Donna R. Braband, ELCA Acting Director for Schools

When we think globally, we need to remember all of our brothers and sisters in Christ in our daily prayers. The needs of Lutheran churches around the globe differ in many ways from the needs of our churches in the United States and yet prayer is a common need for all people of the world.

We ask that you read carefully the updates that have been received from the Lutheran Church of Jordan (and Palestine)( ELCJ). Remember these members of the Body of Christ in your prayers and consider finding a way for your school or center to reach out to these schools and churches in another land. You can find information about programs related to the ELCJ at http://www.elca.org/dgm/resource/palesbro.pdf.

I have also been in e-mail contact with Viola Raheb, the Director for Schools of the ELCJ. She wrote in her last e-mail, “Please do think of us and uphold us in your prayers as I firmly believe in the power of prayer. We look forward to receiving letters from ELCA Schools through you. The letters will surely be a sign of encouragement for our students and staff.” If your school or center would like to send notes of support please route them through my e-mail at Dbraband@elca.org. I will forward them to Viola to be shared with the Lutheran Schools in Palestine when they are allowed to reopen.

We know in our own country the fear that our children felt after 9-11-01. We saw first hand how a life style can change overnight because of one day in our history. We also know that the trauma from the 9-11-01 tragedy will be with our children and our staffs for a long time to come. For the children of Palestine, this is a daily occurrence in their young lives. Please continue to remember the children and staffs of the Lutheran Schools of Palestine in your prayers each day.

The following are the updates from Bishop Dr. Munib A. Younan, Lutheran Bishop in Jerusalem of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jerusalem working in Palestine, Jordan and Israel regarding the situation of his church under occupation.

April 17, 2002

Dear Friends,

Grace and salaam in the name of our Savior Jesus, whose resurrection gives us the hope of new and abundant life even in the midst of heartbreaking crises.

At 11:45 am, Tuesday, April 16, 2002, Israel Defense Force (IDF) soldiers blasted their way into the Lutheran School of Hope in Ramallah. All of Ramallah was under curfew at that time but neighbors beside the school immediately notified Rev. Ramez Ansara of the invasion and kept him apprised of the sights and sounds as the invasion continued for over four hours. Many tanks arrived on the scene, according to neighbors, and there were sounds of shooting, explosions and pounding with sledgehammers coming from inside the school. The soldiers left at about 4:30 pm, with the pastor and church members unable to check the damage until the curfew is lifted for a few hours, perhaps in the next few days. Bishop Dr. Munib A. Younan placed countless phone calls to the Israeli government and military protesting the invasion, and also called foreign diplomats and partner churches, asking for intervention. Because the property cannot yet be inspected we cannot report the damage at this time. No one was in the school - no students, staff or guard - at the time of the invasion. Bishop Younan and Rev. Ansara emphasize there has never at any time been Palestinian gunmen in the school. Bishop Younan noted that the ELCJ school system has been built with sweat and blood over the past thirty-five years, and now we see much of it destroyed in just a few hours.

These four Palestinian towns close to the edges of Israeli-defined "Greater Jerusalem" continue to be military occupied by the IDF. Other towns have also been occupied and great damage and pain has been inflicted, especially in the refugee camps. Mr. Sharon has announced that the IDF will soon pull out of Nablus and Jenin, but that Ramallah and the Bethlehem area will continue under the re-occupation for the time being.

It is precisely in these Palestinian towns near Jerusalem that four of the six ELCJ congregations are located and do their ministry. But as the Apostle Paul described the church as the Body of Christ, that which happens to a foot or arm or major organ of the body also happens to the rest of the body. And so the congregations in the Old City of Jerusalem and in Amman, Jordan, as well as Bishop Younan and his staff are also strongly affected by the Israeli invasion and the resulting suffering, damage, pain and death.

On Sunday, April 14, from 1:00 - 4:30 pm the IDF broke into and used the church parsonage in Ramallah. Although the house is clearly marked as church property and Rev. Ramez Ansara had clearly posted his telephone number in case the soldiers wanted to enter, they simply smashed the front doors with explosives and made themselves at home. The parsonage is not occupied at the moment; Rev. Ansara is living nearby with his family while the parsonage is remodeled. The soldiers cut off the electrical supply to the house, ate food, made coffee and used the bathrooms, taking showers and using the toilets. They poured liquid coffee on the floors. They tore down the books from the pastor's study bookshelves and entered all cupboards and closets, using what they wanted. Rev. Ansara stated that three boxes of communion wine (totaling 18 bottles) were stolen by the soldiers.

We continue to be very concerned about the Christmas Lutheran Church and compound in Bethlehem. Rev. Mitri Raheb reports that sporadic attempts by small groups of soldiers to enter the church property are continuing. Mr. Charlie Haddad, principal of the Dar al-Kalima Lutheran School in Bethlehem reports that the IDF once again entered the school in this second incursion, damaging the beautiful, specially-designed metal front door. It is now riddled with bullet holes. Because the door was not fully opened, the soldiers entered the school through windows and then shot out the glass and aluminum window in front of the computer laboratory. Fortunately the computers were not damaged, due to their position within the lab. Mr. Haddad reports that less damage was done to the school this time. He was able to check twice during times the curfew was lifted. The inspection on Monday, April 15, showed no new activity.

When the military 24 hour curfew is in effect, people are not allowed to leave their homes. Anyone out on the streets is likely to be shot. Snipers are located at strategic points everywhere. Occasionally the curfew is lifted for a few hours so that people can go outdoors and do shopping and visit with neighbors. But these hours slip by quickly, especially when many stops must be made to get a minimum of food and medicine. The grocery store shelves were bare in Bethlehem, for instance, until truckloads of food arrived. People noticed immediately that all the food was Israeli made. Other humanitarian groups are trying their best to enter the Bethlehem areas with food and medicine, using back roads, and some of them are successful.

Life without work, church, school, interaction with neighbors, having to do without enough food and water and, in some cases, no electricity or telephone, is very depressing and discouraging. It drains the life out of people and families who must stay together behind doors and covered windows. In some cases people live alone and are isolated. Parents try to protect their children but it's very difficult when tanks and soldiers are right outside the door, shooting and bombing. Mr. Charlie Haddad described how he and his wife Rania handle the situation with their little daughters, ages 3 and 5. When the bombing and shooting first began they told the small children it was a game, it was firecrackers, etc. But as the days went on and the family could not go outdoors, they tried to explain to the girls in simple terms what was happening, that Palestinian people and Israeli people all wanted the same land, like right there in Bethlehem, for example, and sometimes people would fight about that. The girls could see pictures of the fighting on TV and had questions which their parents tried to answer simply and honestly. Charlie told how the children ducked down in the back seat of the car when the family was able to go out for food when the curfew was lifted. Why did they duck? Because an Israeli tank passed their car and was shooting in the air, even during the lifted curfew. The three-year-old girl began crying at the sound. Children everywhere are being traumatized by the re-occupation and its many effects.

Rev. Mitri Raheb has had another kind of experience which everyone dreads while under curfew. He has become ill with what seems to be pneumonia, requiring antibiotics and medical treatment. The bishop and the Red Cross were able to help Rev. Raheb, getting him to the Bethlehem hospital even under curfew, and medications were brought to him by a church friend from Jerusalem. Illness and injury go hand in hand with extended curfews, as do emotional fears and breakdowns. We continue to pray for all the people living under these curfews, helping whenever it is possible.

Donna Braband serves as ELCA Acting Director for Schools and may be reached at dbraband@elca.org.

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