| Level of Knowledge, Understanding |
Level of Interest | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimal | High | |
| Minimal | “The Basics” An introduction to Palestine/Israel. A good place to begin for a first meeting with someone new to the issue. • “10 Things Palestinians Can’t Do Because of the Israeli Occupation”, a photo essay • Steadfast Hope Study Guide 1 • Kairos Palestine Document 2 • EPF PIN Brochure • Encourage a visit to Go and See 3 • 6-minute video made by PIN delegation to Gaza April 2015 • Palestine in Pieces by Kathleen and Bill Christison and The Way To The Spring by Ben Ehrenreich are excellent introductory books, both available from Amazon.com • Videos. Many fine documentary and fiction videos are available. Among the best are Occupation of the American Mind; Creation and Catastrophe; Gaza Fights for Freedom; and The Stones Cry Out. Amazon.com and Vimeo.com are good resources • If the occasion is a first meeting with someone, try to obtain a commitment for a follow-up conversation. |
“Going Deeper” For someone who knows the basics but wants to know more. • Steadfast Hope Study Guide1 • Zionism Unsettled Study Guide5 • Why Palestine Matters Study Guide6 • Introduction to the BDS movement (boycott, divestment, sanctions) • Conquer and Divide Interactive study of Israeli settlements9 • Resources for children: - Another Story Heard - Teach Palestine Project • The Discriminatory Laws Database (65 Israeli laws that discriminate against Palestinian citizens of Israel) |
| High | “Why It’s Important” For someone who understands the situation well, but has not made it a priority • Letter from Rev. Dr. Naim Ateek, founder of Sabeel4 • Travel opportunities for a more in-depth experience; e.g., https://eyewitnesspalestine.org/ and http://www.fosna.org/ • Steadfast Hope Study Guide1 • Zionism Unsettled Study Guide5 • Why Palestine Matters Study Guide6 • Visualizing Palestine 101 • Movement for Black Lives Platform7 • Red Nation Platform8 • No Way to Treat a Child campaign opposes the abuse and detention of Palestinian children • UCC Curriculum on Israel’s detention of children, including video How Are the Children? |
“Time to Take Action” Steps to help someone become more involved and active • Create a diocesan, parish, or community study group or task force • Encountering opposition or charges of “antisemitism” • Jewish Voice for Peace statement in opposition to Zionism • Distinguishing between antisemitism and criticism of Israel • Episcopal General Convention 2018 resolutions on Palestine Search “2018, Palestine • ”Steadfast Hope Study Guide 1 • Zionism Unsettled Study Guide 5 • Why Palestine Matters Study Guide 6 |
This “toolkit” is meant to help users learn more for themselves and/or as resources to prepare for discussions with others about the situation in Palestine and Israel; for example, your priest, bishop, friends, or colleagues. There is an overwhelming amount of information available about Palestine and Israel and it may be tempting to give up before beginning, so we tried to make the information more manageable and accessible by limiting it to a few essentials. The resources are offered in various formats and organized to be versatile and adaptable to each user’s particular needs.
The resources are grouped into four sections, according to the level of interest, understanding, and previous involvement in the subject. These may apply to the user or to the user’s intended audience. Of course, every situation is unique and the user may pick and choose among the elements.
Here is a suggested guide to using the toolkit.
Think about the user’s level of knowledge or understanding: none or minimal; moderate but based primarily on mainstream media reporting, religion, or tradition; or extensive and well-read.
Think about the user’s level of interest or involvement in Palestine/Israel: none previously known; occasionally follows news reports; visited the region at least once; or previous advocacy and activism.
Based on the assessment from I. and II., choose one of the four sections to select the resources that will be most helpful:
The Basics. These resources provide basic background information and facts emphasizing the Palestinian perspective, which mainstream media usually ignore or misrepresent. These are the best resources to use when meeting for the first time with a priest or bishop whose ministry has not included attention to this issue.
Going Deeper. These resources are best used when there is some basic knowledge and understanding, but a desire to expand the knowledge base or explore lesser known aspects, such as Christian Zionism.
Why It’s Important. These resources are for someone who has studied the situation and read widely but has not yet been moved to any action or involvement. These will help encourage visiting the area and finding the connections between Palestine/Israel and important movements at home, for example, Black Lives Matter.
Time To Take Action. These are action-oriented items to encourage the user to “step out” and become more vocal in their church or community.
Items in bold can be viewed and downloaded from the links provided.
1 A 48-page congregational study guide with an accompanying DVD, published in 2011 by EPF/PIN, which tells the basic story of the Palestinian struggle for justice and an end to Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. It can be ordered for $2 here.
2 The “Moment of Truth” theological statement issued by Palestinian Christian heads of churches in December 2009. A powerful resource on Liberation Theology as envisioned by and for Palestinian Christians.
3 Two excellent introductory tours available are https://www.saintgeorgescollegejerusalem.com/ and https://www.iyadqumripilgrimages.com/.
4 The Rev. Dr. Naim Ateek, founder of Sabeel, has written several books on the situation of Palestinians and on Palestinian Liberation Theology. These include Justice and Only Justice (1989), A Palestinian Christian Cry for Reconciliation (2009), and A Palestinian Theology of Liberation (2017). All may be ordered from Amazon.com.
5 A 72-page study guide with an accompanying DVD, published in 2014 by the Israel/Palestine Mission Network (IPMN) of the Presbyterian Church (USA), which delves deeply into the subject of Zionism and its continuing consequences for Palestinians, from their ethnic cleansing in 1948 to their continued plight under Israel’s apartheid-like regime today. Because it is a deep study of the complex foundational principles that led to the creaton of Israel and the dispossession of the Palestinians, this study guide probably requires some previous exposure to the background and basic issues surrounding Palestine-Israel. The study guide is controversial and encountered strong opposition from the Jewish community when initially published. It was removed from the PC(USA) website but can be ordered from Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Zionism-Unsettled-congregational-study-guide/dp/1944377042/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1445896418&sr=8-1
6 A 110-page study guide with accompanying online supplementary educational resources (at https://whypalestinematters.org), published in 2018 by IPMN, which builds on the earlier study guides to place the Palestine issue in a broad international and intersectional context. A study guide appropriate for unaffiliated secular audiences, as well as congregations, this book not only describes the situation for Palestinians inside Israel and in the occupied territories, but also discusses broader issues such as the relevance and importance of international law in achieving a just peace with Israel, as well as the growing phenomenon of international solidarity and cooperation with the Palestinians by other oppressed peoples, including Blacks, Native Americans, Latinx, etc. The study guide can be ordered here [https://www.pcusastore.com] for $15. Price reduced on orders of 10 or more.
7 The Movement for Black Lives is a collective of more than 50 organizations representing thousands of Black people from across the country who have come together to articulate a common vision and agenda. The Platform includes a plank calling for ending US funding to Israeli military and complicity in the occupation.
8 The Red Nation is a Native American activist organization formed specifically to be in solidarity with Palestinians, because of the similarity between these two indigenous struggles. Red Nation’s platform, entitled The Liberation of Palestine Represents an Alternative Path for Native Nations, begins with the words, “Palestine is the moral barometer of Indigenous North America.”
9 An interactive collection of maps, produced by the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, showing “how military orders, various declarations and planning measures have served in concert to establish ever more Israeli settlements and infrastructure, promoting Israeli interests at the expense of Palestinians’ rights….The maps also demonstrate how dividing Palestinians from one another facilitates the implementation of ever-greater Israeli control and tyranny.”
