Adopted by the General Assembly, November 10, 2010
WHEREAS, on Sunday, October 31, 2010, Iraq’s AI-Qaida affiliate launched an attack on the Syriac Catholic Church of Our Lady of Deliverance in Baghdad, killing two clergymen and over fifty worshippers, and
WHEREAS, this incident is only the latest in a long and ongoing series of church bombings, kidnappings, and other forms of targeted violence against Iraq’s Christian community since 2003, and
WHEREAS, subsequent deadly attacks against Christians in Iraq have taken place even as we are meeting these days at our General Assembly, and
WHEREAS, the ongoing violence compounds the tragedy which is impacting Iraq’s neighbors and allies, and increases the growing wave of refugees fleeing Iraq, and
WHEREAS, nine members of the United State House of Representatives, in their November 5 letter to Secretary of State Clinton, have asserted that “Iraq’s religious minorities have been subject to a specific pattern of violent discrimination, and as such require a cohesive strategy for their protection and preservation,”
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT
RESOLVED, that the General Assembly of the National Council of Churches of Christ USA and Church World Service expresses the solidarity of its member communions with the Christian community of Iraq, and particularly with the community of Our Lady of Deliverance Syriac Catholic Church, and
RESOLVED, that we condemn all acts of violence, especially those perpetrated against people engaged in the practice of their faith, and
RESOLVED, that we call upon all relevant actors, including the Iraqi government authorities, to protect Christians and other religious communities, so that they may live and function enjoying all the benefits guaranteed to them by Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and
RESOLVED, that we call upon the Government of the United States and the international community to work urgently with the Iraqi government authorities to restore stability and security for all Iraqi citizens.
Based on the Human Rights Policy, a policy statement of the NCC and CWS (1951), and “Pillars of Peace for tile 21st Century,” a policy statement of the NCC and CWS (1999).