In calling for a “two-state” solution to the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict, the special Synod of Bishops for the Middle East has echoed
the solution that Pope Benedict XVI urged on his visit to Israel last
year.
“We hope that the two-state solution might become a reality and not a
dream only,” the bishops said in language very similar to that used by
Benedict on his trip to the Holy Land in 2009.
The nearly 200 bishops participating in the two-week synod presented
their final communique in a private session on Oct. 22.
In addition,
they gave the Pope a set of 44 proposals to consider in drawing up his
own reflections on the synod, which will eventually be issued in a
document known as a post-synodal apostolic exhortation.
The synod’s final message underscores the aspirations of Christians
and the challenges they face in the region. And it calls on the local
churches and individual Catholics to take concrete actions to ensure the
future of Christianity in the Middle East.
Among the many challenges facing the Church are the ongoing, daily
ramifications of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which has hung like a
cloud over the region since 1948 when Israel was declared a sovereign
nation.
The synod fathers urged the international community to “work to find a
peaceful, just and definitive solution in the region.”
The bishops said
the framework for peace must include the “application” of United
Nations Security Council resolutions and “taking the necessary legal
steps to put an end to the occupation of the different Arab
territories."
The Security Council in the past has called for Israel to withdraw
from territories secured during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and more
recently has called for a so-called two-state solution that envisions
Israelis and the Palestinians living side-by-side with secure and
mutually recognized borders.
The synod also stressed the need for the Palestinians to have “an
independent and sovereign homeland where they can live with dignity and
security.” In addition, the synod fathers said that Israel must be able
“to enjoy peace and security within their internationally recognized
borders.”
Addressing the question of Jerusalem, the bishops said that it must
be guaranteed “its proper status, which respects its particular
character, its holiness and the religious patrimony of the three
religions: Jewish, Christian and Muslim.”
The final synod communique echoes the positions outlined by Pope
Benedict XVI during his farewell address on May 15, 2009 at Tel Aviv,
Israel's Ben Gurion Airport. He urged leaders to "break the vicious
circle of violence” and to begin the path of “genuine reconciliation and
healing."
"Let it be universally recognized that the State of Israel has the
right to exist, and to enjoy peace and security within internationally
agreed borders,” the Pope said. “Let it be likewise acknowledged that
the Palestinian people have a right to a sovereign independent homeland,
to live with dignity and to travel freely.”
The Pope added: "Let the two-state solution become a reality, not
remain a dream," he implored. "And let peace spread outwards from these
lands, let them serve as a 'light to the nations,' bringing hope to the
many other regions that are affected by conflict."
Again at the synod's closing Mass on Oct. 24, he made an appeal for peace in all the Middle East.
"Peace is possible. Peace is urgent," Pope Benedict said.
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