I am a Palestinian Arab. I’m also a Christian Palestinian Arab. Palestinian Christians were born in the upper room. We’re not outstanding theologians. We’re obsessed with the story of a man from our own village of Nazareth. We’re storytellers and we tell an exciting story that should always be on CNN news as a breaking story of an empty tomb and a risen Lord and we keep repeating that story to generation after generation. And we’re still waiting for you Presbyterian Canadians to come over and hear our story of our man from Galilee. We’ve been waiting for 2,000 years to welcome you with the hospitality we love to share… Jews and Palestinians do not need to learn to live together, we just need to remember how we lived together more than 60 years ago. The wrong side, Jew and Palestinian, is the one who says the land belongs to me. Both must learn to belong to the land, and for it to be a sign of our common humanity.
—Archbishop Abuna Elias Chacour of Akka, Haifa, Nazareth and all of Galilee (Melkite Greek Catholic Church) and this year’s recipient of the E. H. Johnson Award.
