ELCA NEWS SERVICE

August 19, 2013

Two top Lutheran leaders ask U.S. president to stop atrocities in Egypt
13-63-MRC

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The United States and its president have a role to
play to stop the atrocities in Egypt and allow for the self-determination
of that nation to be practiced, according to top Middle East and U.S.
Lutheran church leaders.
     In a joint Aug. 19 letter to U.S. President Barak Obama, the Rev.
Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America (ELCA), and the Rev. Munib A. Younan, bishop of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, expressed their concern with
the president over the current situation in Egypt and its implication
throughout the region.
     "We hear from fellow Christian leaders and our Muslim friends that
churches and mosques are being used as political tools," wrote Hanson and
Younan. "We are aware that there are some who are trying to transform the
political struggles of the region into religious wars."
     The two leaders wrote that what is happening in Egypt is not only a
struggle for democracy but that this crisis could transform "Egypt into a
battlefield of extremist powers that will not allow the Egyptians to live
in dignity. If not quickly resolved, the crisis there will affect the
whole region, and we will enter again into another vicious cycle of
hatred, bloodshed and war."
     Recalling the president's speech in Cairo five years ago, where
Obama emphasized the right of every nation to determine its own policies,
Hanson and Younan wrote that the anarchy afflicting Egypt "is creating
fertile ground for all kinds of groups to intervene, endangering the
possibility for healthy self-determination."
     Hanson and Younan wrote that such a situation will "only endanger
all moderate forces in Egypt -- be they Coptic or Muslim -- and will only
give a boost for non-democratic groups to hold Egypt and the whole Middle
East hostage."
     Making it clear that no religion has a monopoly on extremism, Hanson
and Younan said that in the Middle East, people are confronted by
religiously sanctioned political extremism -- a threat to common citizens
and persons of faith.
     Hanson and Younan urged President Obama to define a clear line of
U.S. policy toward the region in light of Islamic extremism. "The
appearance that the U.S. is investing in one group alone has already
exacerbated sectarian tensions. Not all Islamists are political
extremists. Peace-seeking Egyptians, whether Coptic or Muslim, are
committed to the well-being of all their neighbors and to the promotion
of democracy and a vibrant civil society."
     They also urged the president to take every possible step to stop
the violence, actively seek peace, play a constructive role in Egypt for
the sake of humanity and encourage all groups to gather at one table to
construct a road map toward reconciliation, which would make provisions
for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United
States, with more than 4 million members in nearly 10,000 congregations
across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church
of "God's work. Our hands," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God
through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the
world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church
reformer, Martin Luther.

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