President George W. Bush
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear President Bush:

We are writing to express our deep grief at the continuing and deepening violence and bloodshed in Israel and the Middle East. As you know, this is an area that holds a special place in the hearts of Christians, because it is the home of the biblical prophets and sages whom we honor and of Jesus of Nazareth, whom we confess as Lord and Savior. We know that this land is also holy to our Jewish and Muslim brothers and sisters and that they share our grief at its suffering.

We write to ask you and Secretary Powell to do all within your power to end violence on all sides. At our meeting today, inspired by the life and teaching of Jesus, we considered a statement on nonviolence. We pondered the wisdom of Mahatma Ghandi, who rejected the principle of "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth" and reminded us that the result of this principle is a world inhabited with blind and toothless people. We considered also the wisdom of Martin Luther King, Jr., who prophetically declared that our choice today is not between violence and nonviolence, but between nonviolence and nonexistence.

We urge you to do whatever you can to end the terrorist attacks on Israeli civilians and the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine, both of which we deplore, and to create a viable and prosperous Palestinian state. We believe that the deployment of an international Peacekeeping Team under the auspices of the United Nations is an important and necessary first step in ending the violence and moving toward a just peace. Such a Team could do much to protect both Israelis and Palestinians from extremists in both camps.

We have just celebrated Easter in the Western Church. Our Orthodox brothers and sisters will soon also be celebrating that joyful feast. These Easter celebrations renew our hope for the victory of life over death, peace over violence and global community over ethnic and religious hostility and hatred. They also inspire us to continue our struggle in behalf of that vision. We pray that Easter will similarly inspire you and lead you to use all your strength to work nonviolently for the realization of a just, peaceful and prosperous human community in the Middle East and throughout the world.

Sincerely,

Bishop April Ulring Larsen, President
Rev. Dr. Jerry L. Folk, Executive Director
For the Board of Directors of the Wisconsin Council of Churches