It is important to remember that "many people in Israel belong to the peace movement", a group that should not be forgotten, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu has said.
"I don't believe that ordinary Israeli if they knew what was happening could support a policy that did this to people," Tutu said while speaking in support of a World Council of Churches-led action week for peace in Israel and the Palestinian territories from 4 to 10 June.
Tutu referred a visit he made to the area in 2008. "I was part of a [U.N.] fact-finding mission We went to Gaza ... It was one of the most agonizing visits I have made anywhere."
After that mission, in which Tutu and his party were prevented from visiting areas in Israel, the former Anglican archbishop of Cape Town became a signatory to a letter calling on the United Nations to open a war crimes inquiry into alleged abuses of international law during the 2009 Gaza conflict.
"We have seen at first hand the importance of investigating the truth and delivering justice for the victims of conflict and believe it is a precondition to move forward and achieve peace in the Middle East," Tutu and 15 other international investigators and judges said in a 16 March letter.
Israel launched a three-week military offensive in Gaza at the end of 2008, saying that it was necessary to halt eight years of rocket attacks into Israeli civilian populations by Hamas, the Islamic Resistance Movement that controls the Gaza strip.
The South African cleric said that it had become clear that of almost all the global issues, hardly any of them - including the nuclear threat - "will not be resolved until this one is".
Tutu noted, however, in his 7 June speech at the Ecumenical Institute in Bossey near Geneva, "One of the things we've go to remember there are very many people on the Israeli side who belong to the peace movement - who have sometimes been forgotten."
He cited a group called the Parents' Circle started by a South African woman married to an Israeli, whose son was shot by a Palestinian sniper. "She wanted to be in touch with the family of the sniper," noted Tutu explaining that the meeting led to the formation of a group that brings together people from both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian divide.
Tutu praised U.S. President Barack Obama for making a "courageous" speech about Islam in Cairo in early June and he said the world could get inspiration that a seemingly hopeless situation under apartheid in South Africa could be resolved by supporting peace.
"So its a wonderful thing that you have this week of prayer for peace in Israel and Palestine," said the archbishop.
• Listen to Tutu's comments: http://www.oikoumene.org/fileadmin/files/wcc-main/sounds/2009/tutu_middle_east_comments.mp3
E.L.C.A. - M.U.D.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (E.L.C.A.) Ministry Upstream & Downwind (M.U.D.) program provides one-year service and learning opportunities in South Africa for E.L.C.A. young adults (between the ages of 21-30). As the young adults offer themselves in service, they also learn more about themselves, their relationship with God, and their place in God’s world. Young adults are transformed by their experiences, equipping them to take on responsibilities within the E.L.C.A. and to provide a global perspective on issues facing the church and society.
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Saturday, June 13, 2009
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Country Coordinators
Brian & Kristen Konkol (Country Coordinators)
The Country Coordinators, Brian and Kristen Konkol, oversee and facilitate the ELCA-MUD program. They facilitate in-country logistics such as visa procedures, finances and stipends, housing, working out individual placements, arrivals and departures, and evaluations of volunteers. Brian and Kristen have overall responsibility for the volunteer's well-being, support, and guidance during their term of service, and thus play both a pastoral and administrative role. In consultation with ELCA and ELCSA staff, they have the primary role in making decisions about a volunteer's placement, term of service, facilitating conflict resolution, and responding to crisis and emergencies.
Brian Konkol was born in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. His parents are George and Judy Konkol, who reside in Amherst Junction, Wisconsin. After graduating from Amherst High School (Amherst, Wisconsin) in 1997, Brian enrolled at Viterbo University (La Crosse, WI), and after four years on the men's basketball team and in pursuit of a Bachelors of Science Degree in Criminal Justice, he graduated from Viterbo in 2001 and immediately enrolled at Luther Theological Seminary (St. Paul, MN) in order to pursue a Master of Divinity degree, with the hopes of being ordained as a minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The "turn" into international service came during Brian’s third year of theological study, when he was selected by the E.L.C.A. to serve in an international "Horizon" internship, and was placed in New Amsterdam, Guyana, with the Ebenezer Lutheran Parish. Following a worthwhile internship year, and after graduating from Luther Seminary in May of 2005 and receiving official ordination into the ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in June of 2005, he was invited to return to Guyana as Long-Term Global Mission Personnel, serving with the Emmanuel Lutheran Parish of Skeldon within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Guyana. While in Guyana from 2005-2007, in addition to serving as pastor of four congregation, Brian also served as Director of the Lutheran Camp and Retreat Centre (2005-2006), Lecturer at the Lutheran Lay Academy (2005-2007), Co-Host of "The Word for the World" national television program (2005-2007), Advisor to the National Youth Commission (2005-2007), and also provided leadership and support in various other ministries within the community and wider church.
Kristen Konkol was born in Atlantic, Iowa. She is the daughter of Rev. Dr. Charles and Sharon Tews, who reside in Waupaca, Wisconsin. After graduating from Waupaca High School in 1995, Kristen accepted a full-scholarship to play basketball at the University of Toledo (Toledo, Ohio). She graduated with a Bachelors of Science Degree with an emphasis on Cardiac Rehabilitation, while also earning four letters on the highly successful women's basketball team. After graduation, Kristen then pursued Post-Graduate studies at the University of Minnesota, where she earned a Masters of Arts in Kinesiology, with a minor in Complementary and Alternative Therapy and Healing Practices through the Center for Spirituality and Healing. Kristen then worked as a community health specialist and research associate with the University of Minnesota. She worked with a Susan B. Komen Foundation Grant working with breast cancer survivors, and also the National Institute of Health Grant, working on a diabetes prevention study focusing on minority populations in the Twin Cities area. Kristen enrolled with the United States Peace Corps in 2003, and was assigned to Guyana, where she served as a health volunteer and was involved in various aspects of the community, ranging from HIV/AIDS education and awareness, to sports teams, and primary education. In 2006, Kristen moved to Skeldon, Guyana in order to serve as the Director of the Lutheran Camp and Retreat Centre, as well as in various other capacities, such as providing leadership in After-School Reading Programs, HIV/AIDS support groups, community outreach, and various other opportunities.
Brian and Kristen were married on September 23, 2006 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Waupaca, Wisconsin. They enjoy reading, listening to music, playing guitar, outdoor adventures/hiking, camping, running, cycling, basketball, and various other sporting activities.
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