Taken from Antler River Council e-Newsletter May 31, 2024, written by Kathy Douglas, Faith Formation Minister with Antler River, Western Ontario Waterways and Horseshoe Falls Councils.
For more than 25 years I have witnessed friends and colleagues in the United Church of Canada who have travelled to Palestine, usually as Ecumenical Accompaniers (EAs) or with Come and See Programs, return from Palestine and Israel transformed. They do not return to Canada as anti-sematic. They return to Canada as prophets crying out for justice as they witness one highly militarized government consistently oppressing one group of people.
This oppression is not new but for many, like me, not obvious until now. As the world witnesses the invasion in Gaza, we cannot say we have not seen or heard the suffering. My eyes are now open and I must choose to stand with the oppressed and say NO to injustice, as we commit to working for a just peace for all people.
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The United Church has signed on to a new call for Canada to end all military sales to Israel, in light of very plausible concerns that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. On May 22 in Ottawa, Moderator Rt Rev Dr Carmen Lansdowne stated, “Canada can do better. We can avoid being complicit in genocide by imposing a comprehensive and binding embargo on military trade with Israel.”
International human rights law takes genocide very seriously, and those aiding and abetting genocide are also considered complicit. Military aid is considered one form of complicity, and there is great concern that Canada could be crossing this line.
link to e-Newsletter this originated from
https://mailchi.mp/united-church/arw-enewsletter-may312024