Church delegation offers Mideast peace investment plan

Seeking to head off a divestment movement that is gathering steam in mainline Protestant denominations, the Massachusetts delegation to a United Church of Christ synod that began yesterday is proposing that instead of pulling money out of Israel, Christians should invest in peace organizations.

The effort within the United Church of Christ, the largest Protestant denomination in Massachusetts, begins three weeks after the Massachusetts Conference of the United Methodist Church voted to divest from companies that support the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip and a year after the divestment movement was energized by a decision by the Presbyterian Church (USA) to begin selectively divesting from countries doing business in Israel.

The issue has become a source of tension in Jewish-Christian relations, as Protestant denominations seek to find ways to express their unhappiness with the Israeli government's treatment of Palestinians.

The Jewish community argues that the Christian denominations are taking a one-sided view of a complex conflict, and in Boston, leaders of the Jewish community have made combatting divestment by mainline Protestant denominations a top priority.

The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston has begun urging rabbis throughout the state to meet with local Protestant clergy to discuss the Middle East. Also, the leaders of several Jewish groups met recently with United Church of Christ synod delegates to explain their concerns about divestment.

The United Church of Christ, at a biennial synod in Atlanta this weekend, is expected to consider a resolution calling for selective divestment from companies involved with Israel's occupation, security fence construction, and settlements, as well as an alternate resolution calling for a study of divestment.

A group of Massachusetts delegates, supported by some from Connecticut and Maine, will try to persuade the synod to endorse a ''selective investment" strategy in organizations pushing for cooperation between Palestinians and Israelis, according to the Rev. Stephen L. Sterner, interim president of the Massachusetts conference of the United Church of Christ.

''We are uncomfortable with the language of divestment, because there's the possibility that it tends to place uneven responsibility on Israel for the conflict itself, and that's a problem, especially in a year like this when there's been so much movement toward resolution," said the Rev. John A. Nelson, senior pastor of Dover Church and a Massachusetts delegate to the synod.

The Massachusetts delegates face an uphill battle, because they have not already submitted their proposal as a resolution. But they are hoping the denomination will consider the proposal; they point to an e-mail from a group of leading Presbyterians expressing regret about that denomination's decision last year to pursue divestment and urging the United Church of Christ delegates not to support divestment.

''The Presbyterian resolution was attention-getting, but ultimately it was a symbolic effort that may have been more destructive in terms of Jewish-Christian relations and not particularly constructive in terms of alleviating the Palestinian plight," said the Rev. Nancy S. Taylor, senior minister of Old South Church, a United Church of Christ congregation in Copley Square.

''Those of us who are trying to suggest selective investment are acutely aware of the pain and the plight of the Palestinians; we just think there's a different solution to the same problem," she said.

Although the controversy over divestment is nationwide, in Massachusetts it has been colored by the intensified relationship between Jewish and Christian leaders since 2001, when three Episcopal bishops caused a stir by joining a pro-Palestinian protest in front of the Israeli consulate in Boston. Since that controversy, Jewish and Christian leaders have been meeting regularly and talking more candidly about their longstanding differences over the Middle East.

The Presbyterian Church (USA) is the only denomination that has voted to support divestment, but all of the major mainline denominations, including the United Church of Christ, the United Methodist Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the Episcopal Church USA, are discussing whether to use the money in their pension funds and endowments to exert pressure for peace in the Middle East. The divestment effort is being promoted by a Jerusalem-based Christian organization, Sabeel, which is holding an international conference on divestment in Canada this fall.

''So many things have been tried, and so many things have failed, so maybe economic leverage might help," said the Rev. Linda Miller-Pretz, the associate minister of the Western Pennsylvania conference of the United Church of Christ. Delegates from that region are sponsoring the divestment resolution, but Miller-Pretz said that, after meeting with the Pittsburgh Jewish community, the Pennsylvania delegates now intend to add an option for selective investment to their proposal.

''There are companies that are funding the things that make for war in both Israel and Palestine, but certainly on the other end is a need to invest in companies that strengthen Palestinian business and joint Palestinian-Israeli economic ventures, and efforts to rebuild Palestinian infrastructure."

In the United Methodist Church, the New England conference briefly debated the issue before adopting a resolution to urge the divestment of funds from companies that support the Israeli occupation of Palestinian Territories.

''The United Methodist Church should not profit from the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestinian land or the destruction of Palestinian homes, orchards, and lives," the resolution said.

About 85 percent of those present supported the regional United Methodist Church resolution, according to a denominational spokesman, the Rev. Mike Hickcox.

The Jewish community has been surprised by the surge of interest in divestment in Protestant denominations and has made combating the move a top priority.

''It is an effort to isolate Israel and make it a pariah state," said Alan S. Ronkin, deputy director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston. ''This isn't about the finances, but about singling Israel out, and we can't stand for it."

Michael Paulson can be reached at mpaulson@globe.com.