Church and ECAJ working together to solve boycott issue
Representatives of the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) and of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) met in Sydney following the NCCA’s recent Resolution on ‘Palestine & Israel’ asking members to consider boycotting Israeli goods produced in the Occupied Territories.
There was a serious exchange of views during which the ECAJ raised concerns about the NCCA process and about some details of the text of the resolution. Discussion together enabled NCCA participants to explain the process involved as well as the context, background and purpose of the NCCA resolution.
“The talks helped Christian leaders better understand the concerns of the Jewish community and helped Jewish leaders better understand the reasons for the adoption of the resolution. The meeting also helped participants understand how we can work collaboratively towards common goals.” said ECAJ President Robert Goot.
NCCA President Bishop Michael Putney “welcomed the opportunity to meet with our partners in dialogue and to discuss how best we can all contribute to facilitating peacemaking, security and justice, and particularly how Australians can show leadership in resolving one of the most vexed and complex issues of our times.”
Representatives of both groups agreed to meet again to work on a further, possibly more comprehensive statement for consideration by the NCCA Executive at its November meeting.
