Today I travelled to Oxford, for lunch with Elias Chacour, the Melkite Archbishop of the Galilee, a three time nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize. An Israeli citizen, he is a lifelong proponent of interfaith dialogue and peace among Christians, Muslims, Druze and Jews. He is also a powerful advocate of nonviolence. At the end of our time together he signed a copy of his acclaimed book 'Blood Brothers' with the words 'God does not kill'!Having spent a week in Jerusalem, Hebron and Bethlehem in February with Richard Vautrey, today's lunch gave me a good opportunity to learn more of what life is like for Palestinian Christians and of the Archbishop's thoughts on the possible ways ahead in Israel/Palestine.
(My grateful thanks to Nichola Jones for arranging the lunch and Dick and Kath Jones for helping us eat it.)
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