c. 2000 Religion News Service

Jerusalem’s Catholic Patriarch Criticizes Israel

JERUSALEM (RNS) In his most explicit political statement to date, Jerusalem’s Latin (Catholic) Patriarch Michel Sabbah said Tuesday (Dec. 19) that Israel must end its occupation of the West Bank and grant Palestinians independence in order for regional peace to be achieved. Sabbah also suggested that Jerusalem should be apportioned to Israelis and Palestinians along the lines of the city’s pre-1967 division, in which the Old City’s Muslim, Christian and Jewish holy sites were under Arab control. “Justice to the Palestinians and justice to the Israelis, which means what is Palestinian now, what was Palestinian in Jerusalem, should go back to the Palestinians, and what was Israeli, what is Israeli, should go back to the Israelis,” Sabbah said at his annual pre-Christmas press conference. In a written Christmas message, Sabbah, the highest Catholic Church authority in the region, said church celebrations in the Holy Land this year would be focused on one single aspiration _ Palestinian independence. “In this feast, we have one main wish, that the Palestinian freedom be born. Indeed, when it will be born, it will be an agent of tranquillity, stability and salvation for us, for the region and for the world,” said the Catholic patriarch, who represents the second-largest Christian community in the region, after the Greek Orthodox Church. “The Palestinian people are asking for their freedom,” Sabbah said. “This is the core of the problem. Palestinians have been under Israeli military occupation … 33 years, and they say, `Give us back our freedom.’ If we want peace to come back to the Holy Land and to the whole region, this appeal must be listened to.” Sabbah also mourned the fact that Bethlehem will most likely spend this Christmas under an Israeli military closure, which has reduced the city’s residents to poverty and the stream of tourists and pilgrims to a trickle. “Bethlehem is under siege and experiencing famine,” said Sabbah. “Its residents cannot leave it, nor can the visitors enter it. We appeal to the political leaders to lift this siege on the occasion of the feasts of Ramadan and Christmas as they occur in the same period of time.” But given the dearth of tourists, Sabbah appealed to Palestinian Christians to make a renewed effort to attend religious Christmas celebrations at Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity, in which foreign pilgrims and guests often have a more visible presence than local Christians. “Pilgrims this year will not share with us the midnight Mass. Come yourselves to pray,” Sabbah urged. “The churches of the world have expressed their sympathy and solidarity with us and with you all, and will accompany us with their prayers. In Bethlehem, the Savior has been born. From Bethlehem, from amidst our sufferings and prayers, we ask God Almighty for the salvation of the whole world.” _ Elaine Ruth Fletcher Catholic Charities Sees Increase in Need During Economic Boom (RNS) Despite a strong national economy, Catholic Charities USA reports that its agencies saw a 22 percent increase in use of their emergency services in 1999. The agencies of the social service organization helped close to 6 million people with food, cash, clothing and shelter that year. There was a 32 percent increase in emergency food assistance, based on a survey released Tuesday (Dec. 19) by Catholic Charities USA. “Cash assistance, utilities, clothing, medicine and temporary shelter _ together with growth in food programs _ constitute deadly signs of poverty’s persistence in the midst of economic prosperity,” said the Rev. Fred Kammer, president of Catholic Charities USA. “The most important implication of these trends is not about hunger; it’s about persistent poverty and the inadequacy of incomes in millions of U.S. families.” Among other findings from the survey are: _ A total of 9.5 million needy people were served by Catholic Charities agencies, an increase of 11 percent. _ Emergency cash assistance rose by 29 percent to $80.8 million. _ The number of people who received utility assistance from Catholic Charities agencies increased 15 percent. Sharon Daly, vice president for social policy of Catholic Charities USA, said governmental assistance is needed to address the needs highlighted by the survey’s results. “Government’s response to this problem should not be more soup kitchens or food pantries, but to address the reasons behind the recurrent emergencies: a shortage of affordable housing, especially for families with children; lack of affordable, reliable, quality child care; and the low wages and lack of benefits for so many parents,” she said. _ Adelle M. Banks U.N. Secretary General Lends Support to Anti-Death Penalty Campaign (RNS) The anti-death penalty campaign received a major boost Monday (Dec. 18) when United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan lent his support to a massive petition aimed at banning capital punishment around the globe. An international coalition presented Annan with 3.2 million signatures, led by Amnesty International and Sister Helen Prejean, author of the book “Dead Man Walking.” Prejean said the death penalty “does not serve us (the United States) as a country” and said eroding support for the death penalty shows that a “moral threshold has been crossed.” U.S. religious leaders on the state and national levels have lobbied President Clinton to impose a national moratorium on federal executions before he leaves office in January. Both Clinton and Attorney General Janet Reno have been cool to the idea, but Clinton did postpone the first scheduled federal execution since 1963, leaving the decision to President-elect George W. Bush, who has overseen 150 executions as governor of Texas. Backers of the petition said support is growing around the world to put an end to capital punishment; since 1970, the number of countries without capital punishment has grown from 30 to 110, according to the Associated Press. Petitioners asked the United Nations to pass a resolution supporting a halt in executions, a move they hope will eventually lead to a global ban. Annan said the group has his support. “Can the state, which represents the whole of society and has the duty of protecting society, fulfill that duty by lowering itself to the level of murderer, and treating him as he treated others?” Annan said, according to news reports. _ Kevin Eckstrom Billy Graham to Hold 2001 Crusades in Kentucky, California (RNS) Evangelist Billy Graham, who spent much of the summer in the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., has decided to hold two crusades next year _ in Louisville, Ky., and Fresno, Calif. Graham’s spokesman A. Larry Ross said the 82-year-old preacher had deferred making future crusade commitments until after his Jacksonville, Fla., crusade in November. Prior to that crusade, he spent 13 weeks at the clinic, during which time he was treated for a buildup of fluid on the brain known as normal pressure hydrocephalus. “The results of the procedures he had this summer were evident by the strength and the energy of his preaching, which was similar to what he had five, 10 years ago,” said Ross. “As a result of that, he committed to do at least two crusades next year, the first of which will be in Louisville.” Graham’s Greater Louisville Crusade will be held June 21-24 at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium. Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, is chairman of the crusade’s executive committee. Later in the year, Graham plans to head west and lead a crusade in Fresno Oct. 11-14. Graham returned to the Mayo Clinic in early December and has undergone a surgical procedure to adjust the shunt that is relieving the buildup of fluid on his brain. The evangelist is expected to be released shortly, after undergoing tests and physical therapy. “He’s looking forward to being home in time for Christmas,” Ross said. Graham’s spokesman said organizers of the evangelist’s crusades are not scheduling the events as far ahead as they used to due to factors such as Graham’s health. “He has long said that he has no plans to retire and will continue to preach crusades as long as he has the strength,” Ross said. _ Adelle M. Banks Religion Reporters Name Top 10 Religion Stories of 2000 (RNS) Religion reporters at the nation’s newspapers have named the selection of Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joseph Lieberman _ an Orthodox Jew _ as the top religion story of 2000. The poll, conducted by Religion Newswriters Association, surveyed reporters who cover religion in the secular press. Ballots were mailed earlier this month, and 37 active members submitted their votes. Lieberman’s run for vice president as the first Jew on a major party ticket was significant in an election where both parties were wooing religious voters. For religious newsmaker of the year, reporters chose Pope John Paul II and his historic trip to the Middle East to pray at the Western Wall and mourn the Holocaust. One writer noted the ailing pontiff seems to still have “his hands in everything.” Lieberman came in as the number two newsmaker of 2000. Rounding out the top 10 news stories: _ The pope’s trip to the Middle East, which included meetings with Yasser Arafat and Holocaust survivors and an expression of sorrow for anti-Semitic violence by Christians. _ The eruption of violence in the Middle East in the fall, with the fragile peace process between Israelis and Palestinians crumbling. _ The fight over the role of gays and lesbians in the mainline Protestant churches, coupled with a decision by Reform rabbis to bless same-sex unions and a move by Vermont to allow benefits for same-sex couples. _ The decision by the Southern Baptist Convention to exclude women from the pulpit, a decision they said is “qualified by Scripture.” _ A controversial theological document issued by the Vatican that said only the Roman Catholic Church holds the “fullness of salvation” and that non-Catholic churches are “deficient.” _ The cracking of the shaky unity in the Southern Baptist Convention, with moves by individual state conventions to cut financial contributions to the national church, and former President Jimmy Carter cutting his ties to the church because of its “rigid” doctrines. _ The pope’s “mea culpa” on behalf of the sins of the church over the past 2,000 years. _ A historic agreement between Lutherans and Episcopalians that will allow both churches to swap clergy and share in common mission projects, particularly in urban and rural areas. _ The election of the Rev. Vashti McKenzie as a bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the first woman bishop in the predominantly black denomination. _ Kevin Eckstrom Quote of the Day: Dr. David Larson, president of the National Institute for Healthcare Research (RNS) “Can prayer heal? Probably not. And (it’s) difficult to prove. Is prayer associated with (relieving) illness? Yes. And that’s why we’re interested in prayer studies.” _ Dr. David Larson, president of the National Institute for Healthcare Research, a think tank in Rockville, Md. He was quoted in the Tuesday (Dec. 19) edition of The Washington Post. DEA END RNS