After the tragedy of 9/11, our Board of Deacons raised the question, “where do we go from here.”  After considerable discussion, one of the things that we resolved was that we needed to be not only “ecumenical” with regard to other Christian communities, but also, we needed to work to build more of an interfaith community here in Southeastern Connecticut and to work together with that community to address the conflicts in the Middle East and to recognize the fundamental role that the religions of this world have played in that conflict.

          This led to a number of programs on the Israel-Palestine conflict, and ultimately to the “World House Journey to Israel and Palestine”, a journey led by the ministers of our church and the Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of Eastern Connecticut.  The name, “The World House”, came from the writings of Dr. Martin Luther King who in his book, Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?  said that all the different races and religions and nationalities needed to imagine that they had all inherited one large house – a world house – in which they needed to learn to live together in peace and justice with one another.

          With Jewish, Christian, Muslim and Native American representation, this World House Journey to Israel and Palestine introduced us to a number of interfaith organizations there that are working together toward a just and peaceful resolution to the conflict.

          On this journey, our church also established a special friendship with the Christian community of Beit Sahour, a small community neighboring Bethlehem, that prides itself on being the descendants of the shepherds of 2000 years ago that “kept watch over their flocks by night” and witnessed the birth of Jesus.  Given the devastating impact that the Israeli occupation has had on their economy, we began selling Palestinian Olive oil and soap not only to provide some financial support but also as a way of telling the story of their predicament.

          In the summer of 2004, we welcomed 7 Palestinian young people to our community, allowing us the opportunity to see the human face of those on the far side of the “separation wall.”  With yet another visit – The Tree of Life Journey to Israel and Palestine – we have entered into a deeper level of friendship with the people of Beit Sahour and such prophetic interfaith organizations as the Bereaved Parents’ Circle, the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, Machsom Watch and Rabbis for Human Rights.

1st Congregational Church of Old Lyme
Last modified: 03/26/10