Arab and Jewish Christians in Israel pray together

Date: Fri, 13 Oct 2000

Arab and Jewish Christians in Israel are praying together as violence in

the Holy Land threatens to destroy peace efforts. A Palestinian Christian

and an American-born Messianic Jew, both living in Jerusalem, spoke to

Religion Today about the situation.

Christians from Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria met with

Messianic Jews and other Christians from Israel and around the world in

Jerusalem Oct. 1-10. About 1,200 Christians from 150 nations came to pray

and tell what God is doing in their countries. Violence broke out three

days before the convocation began. "As fighting escalated, convocation

leaders set aside their prepared program to worship God and pray,"

messianic leader Barry Segal said. "Because of the heavy spiritual tension

and the violence, we took one night to just praise God and dispel the

darkness." Arab and Christian leaders discussed their differences. "There

was a time for Arabs to share and for Jews to share," Segal said. At the

end he and a Palestinian pastor read from Romans 8:35: "Who shall separate

us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or

famine or nakedness or danger or sword?" The evening "was a tremendous move

forward in terms of reconciliation and prayer for each other - to see the

fulfillment of God's purposes for both communities," Segal said.

Meanwhile, in the Sinai desert, Palestinian, Jewish, and Western Christians

were praising God together at a celebration held by a Palestinian ministry.

Twenty-two supporters of Musalaha, a ministry of reconciliation between

Jewish and Arab Christians, spent three days at Mount Sinai "singing and

listening to God - asking Him what He is calling us to do," Salim Munayer,

a Palestinian Christian, said. "We prayed for hours in the desert, asking

God for mercy. We knew the situation was bad but we continued on to show

that there is another way to deal with this," Munayer said. Musalaha

fosters reconciliation by inviting Arab and Jewish Christians to live and

work together in the desert for three weeks. During that time, Munayer and

others preach about the need for Christians to be reconciled to each other.

Palestinian and Jewish Christians in Israel are separated by politics and

theological disagreements, but their common faith binds them together,

Segal and Munayer said in separate interviews. Jewish and Arab Christians

may not agree on all issues relating to the land of Israel and the

Palestinian people, but they refuse to be divided, Munayer said.

Palestinian and Messianic Jewish congregations formed a "ring of prayer"

around Jerusalem, Segal said. Twelve ministries pray daily and worship God

in two-hour shifts to keep a 24-hour "prayer watch" over the city, he said.

There are about 5,000 Messianic Jews in 70 congregations and 3,000

"born-again" Palestinians in 40 churches in Israel and the West Bank

territories, he said.

Christians outside Israel should pray for the peace of Jerusalem, Segal

said. "Not necessarily a political peace, but the peace that passes all

understanding. Pray for the Prince of Peace to return." Christians should

not place blame or use prophecy to justify the violence, but instead should

pray for the protection of all people in Israel, Munayer said.

Source: Religion Today