When Hamas launched its terrorist assault on Israel on October 07, I was asked to write a statement to our local Jewish communities on behalf of Ithaca pastors and Christian leaders. My Jewish next-door neighbors graciously reviewed it and helped me understand how what I had drafted might be received and heard. I’m grateful for their encouraging assistance. The statement was signed by nearly 20 local Christian pastors and leaders and was hand-delivered to the 2 local synagogues as well as to the Jewish communities at Cornell University and Ithaca College. All the signers were humbled that the statement was received with tearful appreciation.
As images of the violent and bloody ordeal have filled our newsfeeds, we have been urged to “pray for the peace of Jerusalem” (Ps 122:6). It’s a biblical admonition, so it must be a good and wise thing to do. But what exactly are we to be praying for? On November 19, my colleague, Chris Hutchinson, pastor of Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church (Blacksburg, VA), preached an outstanding sermon, “Praying for the Peace of Jerusalem.” It’s a timely, helpful, and challenging word, and we commend it to you.
And, we also want to recommend Chris’s excellent book, Rediscovering Humility.