Thou Shall Not Kill in Palestine.
FOSNA and the Sabeel Center in Jerusalem find our core Christian values in the message of Jesus and
the Hebrew Prophets, particularly their call to “practice justice” (Micah 6:8): “What does the LORD require
of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God (NIV)” and ‘Lord, when did we
see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a
stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and
go to visit you?” (Matthew 25:37-39). We find Jesus among the people who are hungry, thirsty,
imprisoned, desperate, and facing massacres - such as the current crisis in the Gaza Strip. The churches
cannot stand idly as Gaza’s population faces continuing pogroms by the fourth most powerful military
force on the planet.
Suggested Church Actions:

Ask your church to lead a prayer for those who have died in Gaza - read the names of the children
who have been killed
o Children’s names can be found on FOSNA website http://fosna.org/flyers-and-posters

Ask your church’s leaders or your church’s social justice committee to make a statement in your
church newsletter, perhaps in support of the following denominational leadership statement
http://pressreleases.religionnews.com/2014/07/30/faith-groups-join-call-arms-embargo-israel/

Ask your church’s leaders or your church’s social justice committee to write an op-ed or take out an
ad in your local newspaper.
o Consider the wise counsel of this statement from former President Jimmy Carter and Mary
Robinson, former President of Ireland and former UN High Commissioner on Human Rights
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2014/08/04/how_to_fix_it_jimmy_carter_mary_robinso
n_israel_palestine_gaza_hamas

Ask your church to use the sign outside your church to make a statement in support of
Gaza/Palestine.

Urge your church library or adult education committee to begin a study of the conflict
o Contact FOSNA for copies of the Kairos Palestine document, “Steadfast Hope,” the new
volume “Zionism and the Quest for Justice in the Holy Land,” and the study guide “Zionism
Unsettled” www.fosna.org.

Ask your church to call on their regional and/or national judicatory to make a statement regarding a
just agreement to end the siege on Gaza and the occupation of Palestine.

Ask you local church to endorse the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement and divest
from all companies that profit from or contribute to the occupation of Palestine.
o Read about BDS Call and effective BDS actions: bdsmovement.net
http://www.bdsmovement.net/2014/effective-bds-actions-more-important-than-ever-tosupport-palestinians-in-gaza-and-hold-israel-to-account-12235
Talking points for approaching your church:

Israel’s savage campaign on Gaza is not a war but a campaign of politically motivated massacres
that Israel imposes every 2-3 years. Operation Protective Edge is the third Israeli offensive on the
Gaza strip in the past six years.

Over four weeks of attacks by air, sea, and land have left nearly 2,000 people in Gaza dead.
Around 80 percent of the people killed have been civilians. About one fourth of them have been
children. Over 9,000 have been injured. The assault, which included attacks on hospitals and UN
schools being used as civilian shelters, left over 9000 people injured and half a million people
displaced.

We recognize that the violence in the Holy Land is rooted in Israel’s occupation of Palestine; An
end to occupation is the only way to achieve any lasting peace, safety, and security, for the people
who live there.

We demand an immediate and permanent end to the violence to be monitored by independent,
international observers; The agreement must include an immediate end to Israel’s seven-year
siege of the Gaza Strip, allowing the free flow of food, medicine, medical equipment and personnel
into the territory.

We demand an immediate freeze on settlement expansion in the West Bank.

The U.S. must immediately freeze on all weapons and financial aid to the Israeli military. Any
future U.S. aid to Israel must be contingent upon Israeli compliance with US domestic and
international law that prohibits any aid or assistance to a State that is committing wrongful acts,
such as the targeting of civilians populations.
o www.thelancet.com/gaza-letter-2014

The U.S. Congress must call hearings to investigate Israel’s possible illegal use of U.S. weapons
under the US arms export control act 1977 during this July, 2014 military action.
o See the letter from international law professors in support of this concern:
http://richardfalk.wordpress.com/2014/07/28/joint-declaration-by-international-law-expertson-israels-gaza-offensive/