U.K. Jews, Anglicans meet
Meeting held due to concern over Church of England's synod vote of divestment from Israel by boycotting the country; Anglicans for Israel: We are worried by the damage the Synod vote has done, both to Anglican-Jewish relations and to the role of the Church in bringing healing and reconciliation to the Middle East
Following recent concern over the Church of England's synod vote of divestment from Israel by boycotting the country, the Board of Deputies of British Jews has held high level meetings with representatives from the Anglican community.
A recent meeting saw Anglicans for Israel, Christian Friends of Israel, Canon Andrew White, Vicar of Iraq and Lord Carey former Archbishop of Canterbury meet with the Board, Office of the Chief Rabbi and Jewish Leadership Council.
Top of the agenda of the meeting was concern that little is actually understood by the Church with regards to what is happening in the region and how both the Christian and Jewish communities can work together.
Simon McIlwaine of Anglicans for Israel said, "We are worried by the damage the Synod vote has done, both to Anglican-Jewish relations and to the role of the Church in bringing healing and reconciliation to the Middle East."
"This was an incredibly positive meeting, but one which flagged up the challenges ahead," said Board chief executive Jon Benjamin. "As a community we must rise to those challenges and work hard with our Christian friends to address them."
Board president Henry Grunwald added; "Recent events should not obscure the fact that there are good relations with the Church and there have been many who have spoken out against boycott campaigns targeting Israel. We all recognize that the way to counteract misinformation is through education and fostering closer ties."
Reprinted by permission of SomethingJewish
