Leaders from American, Canadian, British
Churches Appeal to U.S. Government: 'Stop the Rush to War'
[9-3-02]
GENEVA, Switzerland
- August 29, 2002 - Thirty-seven Christian leaders from Britain, Canada
and the United States, gathered in Geneva, Switzerland, for a meeting of
the World Council of Churches Central Committee, have issued an urgent
call to the American government to pull back from its unilateral
movement toward pre-emptive military action against Iraq, and to seek
the appropriate counsel of the Congress, the United Nations, and U.S.
allies.
The group, which included both General Secretary Bob
Edgar and President Elenie Huszagh of the National Council of Churches
USA, warned that the human cost might far outweigh the gain of such an
attack, and that they do not believe it has been proven that "all
reasonable alternative means of containing Iraq's development of weapons
of mass destruction have been exhausted."
Following is the full text of the message, and a list
of the signers.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A CALL TO
STOP THE RUSH TO WAR
As representatives and participants from the United
States, British and Canadian churches meeting at the Central Committee
of the World Council of Churches, we have heard and share the concern of
those of other nations about the apparent drift towards military
confrontation in Iraq.
As the calls for military action to remove Saddam
Hussein from power in Iraq have grown louder, we call for restraint. We
are concerned about the situation in Iraq. We believe that the Iraqi
government has a duty to stop its internal repression, to end its
threats to peace, to abandon its efforts to develop weapons of mass
destruction, and to respect the legitimate role of the United Nations in
ensuring that it does so. But we also believe that the international
community is weakened and respect for law undermined when national
governments act individually rather than collectively to secure these
goals. We have watched with growing alarm as the United States
government has become increasingly unilateral in its approach to foreign
affairs, and has failed to heed the advice and counsel of friends and
allies.
Although both the U.S. and U.K. governments have
claimed that they have evidence that Saddam Hussein is building up
weapons of mass destruction, they have so far refused to make that
evidence public. This undermines democratic government by depriving the
U.S. Congress and the U.K. Parliament of the ability to make a
considered judgment regarding the justification for war. Furthermore,
the United Nations Charter does not permit states to engage in
pre-emptive war. We therefore urge our governments to pursue this matter
through the United Nations Security Council: In particular, we urge that
Saddam Hussein's offer to re-admit U.N. Weapons Inspectors be accepted.
Our knowledge of and links with church partners in the
Middle East and our unity in Christ with Christians there make us very
sensitive to the destabilizing potential of a war against Iraq for the
whole region. There is no support among the Arab nations for such a war
and very little support in Europe and elsewhere. Christian-Muslim
relations would be further harmed by such a war, and the possibility of
such an action triggering direct military confrontation in Israel cannot
be ignored. Further, the forces of extremism and terrorism would be
strengthened rather than diminished.
As Christians, we are concerned by the likely human
costs of war with Iraq, particularly for civilians. We are unconvinced
that the gain for humanity would be proportionate to the loss. Neither
are we convinced that it has been publicly demonstrated that all
reasonable alternative means of containing Iraq's development of weapons
of mass destruction have been exhausted. We call upon our governments to
pursue these diplomatic means in active cooperation with the United
Nations and to stop the apparent rush to war. "Blessed are the
peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." (Matthew
5:9)
Signers
The Rev. Katherine Bannister (United Methodist Church,
USA)
The Rev. Alyson Barnett-Cowan (Anglican Church of Canada)
Ms Marion Best (United Church of Canada)
The Reverend Ruth A. Bottoms (Baptist Union of Great Britain)
Ms Lois McCullough Dauway (United Methodist Church, USA)
The Rev. Dr. Robert Edgar (National Council of Churches of Christ in the
USA)
The Rt. Rev. C. Christopher Epting (Episcopal Church, U.S.A.)
Ms Alice-Jean Finlay (Anglican Church of Canada)
The Rev. Douglass Fromm (Reformed Church in America)
Ms Anne Glynn-Mackoul (Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and all
the East)
The Rev. Dr. David Goodbourn (Churches Together in Britain &
Ireland)
The Rev. Wesley Granberg-Michaelson (Reformed Church in America)
The Rev. Dr Richard A. Grounds (United Methodist Church, USA)
The Rev. Dr Richard L. Hamm (Christian Church-Disciples of Christ in the
US & Canada)
Ms Elenie K. Huszagh (National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA)
Archbishop Mor Cyril Aphrem Karim (Syrian Orthodox Patriarchate of
Antioch and all the East)
The Rev. Dr Clifton Kirkpatrick (Presbyterian Church -- USA)
The Very Rev. Leonid Kishkovsky (Orthodox Church in America)
The Rev. Stan McKay (United Church of Canada)
The Rev. Roy Medley (American Baptist Churches, USA)
The Rt Reverend Barry Morgan (Church in Wales)
Mr. Naboth M. Muchopa (Methodist Church UK)
Ms Jennifer Nagel (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America)
Mr Arthur Norman (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America)
The Rev. Dr. Bernice Powell-Jackson (United Church of Christ, USA)
The Rev. Dr. Bruce W. Robbins (United Methodist Church, USA)
The Rt Reverend Barry Rogerson (Church of England)
The Rt. Rev. Telmor Sartison (Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada)
The Rev. Dr. Robert E. Sawyer (Moravian Church in America-Southern
Province)
The Reverend Norman Shanks (Church of Scotland)
The Reverend Dr David Thompson (Disciples Ecumenical Consultative
Council)
The Reverend Jill Thornton (United Reformed Church of England)
The Rev. Dr. Angelique Walker-Smith (National Baptist Convention, USA,
Inc.)
The Reverend Gethin Williams (Churches Together in Wales -- Cytun)
Ms. Louise Williams (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America)
The Rev. Robina Winbush (Presbyterian Church - USA)
Bishop McKinley Young (African Methodist Episcopal Church, USA)
