Council Repudiates Background Language of Middle East Proposals

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The United Church’s General Council has repudiated the written background material attached to three proposals before the Council on the conflict between Israel and Palestine.

Meeting in one of three commissions that are handling a portion of the Council’s business, commissioners passed a motion declaring that the 40th General Council “repudiates and regrets language used in the background provided” for the proposals, which is “provocative, unbalanced, and hurtful.”

The background material had drawn a small firestorm of criticism and media attention that focused more on comments in the material than the actual proposals.

An official guest of the General Council, Rabbi Reuven Bulka from Ottawa, told the Council, “Shelve all of it!” saying they were proposals “born out of hateful comments.”

Said Bulka, who is past co-president of the Canadian Jewish Congress, “We were hurt by the blatant and obvious antisemitism in the background materials…. It’s basic lunacy to call it [Israel] an apartheid state.”

In making the motion, the Rev. Doug Varey, overseas ministry personnel serving in Zambia, said the background material was “upsetting,” like it came from a “soapbox.”

The commission spent two hours in reflection, discussion, and debate on the complex issue.

No further decisions on the proposals had been made when the commission broke for supper. It will return to debate the issue on August 13.