The Methodist Conference had its good and less good moments.
The highlight was of course the visit of Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis to our fringe event. It was the first time that a Chief Rabbi had visited a Methodist Conference. We were deeply honoured that he accepted our invitation despite his extremely demanding schedule. Forty people attended the evening; many more would have done so but for the fact that it was the last evening of Conference when most Districts hold their celebratory meals.
The Chief Rabbi’s theme ‘Knowing the Facts before Taking a Stand’ was very apt in that the day before Conference had chosen to not vote on a notice of motion that had sought to direct the church to distribute one of the most deplorable papers on Israel Palestine imaginable.
You can read the text of the ‘open letter’ here:
http://www.jai-pal.org/images/publications/NCCOP_Letter_to_WCC_June2017.pdf
In my speech to Conference challenging the notice of motion I pointed out that the letter denied the right of Israel to exist and therefore contravened both the International Definition of Antisemitism and the Methodist Church statement on antisemitism (Any belief, policy or action that discriminates against or incites hatred towards Jewish people, either by race or religion, or caricatures Jewish people and culture. This can include denying the right of Israel to exist, or to judge it by standards not applied to other nations.)
I also went on to highlight the fact that the letter denied Jewish understanding of the covenant, debunked the prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures, called upon Christians to withdraw from dialogue with Jews, requested that Churches legally challenge ‘Christian organisations’ that disagree with the authors and urged a boycott that the Methodist Church had resisted after a painful year-long consultation that cost the church around £100k.
Thankfully the notice of motion was not put to a vote.
The Director of the Council of Christians and Jews Elizabeth Harris-Sawczenko commented on the open letter and the debate:
http://www.ccj.org.uk/ccj-director-comments-on-withdrawal-of-open-letter-on-israelpalestine-at-methodist-conference/
Regrettably we were not able to win a notice of motion that sought to offer a balanced and historically accurate response to the four memorials that came to Conference condemning the Balfour Declaration of 1917. The memorials claimed that Israel is an apartheid state. Some people also seem to think that all the ills of the region are to be blamed on the desire of a Christian man (Balfour) who sought to create a safe enclave for persecuted indigenous Jews and those fleeing persecution across Europe. The rise of Arab nationalism, strident hatred of Jews in the region and Islamist terrorism never seem to feature in the mind-set of many.
And you can read the Board of Deputies Vice President blogging on Balfour here (it also contains a paragraph on the open letter):
https://www.bod.org.uk/blog-reject-bigotry-and-invest-in-peace/
There is more on my blog and I will add to it later.
You can watch the two debates via the following, it begins 20 minutes in.
http://www.methodist.org.uk/conference/conference-2017/birmingham-2017/2017-06-27/0915-am/memorials-and-notice-of-motion-104
As a consequence of our higher profile and the evening with the Chief Rabbi I am delighted to say that a considerable number of new friends have joined us. Welcome.
I also want to record my sincere appreciation to Catherine Dixon for doing so much to ensure that the visit of the Chief Rabbi went so smoothly. And of course to Catherine and Ann Lett for speaking so brilliantly in the Balfour notice of motion debate.
Lastly I want to thank you for your prayers and ongoing support. I do believe that we are gaining ground in raising a more sophisticated awareness on the issues that matter so much to us.
Every blessing
Bruce
The highlight was of course the visit of Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis to our fringe event. It was the first time that a Chief Rabbi had visited a Methodist Conference. We were deeply honoured that he accepted our invitation despite his extremely demanding schedule. Forty people attended the evening; many more would have done so but for the fact that it was the last evening of Conference when most Districts hold their celebratory meals.
The Chief Rabbi’s theme ‘Knowing the Facts before Taking a Stand’ was very apt in that the day before Conference had chosen to not vote on a notice of motion that had sought to direct the church to distribute one of the most deplorable papers on Israel Palestine imaginable.
You can read the text of the ‘open letter’ here:
http://www.jai-pal.org/images/publications/NCCOP_Letter_to_WCC_June2017.pdf
In my speech to Conference challenging the notice of motion I pointed out that the letter denied the right of Israel to exist and therefore contravened both the International Definition of Antisemitism and the Methodist Church statement on antisemitism (Any belief, policy or action that discriminates against or incites hatred towards Jewish people, either by race or religion, or caricatures Jewish people and culture. This can include denying the right of Israel to exist, or to judge it by standards not applied to other nations.)
I also went on to highlight the fact that the letter denied Jewish understanding of the covenant, debunked the prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures, called upon Christians to withdraw from dialogue with Jews, requested that Churches legally challenge ‘Christian organisations’ that disagree with the authors and urged a boycott that the Methodist Church had resisted after a painful year-long consultation that cost the church around £100k.
Thankfully the notice of motion was not put to a vote.
The Director of the Council of Christians and Jews Elizabeth Harris-Sawczenko commented on the open letter and the debate:
http://www.ccj.org.uk/ccj-director-comments-on-withdrawal-of-open-letter-on-israelpalestine-at-methodist-conference/
Regrettably we were not able to win a notice of motion that sought to offer a balanced and historically accurate response to the four memorials that came to Conference condemning the Balfour Declaration of 1917. The memorials claimed that Israel is an apartheid state. Some people also seem to think that all the ills of the region are to be blamed on the desire of a Christian man (Balfour) who sought to create a safe enclave for persecuted indigenous Jews and those fleeing persecution across Europe. The rise of Arab nationalism, strident hatred of Jews in the region and Islamist terrorism never seem to feature in the mind-set of many.
And you can read the Board of Deputies Vice President blogging on Balfour here (it also contains a paragraph on the open letter):
https://www.bod.org.uk/blog-reject-bigotry-and-invest-in-peace/
There is more on my blog and I will add to it later.
You can watch the two debates via the following, it begins 20 minutes in.
http://www.methodist.org.uk/conference/conference-2017/birmingham-2017/2017-06-27/0915-am/memorials-and-notice-of-motion-104
As a consequence of our higher profile and the evening with the Chief Rabbi I am delighted to say that a considerable number of new friends have joined us. Welcome.
I also want to record my sincere appreciation to Catherine Dixon for doing so much to ensure that the visit of the Chief Rabbi went so smoothly. And of course to Catherine and Ann Lett for speaking so brilliantly in the Balfour notice of motion debate.
Lastly I want to thank you for your prayers and ongoing support. I do believe that we are gaining ground in raising a more sophisticated awareness on the issues that matter so much to us.
Every blessing
Bruce