Hub religious voices call for Gaza cease-fire

A multifaith group of religious leaders from Boston, including Jews, Muslims, and Christians, issued a joint statement yesterday calling for a cease-fire in Gaza.

"We call upon Hamas immediately to end all rocket attacks on Israel, and upon Israel immediately to end its military campaign in Gaza," the statement said.

The Jewish signatories included several rabbis as well as the former presidents of Hebrew College, the Jewish Community Relations Council, and the Massachusetts Board of Rabbis, but were predominantly drawn from the liberal wing of the Jewish community and do not include the heads of the major umbrella Jewish community organizations, who have generally not been critical of Israel.

"It's easy for people to misunderstand our goal. They don't realize the careful wording, and think it's another attack on Israel, when the intention is to focus on what we can share and how we can build peaceful bridges together," said Rabbi Barbara Penzner, the former president of the board of rabbis and the spiritual leader of Temple Hillel B'nai Torah, a Reconstructionist congregation in West Roxbury. "I want this to be a model - I'd like to see people of other faiths, people who care about Israel and who care about Palestine, stop protesting and start listening."

The most prominent signatories are the Christian leaders, also predominantly associated with liberal causes, who include the top local officials of the Episcopal Church, the Massachusetts Council of Churches, the United Church of Christ, and the United Methodist Church, as well as the president of Andover Newton Theological School. The top local official of the Unitarian Universalist Association also signed. There are several Catholic signers, but no members of that church's hierarchy.

The Muslim leaders include several local imams and the leadership of the Muslim American Society of Boston.

"We want to expose the big lie that if you love Israel you must hate Palestinians, or if you support basic human rights of Palestinians you are endorsing terrorism," said Dr. Abdul Cader Asmal, a past president of the Islamic Council of New England. "The coalition that we have formed has come together to say, 'Look, antagonism and hostility is not going to lead to long-term peace for anyone. It's mutually destructive, and we must get people thinking in a different way.' "

In the statement, the authors say of their purpose, "Through this joint statement we affirm our commitment to engage with one another, even, and especially, during times of great stress. We also affirm our common humanity and our common belief - as Jews, Muslims, and Christians - that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must cease, that there is no military or violent solution, that all human life is valued, and that all parties must cooperate to make the peace - a just and lasting peace desperately needed and deserved by all the peoples of the region."

The full text of the statement and list of the signers is at boston.com/religion. Michael Paulson can be reached at mpaulson@globe.com.