May 27, 2005
Dear President Bush,
Thank you for your public statements in
support of the Road Map as a way to lasting peace in the Middle East.
Your meeting with President Abbas on May 26, 2005 was an encouraging
sign of the renewed energies you are giving to bringing about the
peace for which so many pray, long, and work.
As president of the Lutheran World
Federation and presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America, I represent two large church bodies with deep ties to the
Palestinian Lutheran Christian community and a long standing
commitment to a just two- state solution to the ongoing Middle East
crisis.
After listening to the press statements
you and President Abbas made yesterday, I called Bishop Munib Younan,
bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land,
to express my hopefulness in light of your sustained efforts. He
reminded me that the challenge now is to see the manifestation of that
commitment for the life of the people in their local communities.
Several things—consistent with the Road Map—are essential in the
movement toward peace: the end of all violence, cessation of the
expansion of the settlements, removal of the checkpoints, a halt to
the construction of the separation barrier/wall on Palestinian lands,
aid for humanitarian relief, and economic development. I urge you to
continue your strong public and private leadership, urging both sides
toward such resolution.
In the midst of these larger issues, we
as Lutherans continue to be concerned about the unresolved tax case of
Augusta Victoria Hospital. This health care facility on the Mount of
Olives has for decades provided health care for the Palestinian
people. It is a marvelous example of the cooperation of people of
differing faiths for the sake of the healing of humanity. As your
Administration is aware, an important decision on this case is
scheduled to be made in September 2005. Anything that you or
representatives of your Administration can do to urge the Israeli
Government not only to resolve this lingering tax case, but also to
permit Augusta Victoria Hospital to continue its vital work would be
greatly appreciated.
God’s blessings upon you as you
continue to lead in these most challenging times.
Living in God's amazing grace,
Mark S. Hanson,
Presiding Bishop
