How a United Church Congregation Articulates Its Choices from the 41St General Council's
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“What Language Shall I Borrow?” How a United Church Congregation Articulates its Choices from the 41st General Council’s Recommendations Regarding Peacebuilding in Israel/Palestine by Donna Patricia Kerrigan A Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Emmanuel College and the Toronto School of Theology In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Ministry awarded by Emmanuel College and the University of Toronto © Copyright by Donna Patricia Kerrigan 2016 “What Language Shall I Borrow?” How a United Church Congregation Articulates its Choices from the 41st General Council’s Recommendations Regarding Peacebuilding in Israel/Palestine Donna Patricia Kerrigan Doctor of Ministry Emmanuel College and the University of Toronto 2016 Abstract The thesis of this dissertation is that members of the United Church of Canada who respond to the Report on Israel/Palestine Policy select from its peacebuilding recommendations according to their attitudes to theological contextualizing. Two attitudes give rise to two different methods, which are seldom articulated but underlie choices regarding peace initiatives such as boycotting or ecumenical/multifaith cooperation. The dissertation includes five parts: an investigation of contextual theologies for peacebuilders; a history of the UCC and ecumenical partners who have struggled to assist peace in Israel/Palestine; strategies for peace-minded ministers; a case-study of one congregation choosing peace strategies; and recommendations for denominational communications and peacebuilding. This thesis poses a taxonomy for theologizing in context, moving from initial interaction with the other by translating local systems of thought into terms of the Gospel message. Contextualizers proceed either to immerse in the local culture (anthropological) or to engage with locals in mutual learning (synthesis). Anthropological attitudes tend toward praxis method. Synthetic attitudes tend toward transcendental method. ii An examination of the UCC and its ecumenical partners shows how anthropological/praxis and synthesis/transcendental modalities have led to differing approaches to, and varying levels of grassroots engagement in, peacebuilding in the Middle-East. For UCC members, the IPP Report offers initiatives that cohere with both modalities, and the case study here shows selected congregants investigating all possibilities and choosing according to their theological commitment to love. This thesis advocates for improved communications and more persuasive reports from the national church, more frequent qualitative research at the grassroots, and persistent search for “a small way” into peace by privileging many voices. iii Acknowledgements All research projects are the product of many generous hearts and minds, and this thesis is a fine example. I am indebted to members of my congregation for their encouragement, and most particularly for having faith in me as we arranged Peace Sunday. This project depended upon peer–reviewers and participants in the focus group, who were outstandingly generous with their time and insights in ways I can never repay. I’m also deeply grateful for the guidance of my professors, especially Dr Joseph Schner at Toronto School of Theology and Drs Pamela Couture and Thomas Reynolds at Emmanuel College. Finally, my family members have sustained me along the way, and I acknowledge that I can’t even borrow language to thank them for their patience and love. iv Glossary of Key Terms Abrahamic faiths the Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths—all of which trace the birth of their religion to the patriarch, Abraham BDS Boycott, Divestment and Sanction—a movement many hold to be a form of nonviolent protest, currently against Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory. BDS seeks to boycott a wide range of Israeli-made goods, shed investments in corporations that are seen to profit from or assist in the occupation, and support sanctions against Israel and its presence on various international forums. The United Church, by adopting the Report of the Working Group on Israel/Palestine Policy (2012), rejected participation in BDS on the grounds that it is too broad and the movement has in some cases had unacceptable goals. (See “Focused Economic Action,” IPP Report, 100.) That aspect of UCC policy was revisited by the 42nd General Council, 2015, with the responsible commission recommending consultation and education on the issue of BDS as part of the denomination’s policy. contextual theology the over-arching recognition of all theologians that our attempts to understand our faith as God’s living creatures occur in, and are influenced by, the time and place of our existence. This recognition or sensibility has become particularly keen thanks to twentieth century developments such as feminist theology, Asian theology, liberation theology, and the like. For this Doctor of Ministry thesis project, the sensibility toward contextualization is primary, based on Clemens Sedmak’s observation, “Humility is the art of living in a village, the art of being down to earth. Doing local [i.e. contextual] theology is a service, like washing v feet.”1 The claim in this thesis is that doing theology in another’s context involves one of two primary pre-dispositions –the anthropological and the synthetic—leading to the choice of two methodologies—praxis and transcendence. conversation face-to-face speaking encounters that, to be genuine, require of participants an openness to discovering new truths about the world, about each other, or perhaps about themselves. Such encounters require participants to maintain a balance between a strong commitment to their faith values and a willingness to appreciate the other speaker’s perspective, perhaps even to consider the possibility of conversion under the influence of that perspective.2 economic action a recommendation of the United Church to its members regarding their purchase of goods produced by Israelis on the occupied territory of Palestine. The group working on the Israel/Palestine Policy Report (2012) preferred the term “economic action” to “boycott,” which had been used in a motion brought to the 40th General Council (2009), ostensibly to distance their recommendation of “focused action” from the BDS movement (see above). ecumenical late Latin from Greek oikoumenikos, from oikoumenē ‘the (inhabited) earth.’ The word has a distinctly Christian meaning, denoting dialogue, cooperation or unity among Christian 1 Clemens Sedmak, Doing Local Theology (Maryknoll NY: Orbis Books, 2002), 17. 2 Here I am indebted to both Gadamer and Lonergan for notions of what constitutes the hallmark of genuine encounter with the other. Gadamer sets the bar at appreciating another’s perspective to the point of eliminating the sense of threat that comes of not appreciating. See Hans-Georg Gadamer with Carsten Dutt, and others. Gadamer In Conversation: Reflections and Commentary, ed and trans by Richard E. Palmer (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001), 11. Lonergan on the other hand stresses the possibility of conversion when one is exposed to a different perspective and then undertakes the often difficult task of understanding and judging. See Bernard Lonergan, Method in Theology (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2007), 239-41. vi denominations. Used familiarly, the word has in some contexts broadened to include a multi-faith (Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, etc) or even no-faith, dimension—perhaps suggesting a return to its earlier embrace of all earth’s human inhabitants. embedded theology theological content that shapes, often unconsciously, the thoughts and opinions of the faithful. In this thesis, the word “predisposition” is used to set aside the issue of consciousness while indicating theological formation. GC 40, GC 41, GC 42 40th General Council (Kelowna, 2009) and 41st General Council (Ottawa, 2012), 42nd General Council (Corner Brook, 2015) of the United Church of Canada, a conciliar church grassroots the most basic level of an organization, “the ordinary people.” In the United Church, each congregation’s official governing body constitutes a “court” with voting rights and responsibilities, for example in the case of some types of remit. HMUC Henson Mills United Church (pseudonym), the research site for this thesis. IPP Report formally titled The Report of the Working Group on Israel/Palestine Policy (2012). Commissioned by the 40th GC (2009), this report was adopted as United Church policy and offered to the membership for “study, prayerful discernment and personal action” in relation to Israel and Palestine.3 justice/peace denotes the interdependent relationship between justice and peace. Tannenbaum peacebuilder Yehezkel Landau suggests that the six points of the star of David indicate study of the Torah, worship, acts of lovingkindness, truth, justice and peace. Peace 3 See “The Working Group on Israel/Palestine Policy (2012),” http://www.united- church.ca/beliefs/policies/2012/w536 (accessed June 2015). vii must be a complicated entity, closely related to all other qualities, he explains. Particularly, he draws from Zachariah 8:16: “Render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace.” A comprehensive peace, he concludes, needs inclusive justice, which is grounded in truth.4 Kairos Palestine Complete title is A Moment of Truth: Kairos Palestine. (Not to be confused with KAIROS, a Canadian ecumenical movement dedicated to the pursuit of justice in peace in Canada and internationally.) Kairos Palestine was introduced in 2011 to Canadians by the