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ISRAELI POLICEMEN STAND GUARD IN FRONT OF ORTHODOX CHRISTIANS AS THEY STAND ON THE VIA DOLOROSA ON THEIR WAY TO THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE DURING THE GOOD FRIDAY PROCESSIONS RETRACING THE ROUTE CHRISTIANS BELIEVE JESUS TOOK TO HIS CRUCIFIXION, IN JERUSALEM’S OLD CITY ON APRIL 10, 2015.
ISRAELI POLICEMEN STAND GUARD IN FRONT OF ORTHODOX CHRISTIANS AS THEY STAND ON THE VIA DOLOROSA ON THEIR WAY TO THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE DURING THE GOOD FRIDAY PROCESSIONS RETRACING THE ROUTE CHRISTIANS BELIEVE JESUS TOOK TO HIS CRUCIFIXION, IN JERUSALEM’S OLD CITY ON APRIL 10, 2015.
"As followers of Jesus, our response to ideologies of exclusivity and apartheid is to uphold a vision of inclusivity and equality for all peoples of the land and to persistently struggle to bring this about," the proclamation reads.
This document follows the tradition of German pastor Dietrich Bonfhoeffer's declaration — or a status confessionis — in 1933 when he argued that the Nazis' denial of the rights of Jews presented the German church with a choice to either stand up and resist the Nazi regime or stand by and lose its claim to follow the teachings of Jesus. Throughout history, the term status confessionis has been used by the church to describe a moral crisis and the church's response, which determines its faithfulness.
Echoing the language of a status confessionis, Cry for Hope declares, "The very being of the Church, the integrity of the Christian faith, and the credibility of the Gospel is at stake."
Comment: See also: