Christ in the Rubble

Listening to Palestinian Christians: An Invitation

The situation in Gaza—and the larger Israeli-Palestinian conflict—doesn’t fit neatly into the boxes that make us comfortable: good vs bad, right vs wrong. Modern conflicts rarely do. It’s much easier to learn the talking points of “our side” and ignore any facts that complicate our tidy views.

If you’ve followed me for a long time, you may have noticed that I don’t write often on foreign policy. It’s not my area of expertise and I prefer to leave topics outside my expertise to those with more authority. But I do know some things. For nearly two decades, I’ve taught a course on the modern history of the West and the world, and I structured the course around examining modern conflicts in historical perspective. I change up which conflicts I focus on from semester to semester, but I’ve often included Israel/Palestine—one of the most intractible conflicts, it seems.

In most cases, the more you know about the history of conflicts, the more difficult it is to draw simple lines between good and bad—at least not lines that run between two sides. For many Americans, however, history is not their strong suit. Views on the conflict are often shaped more by political and religious affiliation than by historical understanding. This historical ignorance means that it can be easy to cherry-pick historical facts to “prove” which side is noble and which side has been wronged, which side is owed vengeance, and which side must suffer.

When teaching the history of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, it’s often occurred to me that where one enters the conflict—the point in time where you start paying attention—can profoundly shape your narrative. Did you start paying attention on Oct. 7? Or when you heard about genocidal tactics being used against Palestinian civilians? Was it the Six Day War in 1967 that got your attention? Do you know about the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, adn why it came about? The Balfour Declaration of 1917? Do you know what came before that?

Sometimes the first step in understanding is knowing what you don’t know. This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t endeavor to understand. As Americans who are disproportionately funding one side, we have an obligation to do so—or at least do better.

In the midst of this complexity, one thing I try to do is pay attention to the peacemakers—on both sides. Pay attention to those who will speak against their own side, who refuse to dehumanize “the other,” who retain their moral grounding even when doing so comes at great personal cost.

For the last two decades, I’ve been paying attention to the voices of Palestinian Christians. I was first introduced to this community through the work of my late colleague, Bert de Vries. Bert began sharing stories with me about Palestinian Christians when I first joined the Calvin History Department. He told of his friends at Bethlehem Bible College and shared some of their writing with me, and he spoke of life among Middle Eastern Christians more broadly—stories that rarely surfaced among Americans—including among American Christians.

I thought of Bert when I was invited to attend a gathering of Palestinian and American Christians earlier this fall. I went to listen. I wanted to learn more, and I wanted to show solidarity with fellow Christians.

I also signed my name to a Declaration, which I’ll share below. But first, a bit of background:

In 2023, Palestinian Christians reached out to Christians around the world. It was in the aftermath of the bombing of the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius in Gaza, which took the lives of several Christians taking shelter there. They described the conditions they were experiencing, and expressed their alarm at how “the name of God is invoked to promote violence and religious national ideologies.”

The Christian leaders unequivocally condemned all attacks on civilians, on all sides. They noted, too, the silence among Christians—theologians included—when victims were Palestinian. They noted the dehumanization of Palestinians, while rejecting violence themselves. They called instead for creative nonviolence, even among “the powerless and occupied.”

In 2024, Middle Eastern evangelical leaders again reached out to the global church. They urged Western Christians to come to the Middle East “not only to visit the ancient biblical sites and relics of the past, but to come and engage with the living stones of the Middle-East—a faithful community of believers who have maintained their presence in this region for over two millennia. They expressed their commitment to peace, asserting that Middle Eastern conflicts—including the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, “are not manifestations of spiritual warfare but are instead rooted in complex socio-political dynamics that demand nuanced understanding and strategic responses.” They expressed allegiance to the gospel, “untainted by political affiliations, and grounded in the love of Christ through peacemaking.” And they invited Christians around the world to join “in a mission that transcends any ethnic, political, or theological divides.”

In 2025, a group of American Christians responded to these collective calls with a Declaration of their own. I attended the Church at the Crossroads conference in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, where authors of the Declaration spoke.

Munther Isaac, author of Christ in the Rubble: Faith, the Bible, and the Genocide in Gaza

You can read coverage here; in the coming weeks, the addresses will be made available in the coming weeks at Church at the Crossroads.

I listened to several talks, participated in conversations, enjoyed generous hospitality, and ate delicious food prepared from recipes from The Gaza Kitchen.

I included my name as a Founding Signatory, and I’m including the Declaration in its entirety so that you can consider adding your name as well. (A link is available at the end of this post). First, consider these words:

1. We Are Listening to You

“Be quick to listen, slow to speak.” (James 1:19)

Our Palestinian Christian siblings are telling us that they are devastated by the extreme violence the Israeli military and Israeli settlers have inflicted upon their people before and after Hamas’ unjust attack on October 7, 2023. Israel’s military has killed or maimed tens of thousands of children and innocents; leveled entire cities; destroyed hospitals, schools, and places of worship; displaced millions of people; and deprived the population of food and water.

Our siblings are deeply grieved by western Christians’ uncritical support for Israel and silence in the face of the ongoing suffering of Palestinians. They express concern that we have ignored this war’s roots in Israel’s military occupation of Palestinian land and ethnic cleansing beginning in 1948.

They declare their unambiguous commitment to Jesus’ way of nonviolence. They also say that we have adopted another theology that justifies violence and elevates the dignity of some over others. They are especially troubled when ideas from biblical history such as “promised land” and “chosen people” are used to rationalize the harming of Palestinians.
Our siblings lament that our response to this war compromises our witness to Jesus’ gospel and harms the unity of his body. They cry out for an immediate ceasefire, return of all Israeli and Palestinian hostages, unimpeded entry of aid for Gaza, and accountability for Israel’s unjust actions.

We are listening.

2. We Mourn with You

“Mourn with those who mourn.” (Romans 12:15)

We are deeply grieved by the extreme suffering of our Palestinian neighbors for the same reason that we are deeply grieved by the extreme suffering of our Israeli neighbors killed, kidnapped, or bereaved on October 7: each is made in God’s precious image.

The war in Gaza is yielding catastrophic loss of life, including tens of thousands of children and innocents. Most of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure has been reduced to rubble, including almost all hospitals, schools, and roads. Around two million of our Palestinian neighbors have been displaced from their homes and subjected to acute hunger. Many have already starved to death. Our siblings have been murdered in the churches where they shelter.

Each of our Palestinian neighbors is an image-bearer of God with precious worth (Genesis 1:27; Matthew 22:37-40; Romans 13:9-10). We are heartbroken by their unimaginable suffering. We are heartbroken by the widespread indifference of many of our fellow Christians in the face of their suffering. We are heartbroken that the United States’ government funds this war. We are heartbroken that many of us have invoked God’s name, Biblical verses, and theological arguments to try to justify Israel’s brutality. Our Palestinian siblings’ blood cries out from the earth like Abel’s (Genesis 4:10).

All followers of Christ should grieve this grave moral evil.

3. We Repent

“If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

We confess that many of us have used the Bible in ways that excuse oppression, ethnic cleansing, genocide, and other forms of violence while ignoring the teachings of Jesus.

We have justified the strong and abandoned Christ’s call to the vulnerable. We turned Scripture into a tool of oppression rather than liberation (Matthew 18:8; 22:37-40; Luke 4:18-30).

We have become a church that praises a political project while ignoring those who first carried the sacred traditions of Christianity. We confess our failure to speak and act for the dignity of our Palestinian siblings. We have dismissed their testimony, distorted their history, and prioritized ancient stones over the lives being buried beneath them.

We have followed the ways of Rome rather than the way of the cross. We claim to follow Jesus, yet overlook His wounded body right in front of us (Luke 9:23; Matthew 25:31-46).

We repent of our silence, our harmful theologies, and our failure to embody Christ. We acknowledge that real repentance requires our transformation (James 1:22).

Lord, convict us and change us.

4. We Are Convicted

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies…that you may be children of your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:43-45)

The God of all creation calls us to recognize God’s holy image in all humanity, regardless of race, religion, or nationality (Genesis 1:26-31; 9:6; Acts 10:28; Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:11).

As followers of Jesus, we vow to adopt an ethic of neighbor love toward all people, including those labeled “enemies.” We are convicted to reorient our faith away from the us-versus-them binaries of politics and hatred and to recenter our faith in Christ’s summons to mercy, justice for the oppressed, and love for all humanity (Matthew 22:37-40; 23:23; 25:31-46).

In this spirit, we wholly reject anti-Muslim hatred, antisemitism, anti-Palestinian bigotry, and every ideology that fuses faith with nationalistic violence (Exodus 20:7; Phil 3:20; Gal. 3:28).

Lord, let our convictions prompt us toward action rooted in radical love.

5. We Are Committed to Action

“Blessed are the peacemakers, because they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)

As followers of Jesus, we believe God calls us not just to mourn injustice but to confront it. Having heard the urgent cries of our Palestinian sisters and brothers, we recommit to follow Jesus who draws near to the suffering (Luke 4:18), calls us to love our enemies (Matthew 5:44), and blesses the peacemakers (Matthew 5:9).

We commit to:

-Examine and reform theologies and discipleship practices that rationalize or ignore violence. We recognize that Christian teaching has often fueled human dignity, liberation, and hope; we also recognize it has been weaponized to sanctify ethnic cleansing, enslavement, genocide, and other horrors antithetical to Jesus’ teaching.

–We commit to challenging Christian Zionism as a theology that justifies harming our Palestinian neighbors and that damages our Christian witness. Speak boldly in our churches and communities, calling for openness to learning and to repentance.

–Give due regard to Palestinian Christians as members of the global church to which we owe love, respect, and mutual submission. They have carried the gospel since the Church’s birth in Jerusalem.

–Make common cause with peacemakers from Palestine and Israel, advocating for a permanent ceasefire, the release of all hostages, unrestricted humanitarian aid, and a just peace that addresses root causes of violence.

These commitments embody repentance in action for the sake of our witness to the gospel of peace.

Invitation

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22)

We invite you, fellow Christians in America and beyond, to sign this statement with us as a declaration of allegiance to the crucified and risen Christ who calls us to love our neighbor, seek justice, and walk humbly with God (Micah 6:8; Matthew 23:23). To sign is to say: the gospel cannot coexist with dehumanization. We will no longer ignore the cries of our Palestinian siblings. We will no longer excuse violence with scripture (Isaiah 1:17; Romans 12:18; 13:10).

Signing this declaration is not the end; it is a beginning, a step toward listening deeply, remembering the gospel, and living more faithfully. If you sense the Spirit stirring, we invite you to join us in the pursuit of justice and peace in Palestine and Israel.

Let us be part of the church’s repentance and renewal.
Let us stand with the suffering.
Let us follow Christ more fully.

If you feel moved to add your name, you can do so here. Every name matters.

***Tomorrow afternoon, we’ll be hosting another LIVE edition of The Convocation Unscripted. Bring your questions and register here for the link: