Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams spoke out strongly against the security fence being erected by Israel in the occupied territories and Palestinian suicide bombings during a recent visit to the Middle East.
“The security fence stands as a symbol of fear and despair that threaten everyone in this city and country, all the communities who share this Holy Land,” he said at an ecumenical service at St. George’s Anglican cathedral in Jerusalem.
The visit of the archbishop, who is leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion, coincided with an upsurge of violence, including a Palestinian suicide bombing on a bus in Jerusalem that killed 11 people.
“I deplore the loss of yet more lives from communities in which far too much blood has already been spilt,” Archbishop Williams said after the bombing. “My visit has strengthened the belief that violence and terrorism lend nothing to the search for a better future for the peoples of this region.”
Archbishop Williams was in Jerusalem at the invitation of Bishop of Jerusalem Riah Hanna Abu El-Assal. His six-day visit to the Middle East included meetings with Israeli President Moshe Katsay, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, religious and community leaders, and visits to churches and church and community projects in Jordan, Israel, and Palestinian territories.
London ‘s Guardian newspaper said Archbishop Williams risked “criticism from Israeli authorities who have been angered by British politicians criticizing their policies in the past.”
During his visit, the archbishop also joined other faith leaders in condemning anti-Semitism during Holocaust memorial day. He said that Europe’s history had created a world in which it seemed that only in Israel was it possible for Jews to feel themselves fully citizens, fully in possession of their dignity and security.
With files from Church Times
