Middle East Peace Initiative | May 16, 2005

5-12-05

The 14th in-country meeting of the MEPI in Jerusalem.

During a week marked by celebration of the founding of the Jewish state and remembrance of the past, delegates from 27 countries met in Jerusalem for the 14th in-country meeting of the Middle East Peace Initiative (MEPI).

As in past gatherings, MEPI, a project of the Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace (IIFWP), has had meetings with religious and political leaders on all sides of the equation.

According to the Chairman of the MEPI Steering Committee Dr. Chang Shik Yang, “Though the struggle in the Middle East is not caused by religion, the solution to the problems of the region require not only cooperation and compromise among governments, but also the involvement of all religions.

Yesterday afternoon was spent with a visit to the separation wall between Israel and the Palestinian lands, followed by a tour of the Holocaust memorial at Yad Vashem. "Arabs and Jews are brothers at the root level, with a multilayered, multidimensional complex history. Just to observe the cycle of violence and payback is not enough. You have to invest yourself in the pasts of both sides, all the way back to Isaac and Ishmael," said Dr. Michael Jenkins, co- chairman of the Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace-USA (IIFWP-USA).

Following rounds of meetings in Jerusalem, including an assembly at the Notre Dame Pontifical Institute, the group will meet with religious and political leaders in Gaza and Ramallah in the West Bank.

IIFWP is in the process of becoming a trusted presence in the region.
Jenkins, said, "When we first came here two years ago several hundred of us went to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and were barred from entering by Israeli security. But when they saw we were a multi-faith mixture of Arabs, Jews and Christians and that our intent was respectful and peaceful, they let us pass. Now they smile and greet us when we come."