Evangelical Lutheran Church of America by directing Committee on Corporate Social Responsibility (CCSR) to develop criteria for Israel/Palestine based on a human rights investment screen, together with past actions of General Convention and Executive Council; increase positive investment in Palestine; encourage CCSR to engage in shareholder advocacy re human rights in Israel & occupied territories. Passed.
Resolved, the House of Bishops concurring, That General Convention join with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America’s action, CA 16.06.31, “Justice for the Holy Land Through Responsible Investment,” and direct our Executive Council’s Committee on Corporate Social Responsibility to develop criteria for Israel and Palestine based on a human rights’ investment screen and the actions of General Convention and Executive Council over the past seventy years; and be it further
Resolved, That General Convention continue to encourage members, congregations, dioceses, and institutions of the Episcopal Church to increase positive investment in Palestine and other under-resourced areas where human rights abuses materially impact the well-being of all people; and be it further
Resolved, That General Convention continue to encourage CCSR to engage in shareholder advocacy in support of human rights in Israel and the Occupied Territories, exercising the right of a shareholder to submit resolutions at a corporation’s annual meeting.
B021 Support Aid to Palestinian Refugees: reinstate full US funding for UNRWA to the 5 million Palestinian refugees in Gaza and camps around the Middle East, and lift funding freeze on USAID programs which aid Palestinians. Passed
C017 A Just Peace in the Holy Land: direct CCSR to identify companies that profit from or support Occupation, developing a No Buy List; direct Investment Committee to divest from listed companies and advise Pension Group on divestment. No further action [some provisions covered in B016 or D019].
C035 Due Process For Palestinian Children in Israeli Military Courts: No further action [see C038].
C038: Safeguard the Rights of Palestinian Children: Seek assurances from Israel and PA leaders that existing policies provide all rights & protections for children under18, adhering to Article 37 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Passed
D018 Negotiating the Israeli Palestinian Conflict: recognize the right of Israelis & Palestinians to self-determination, full human & civil rights, with commitment to a negotiated settlement by both parties, in whatever agreed upon political form that may take. Passed
D019 Ending Church Complicity in the Occupation: oppose Israel's Occupation of West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, areas recognized by the U.N. as State of Palestine; Executive Council, working with CCSR, to develop a church investment screen based on human rights social criteria. Passed the House of Deputies 619-214, rejected by House of bishops 48 yes, 78 no.
D027 Pursuing Justice in Gaza: reinstate full U.S. funding for UNRWA to the 5 million Palestinian refugees in Gaza and camps around Middle East; condemn use of live fire by IDF against unarmed civilians in Gaza and urge compliance with Leahy Amendment re U.S. military aid to Israel. Passed
D028 Freedom of Speech and the Right to Boycott: reject legislation at federal & state levels that penalizes companies & organizations for participation in nonviolent boycotts on behalf of Palestinian human rights; affirm that anti-Boycott laws infringe on 1st Amendment rights of U.S. citizens. Rejected in the House of Deputies
D038 Civil Rights and Equality for All in Israel: condemn 50 discriminatory Israeli laws for Palestinians & ethnic minority citizens, restricting access to land, housing, education & political rights, with parallels to Jim Crow laws; Israel to embrace equal rights for all citizens, since democracy and a Jewish state are incompatible; suspend U.S. military aid to Israel until there is full compliance with Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Passed in the House of Deputies 433-377, rejected by House of Bishops.
D039 Regarding Occupation and Apartheid: condemn Israeli laws/policies that have created a state of apartheid; condemn system of military justice in occupied territories; demand that Israel cease denial of travel to Palestinians & human rights activists; TEC to study the state of apartheid in relation to our Baptismal Covenant. Passed in the House of Deputies and rejected by the House of Bishops.
D041 Protecting Jerusalem: condemn the unilateral action of U.S. in moving its embassy to Jerusalem in violation of international law & consensus; affirm Jerusalem as a universal holy city with no group privilege and protected access to holy sites; request a Pastoral Letter on significance of status of Jerusalem. No further action [see B003].
D044 Tools for Effective Shareholder Engagement on Human Rights: affirm the criteria for evaluating church investment and expenditures, especially with respect to Palestine/Israel, to inform shareholder engagement and, when warranted, divestment: Salience, Significance, Responsiveness. No further action [see B016 and D019].
It's worth noting, in terms of followup work to do, that Res. B003 on Jerusalem, which passed both houses with virtually no opposition, urges the House of Bishops to issue a pastoral letter on Jerusalem's prophetic character as the Holy City of Peace (a feature that was adopted from EPF's Res. D041). Such letters are quite rare and go to every Episcopal church and institution as matters that need to be seriously considered. The resolution (and also the Explanation) makes clear TEC opposes Israel's policy on Jerusalem and the current U.S. administration's support of that. So, the pastoral letter will have to speak to the political settlement that is unacceptable for Jerusalem, with enormous implications for the entire conflict area. It will do so by drawing on the spiritual history and meaning of Jerusalem as the City of God's Peace, where God's Peace must have an earthly home among the people of the city. This goes to the deepest heart of our faith, what we believe the "Jesus Movement " means in this world.
And it will enrage many Zionists. From the moment that they took East Jerusalem in June 1967, Israel's leaders, secular as much as religious, have shown a fierce, implacable, unmistakable determination never, ever to give it back or share it. We can easily underestimate the intensity and centrality of that determination, since Israel has been careful to play their cards patiently and subtly as they bit by bit, year by year, diminish the presence of Palestinian Muslims and Christians under cover of "security concerns." They know their claim is weak as a matter of international law and opinion and that the people of Jerusalem, the region, and all Muslims in particular will never, ever accept it. Christians also are disturbed, but having secular governments and perhaps harboring a misplaced desire not to seem religiously selfish or power-oriented they have rarely asserted the unacceptability of exclusive Israeli sovereignty. This is one reason why Trump could just take action to move the embassy, feeling it's merely Muslims who would be truly opposed.
So, the pastoral letter will speak with clarity, conviction and authority against the right of Israel to ever assert sovereignty. It will speak based on the requirements of peace as a spiritual thing and as an earthly human thing in that place. It won't speak from its own interest as part of the ancient, complex tapestry of wondrous Jerusalem, but in behalf of the good of all the members of the community, Muslim and Jewish and other, just as much as Christian, because that's what God's Peace is about!
We EPF faithful (and friends) need to ensure that the pastoral letter actually emerges from the House of Bishops. Bishop Barry Beisner, who presumably will take a leading role, says it could get sidelined by seemingly more pressing matters. Also, it will take some work to produce a text worthy of the subject that gains the bishops' approval. That process, btw, offers a golden opportunity to educate and motivate the bishops on how Jerusalem fits into the bigger picture and vice versa. Promulgation of the letter offers a huge opportunity to educate and motivate everyone else in TEC. Beyond that, there are juicy potentials to connect with other denominations, with Muslims, with Jews of conscience, with the global Anglican Communion (in the run up to Lambeth 2020).