Dutch Kairos-declaration

The workgroup of Kairos Palestina Nederland urges all Dutch Christians  to sign this declaration:

“We, Palestinian Christians, cry out from within the suffering in our country.”

This cry for justice is how the Palestinian Kairos-document (December 2009) begins, a document which we in the Netherlands read as a letter from Palestinian Christians to us, as Christian individuals and churches in the Netherlands.

 We are touched by this cry of distress, which reflects the hopeless situation of the Palestinian people under Israeli occupation.

We are touched by the faith expressed in the document by Palestinian Christians. It is inspiring how this faith lays the foundation for their strength to persevere in their nonviolent resistance, their unyielding hope that international law will prevail, and their love that has but one purpose: peace and freedom for every individual, Israeli or Palestinian, Jew, Christian, Muslim or anyone else.

We are touched in our realization that we in the Dutch churches have paid too little attention in recent decades to the injustice that has affected Palestinians, an injustice that has been desperate: it has not only been a serious impediment to a decent life for Palestinians, but has also had a negative effect this has had on Israeli society as a whole.

We are convinced that international law is the only framework within which justice can be done for both Palestinians and Israelis, and it is the only basis for lasting peace.

We are convinced that our theology is urgently in need of reforming so as to find a way of doing theology where law and justice is central for every human being. Much of the theology in recent decades has been blind to the injustices that have been done to Palestinians. While we continue to uphold that Christian faith and Christian theology remain permanently rooted in Jewish Scripture and tradition, these Jewish sources have formed the basis for our becoming worldwide participants in a universal faith – participants in a way of living in which every human being is fundamentally equal before God and other people, irrespective of faith, gender, sexual orientation, colour or ethnic origin.

We are convinced that the Palestinian Kairos-document is cause for reflection for us in the Netherlands, and it calls on us to begin new paths and to choose a renewed theological vision which places a significant emphasis on justice for all people and nations. Our inspiration is the message of love that is held before us in the Kairos-document: "Through our love, we will overcome injustices and establish foundations for a new society both for us and for our opponents. Our future and their future are one."

We therefore urge all Dutch Christians and church leaders to accept the central message of the Kairos-document and to do whatever possible towards creating a just peace in Israel-Palestine.

We also call upon all Dutch citizens and politicians to commit to working towards a just peace in the Middle East, to accept the UN resolutions and to use all possible non-violent means to bring an end to decades of injustice.

This statement was prepared in the summer of 2011 by the Workgroup Kairos Palestine Netherlands.

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