Women's Month and Mother's Day Celebrations
This week, two of our congregations held special services for the third Sunday of Lent led by women. In Beit Jala and Amman, women of each congregation led the readings, prayers, liturgy, and gave the sermon. Last week, the service in Ramallah was led by women. Throughout Lent, our congregations have also been uplifting the role of women in the church in recognition of March as Women’s Month and this past Friday as Mother’s Day. We give thanks for their leadership and ministry in the ELCJHL and in the world. ...
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ELCJHL Student Leaders Visit Elderly Community
Students from the Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour Leadership Group visited elderly community members at the Antonian Charitable Society Club Center in Bethlehem. The students joined them for games, served dinner, led songs and dances, and shared gifts. The activity was supported by our partners at FELM. ...
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Evangelical Lutheran Church in Beit Sahour holds combined Lenten Worship and Meal with the Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour
Tonight the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Beit Sahour and the Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour came together for evening Lenten prayer and a fasting meal. We are thankful for this opportunity to reaffirm the connection between our congregations and our educational community and to celebrate the close relationship between the church and school in Beit Sahour who share a campus....
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Agreement Signed with UNDP's Sawasya Programme Palestine
Yesterday Bishop Dr. Sani Ibrahim Azar signed the partnership agreement officially beginning the project between the ELCJHL and Sawawsya designed to enhance the work of the ELCJHL’s Ecclesiastical Court through specialized training for judges and legal staff, and supporting the development of legal research and advocacy materials. We give thanks for the work and vision of our Gender Justice Office, the Ecclesiastical Court, and the UNDP team....
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Gender Justice Representatives Attend 69th Commission on the Status of Women
ELCJHL Pastor Rev. Sally Azar and Gender Justice Director Mrs. Ranan Issa are at the United Nations Headquarters in New York this week representing the ELCJHL at the 69th Commission on the Status of Women. Today, Mrs. Ranan spoke at the session “The Rise of ‘Family Values’ & Strategies for Rights-Based Family Law Reform,” about the ELCJHL’s advocacy initiatives toward improving Gender Justice in Family and Personal Status Laws in Palestine. Tomorrow she is co-moderating an event entitled “Transforming Taboos: How to Change a Social Norm,” ...
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Student Peace Mediators Graduate at School of Hope
This week a new class of students graduated from the Peace Mediation Program at the Evangelical Lutheran School of Hope in Ramallah. Every year, each of the Lutheran schools prepares a group of elementary students to be Peace Mediators through a year-long program that teaches productive conflict resolution skills and strategies. These students will be mediators among their peers at recess and during the school day. Congratulations to our new Peace Mediators!...
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Bishop Azar Visits Latin Patriarch Bishop of Jordan
Bishop Dr. Sani Ibrahim Azar of the ELCJHL and Pastor Imad Haddad of the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Amman met with Bishop Dr. Iyad Twal to offer congratulations on his installation as Auxiliary Bishop for Jordan for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem....
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Environmental Center Leads Amal Waste-Free Schools Initiative
This weekend, the ELCJHL Environmental Education Center, in coordination with the Beit Sahour Municipality, launched the “Amal” waste-free, sustainable and environmentally friendly schools project in four schools in Beit Sahour, including the Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour. The program, based on the “Waste-Free Schools” initiative launched by Bishop Dr. Sani Ibrahim Azar in the fall of 2019, aims to help schools eliminate plastic use, promote healthy cafeterias, and produce organic fertilizers through compost. The agreement was ...
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ELCJHL Marks International Women's Day
Several of our congregations held special commemorations of International Women’s Day this weekend, including Beit Jala, Amman, Ramallah, and Bethlehem. This International Women’s Day, and every day, we honor the strength, wisdom, spirit, and sumud (steadfastness) of Palestinian women. We are proud of and thankful for all that women bring to our church and our community, and we strive to uplift them in our congregational and youth ministries, our Gender Justice ministry, our educational programs, and beyond. We celebrate the leadership of women in our church, society, and ...
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Youth Lent Service
Tonight the ELCJHL Youth Ministry held a special Lent service for youth at the Lutheran Church in Beit Sahour. After the service, the youth met for pizza and a discussion with LWF Youth Program Executive Savanna Sullivan about faith, the role of youth in the church, and LWF Youth programs. We are always thankful for opportunities to bring young people in the church together....
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World Day of Prayer - Cook Islands
Each year, Christian women from different traditions around the world come together for the World Day of Prayer. Guided by the World Day of Prayer International Committee, a different country is chosen each year to prepare the worship program. Thousands around the world gather to join in prayer with and for this country, and to grow our relationship with each other as the global church. This year women in Palestine and globally lifted up prayers for the Cook Islands and held services based on the theme “I Made you Wonderful” from Psalm 139. Due to restrictions from the occ...
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ELCJHL Marks Ash Wednesday
Many of our congregations marked Ash Wednesday this evening with the imposition of ashes. As we enter this time of fasting, we join Christ on the journey to the cross. As we pray for God’s justice and peace, we look ahead to the resurrection. We wish you a reflective season of Lent....
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Environmental Center Leads Special Workshops for Students
This month the ELCJHL Environmental Education Center partnered with the Environmental Clubs of the Lutheran Schools to lead special trainings for students in several areas including birdwatching, biodiversity research, environmental leadership, and more! During the Biodiversity Research workshop, students learned the scientific names and identifying characteristics of native plants. Then they explored the garden in groups to identify and record any plants they could find and present what they documented to their fellow students. The Center also partnered with...
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A Statement by the Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Jerusalem on the Return and Burial of Bibas Family Members
Please click here for the full statement in English....
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Gender Justice Jerusalem Activities
Throughout the last year, the ELCJHL's Gender Justice Ministry has organized a series of psychosocial relief activities for women in each of our six congregations. This series has been an important part of how the church seeks to care for our community's spiritual, mental, and emotional health during the current political situation. This week, a group from the Jerusalem congregation gathered for an afternoon of pottery at the Lutheran World Federation Vocational Training Center in Beit Hanina. The women were introduced to pottery by a trainer who demonstrated different techniqu...
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Archbishop of Finland Visits the ELCJHL
Last week the ELCJHL welcomed a visit from Archbishop Dr. Tapio Luoma of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Finland and a delegation of visiting Bishops, pastors, and other partners from the church and our local FELM Center Jerusalem. The visiting delegation included Bishop Dr. Mari Parkkinen, Bishop Dr. Jari Jolkkonen, Rev. Dr. Juha Meriläinen, Rev. Dr. Laura Huovinen, and Mrs. Laura Häkli, along with many from the local FELM team organized by FELM Center Director Mr. Tarmo Heikkilä. During Archbishop Luoma's visit, the delegation met with students at staff at ...
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Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Jerusalem Condemn Unjust Foreclosure Against Armenian Patriarchate, Urge Immediate Intervention
Click here for the statement in English. Click here for the statement in Arabic....
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A Humanitarian Plea from the Jerusalem Patriarchs and Heads of Churches: Defending the Dignity and Presence of the People of Gaza
Please click here for the full statement in English. Please click here for the full statement in Arabic....
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ELCJHL Students Visit Local Cancer Patients
Earlier this week leadership students from The Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour visited the pediatric oncology department of Al Hussein Hospital in Beit Jala. Student leaders led activities for the children there and donated supplies requested by the hospital. Many children undergoing cancer treatment are required to be in isolation for their safety. Leadership students played music and sang to those unable to leave their rooms. Patients in the later stages of treatment were able to participate in special games and activities as a group. This visit is pa...
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ELCA Staff Visit to the ELCJHL
This week Bishop Dr. Sani Ibrahim Azar and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land were honored to host our Evangelical Lutheran Church in America partners for a solidarity visit. Rev. Gabi Aelabouni, ELCA Global Mission Desk Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Shadin Nassar, MENA Regional Associate, and Maren Olson, Director of Lutheran Disaster Response, spent five days in the Jerusalem area. They met with Bishop Azar and ELCJHL pastors and ministry directors, heard about the incredible work of Augusta Victoria Hospital, visited the Lutheran s...
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