NEWS RELEASE
Citizens For Justice In The Middle East
6100 W. 52nd Street
Kansas City, Missouri
816-524-3905
Contact: Matt Quinn - 816-729-9102
For: Immediate Release
Village Presbyterian Church and
Citizens for Justice in the Middle East
Offer “Voices of New Hope”
Prairie Village, KS – Village Presbyterian Church and Citizens for Justice in
the Middle East present “Voices of New Hope: Prospects for Peace in Israel and
Palestine”
With the passing of Yasir Arafat a new opportunity for peacemaking begins in
Palestine and Israel. Beginning in January 2005 Village Presbyterian Church will
listen to a variety of voices that will speak about the possibility of what “New
Hope” means for Israel and Palestine, and especially for the United States.
The four-part series will examine prospects for peace between Palestinians and
Israelis. During the series we will hear from individuals about the impact of
the occupation on Palestinians, the threat to security for Israelis and the
common ground for peace efforts.
Each talk will include an open discussion on such important questions as: Why is
peace in the Middle East important for Americans? What can we do to encourage a
resolution to this conflict?
This series is sponsored by Village Presbyterian Church and Citizens for Justice
in the Middle East. Each talk is free and open to the public and will be held at
Village Presbyterian Church, 67th and Mission Road, Prairie Village, Kansas.
The series will be held on four consecutive Sundays:
- Sunday, January 23 - Joe Carr, from Kansas City, will speak about “Christian
Peacemaking in the Holy Land” at 11:00 AM - Joe Carr is a 23-year-old peace
activist from Kansas City, Missouri. He graduated with a BA from the Evergreen
State College in Olympia, Washington in 2004. He spent January to April of 2003
in Rafah, Palestine, and witnessed the death of US peace activist Rachel Corrie
and British peace activist Tom Hurndall. He now works with the Christian
Peacemaker Teams in Al Khalil (Hebron), Palestine.
- Sunday, January 30 - Cantor Paul C. Silbersher, Kol Ami Spiritual Leader will
speak at 11:00 AM –Cantor Silbersher completed his Rabbinical studies at the
Academy for Jewish Religion and was ordained as a Rabbi in 1972. He teaches at
St. Paul School of Theology and Baker University. Cantor Silbersher brings a
unique voice to the discussion of what New Hope looks like from an American
reform Jewish perspective.
- Sunday, February 6 - Andrea Whitmore traveled to the Mideast in October and
will speak on “The Least of These: Our Obligation in the Holy Land” at 11:00 AM
- Andrea Whitmore traveled to Palestine and Israel with an Interfaith Peace
Builders delegation in October 2004. The delegation was sponsored by the
Fellowship of Reconciliation. She is a writer and former teacher of English as a
Foreign Language at UMKC.
- Sunday, February 13 – Rabbi Alan Cohen, a leader in the Kansas City Jewish
community, will speak at 11:00 AM. Rabbi Cohen is the Senior Rabbi of
Congregation Beth Shalom. Beth Shalom is a Conservative congregation with a rich
heritage in Kansas City beginning in 1878. Rabbi Cohen comes to Village Church
through the Jewish Community Relations Bureau of the American Jewish Committee.
Rabbi Cohen will offer a voice of New Hope from the perspective of the
Conservative movement in Kansas City Judaism.
= 12:00 Noon - After the talk a peace lunch at Village church will be served,
catered by Jerusalem Café, $10.00 lunch ticket. Kosher meals will be made
available. For lunch reservations, contact Julie at 913-671-2367 or Julie@villagepres.org.
= Immediately after lunch Rev. Tom Are, Senior Pastor, Village Presbyterian
Church will speak about the Presbyterian effort to divest funds from Israel.
The “Voices of New Hope” series is sponsored by Village Presbyterian Church and
Citizens for Justice in the Middle East.
Voices of New Hope web page - http://www.cjme.org/voices.htm
Event flyer - http://www.cjme.org/flyers/flyer-voices.pdf
For more information :
- Call Mark Braden at Village Church, 913-671-2330 or write mrbraden@villagepres.org.
- Call CJME - Janet Baker at 913-649-9439 or Matt Quinn at 816-729-9102.
- Visit the CJME web site – http://www.cjme.org/voices.htm
Information about Citizens for Justice in the Middle East:
Kansas City-based Citizens for Justice in the Middle East seeks to educate the
American public about the issues involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
and to end U.S. support for the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian
territories. Composed of Kansas City area citizens concerned about the direction
of U.S. policy, Citizens for Justice in the Middle East urges ordinary American
citizens to speak out in favor of an even-handed U.S. policy that recognizes the
rights and aspirations of both Israelis and Palestinians. Only by respecting the
need to provide both parties in the conflict with security and
self-determination can a viable and just peace be assured.
CJME web site - http://www.cjme.org
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