Diaconal Center Renovations Begin
If you read our summer newsletter, you may have seen exciting changes happening at our Diaconal Center! Renovations are underway in the hallway, bathrooms, and kitchen sections of the center. These updates are primarily to make the center more accessible for elderly and disabled community members. Adapting the building to be more accessible will allow us to offer services and support to more people from the community, and make the Diaconal Center a more welcoming place for all. We hope to complete the project this fall....
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New School Year Begins
Today was the first day of school for the Evangelical Lutheran Schools! Students, teachers, and staff across the West Bank began classes for the 2024-2025 school year this morning. Please join us in our prayers for a safe and fruitful year of learning and growing together. In this difficult time in the Holy Land, access to education is more important than ever for children to build a strong future. The teachers and students of Gaza are on our minds and in our hearts today as they are unable to start the new school year. We keep up our prayers for a ceasefire and for thei...
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Teachers and Staff at Lutheran Schools Prepare for the New School Year
Teachers and staff are back to work at the Lutheran Schools preparing for students to arrive at the end of August. Last week, staff at Mahaba Nursery and Pre-School participated in a first aid workshop at Augusta Victoria Hospital prior to the first day of operation for the new year. Teachers at the Evangelical Lutheran School of Hope in Ramallah had intensive workshop sessions throughout last week, and workshops for Dar Al-Kalima Lutheran School, ELS Beit Sahour and Talitha Kumi began yesterday in Bethlehem. The ELCJHL Education Office organized these strategic trainings to help staff get...
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Gender Justice Team Meets with Sawasya Program
Bishop Sani Ibrahim Azar, Rev. Sally Azar, ELCJHL Gender Justice Ministry Director Ranan Issa, and Gender Justice Program Coordinator Shadin Nassar joined Al Hakimat Council representatives Judge Scarlet Bishara and Judge Sumoud Damiri in a meeting with members of the United Nations Development Program’s Sawasya Programme Palestine in Ramallah on Tuesday. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss current and future partnership opportunities between the Gender Justice Ministry and the Sawasya program as both work to create a more equal and just society for women in Palest...
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ELCJHL Says Goodbye to Aelabouni Family
Today marks the sending of a family very dear to the ELCJHL. Bishop-Elect Dr. Meghan Aelabouni, ELCA MENA Area Director Rev. Gabi Aelabouni, and their three children Ethan, Natalie, and Luke, conclude their five meaningful years of ministry with the ELCJHL today, embarking tomorrow back to the United States where Rev. Dr. Meghan will serve as Bishop of the ELCA Rocky Mountain Synod. Reverends Gabi and Meghan began their time with the ELCJHL as YAGM Co-Coordinators, which was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We were blessed to continue ministry with them as Rev. Gabi stepped into his curre...
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Fourth Annual Gender Justice Conference
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land concluded on Wednesday, June 26, 2024 the activities of its fourth annual conference on “Gender Justice from the Perspective of Citizenship and Religious Perspective” under the slogan “Freedom and Reform,” aimed at promoting discussions on gender justice and equality.The conference was opened by His Eminence Bishop Dr. Sunni Ibrahim Azir, Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, highlights his ongoing support for women's rights and involvement in leadership roles within the chu...
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Bishop Azar Visits Diocese of Strangnas in Sweden
Bishop Azar accompanied Bishop Johan in ordaining two new priests and two new deacons into service in the Swedish Church and the Diocese of Strängnäs last week.The bishop reminded that the anointed, just like the lost sheep on the shepherd’s shoulders, are always carried by God.Julia Diurlin Insulander will serve the year as a pastor adjunct in Torshälla congregation. Johnny Stigesjö will serve this year as a pastor adjunct in Hölö-Mörkö congregation. Pernilla Ljungberg serves as a deacon in Almby parish, Örebro pastorate. Frida Thunberg serve...
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Gender Justice Meetings with Governmental Ministries in Ramallah
Our Gender Justice Program Manager, Mrs. Ranan Issa, and ELCJHL Gender Justice Program Coordinator Ms. Shadin Nassar represented the ELCJHL’s Gender Justice Ministry alongside Bishop Azar and Judge Scarlet Bishara and Judge Sumoud Damiri of the Hakimat Council in Ramallah yesterday for two important meetings. The delegation first met with the office of Minister Mona Al-Khalil, Minister of Women’s Affairs in Palestine, and then the office of Justice Ali Muhanna, the Minister of the Supreme Constitutional Courts in Palestine. These official visits offered an...
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ELCJHL 2024 Graduation Season
This was the toughest year of all, and yet we saw steadfast academic commitment and dedication from the class of 2024. We honor the graduation of our Tawjihi (senior) class, and are so deeply proud of their accomplishments. We wish this year could have been one that nurtured and inspired our students in their educational journey, but students instead worked through unprecedented circumstances this academic year to reach their graduation. Of course, we hold in our hearts the 2024 Class of Gaza, many of whom are no longer with us, and none of whom could complete their scholastic ...
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Eastern Easter Greetings 2024
Bishop Azar and a delegation from the ELCJHL visited the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem this morning alongside delegations from all other Jerusalem Christian denominations to exchange Easter greetings for the occasion of Eastern Easter.Bishop Azar announced to the Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Jerusalem congratulations to Bishop-elect Rev. Dr. Meghan Johnston Aelabouni, currently serving the ELCJHL.This important gathering of Christians served as a space for our Patriarchs and Heads of Churches to express their sorrow for the continuous death and destruction in Gaza, and hopes ...
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COCOP 2024 Meeting
In the month of May, the ELCJHL and Bishop Azar welcomed several overseas partners to Palestine for the annual COCOP meeting, in which partners come and see the ELCJHL's ongoing ministry, meet and greet ELCJHL staff, and discuss the future of the church. It was an honor to receive these beloved partners, and we thank God for fruitful discussion and hope amidst so much sorrow....
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Church of Life Inauguration in Bethlehem
The ELCJHL is proud to announce the official inauguration of the "Church of Life", a new chapel in Bethlehem next to the Lutheran cemetery. This new holy space will be a sanctuary of reflection and comfort. We give thanks for this new chapel, which will serve as a new foundation stone for the future of our church....
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Farewell Dinner for Dr. Charlie Haddad
Yesterday the ELCJHL, our COCOP partners, Father Issa Musleh, Father Yacoub Rafeedi, and Former Director of Education in Bethlehem Bassam Jaber gathered to celebrate Dr. Charlie Haddad and his two decades of brilliant ministry. Dr. Charlie’s work built up the ELCJHL educational system to go above and beyond top educational local and international standards. His passion and dedication to offering a top-tier education and form a new generation of peacemakers and leaders is evident in the achievements of ELCJHL graduates here and around the world. We as a church could not be more grate...
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Eastern Easter Greetings at the Armenian Patriarchate 2024
Bishop Azar and a delegation of the ELCJHL visited the Armenian Patriarchate today to exchange greetings on the occasion of Easter....
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Psycho-Social Diaconal Ministry Workshop for School Social Workers
The Diaconal Ministry facilitates a psycho-social session for our school social workers each month. This month, the subject was Self-Care. In Bethlehem, most school social workers are responsible for up to 400 students, all with varying issues and all of them affected by the ongoing war. It is important that our caretakers can care for themselves as well, and have a safe space to exchange ideas and experiences....
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YW4A Workshop
In the month of April, the Gender Justice Ministry of the ELCJHL facilitated in coordination with the YW4A, a "Social Behavioral Change Communication" workshop. The workshop successfully facilitated important conversations that allowed participants to review and refine advocacy priorities, aligning them with the current context in Palestine and the overarching program objectives. Participants hailed from as far as Nablus and Hebron, as well as Ramallah, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem. ...
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ELS Science Fair 2024
We give thanks to God for the blessing of education, and our hardworking students whose dedication and passion for science shone bright today at the ELS Beit Sahour المدرسة الانجيلية اللوثرية - بيت ساحور Annual Science Fair. Bishop Azar opened the fair with a ribbon-cutting and a prayer over the school, following which the students proudly presented their projects. ...
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Bishop Azar in Hungary
Bishop Azar meets with Bishop Dr. Tamás Fabiny and a delegation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hungary during his visit to Budapest....
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Gender Justice Ministry Staff M&E Workshop
At the end of April, ELCJHL staff responsible for projects throughout our ministries came together for a Monitoring and Evaluation workshop in coordination with our Gender Justice Ministry. During this workshop, participants learned more efficient methods of project monitoring and evaluation, which will enhance leadership and efficiency. Thank you to all who came, your efforts during such a difficult time are so important....
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Bishop Azar and ELCJHL Delegation Visits SOS Children Village in Bethlehem
Last month, in coordination with the government of Germany, seventy-eight orphans from Gaza were evacuated from the Gaza strip to Bethlehem, where they are in the care of the SOS Children's Village Organization. Bishop Azar and a delegation from the ELCJHL visited these children to offer a spiritual word, as well as show solidarity with their cases....
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