Ambassador Dennis Ross to Speak at General Assembly

Ambassador Dennis Ross to Speak at General Assembly

"Presbyterian Action laments the lack of balance in the narrative offered by denominational leaders." -- Director of Presbyterian Action Jim Berkley
SAN JOSE, Calif., June 20 /Christian Newswire/ -- "What Makes for Peace in Israel?" is the topic of Ambassador Dennis Ross's presentation for a noontime Presbyterian Action Briefing on June 23 at the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly in San Jose, California. The Briefing will be held from 12:30 to 1:20 in the Club Regent at the Fairmont Hotel, 170 South Market Street, in downtown San Jose. The public is invited to this free video lecture, which will also include a panel to answer questions. No meal will be served.

Ambassador Ross is counselor and Ziegler distinguished fellow at The Washington Institute in Washington, D.C. He played a leading role in shaping U.S. involvement in the Middle East peace process and dealing directly with the parties in negotiations. A highly skilled diplomat, Ambassador Ross was U.S. point man on the peace process in both the George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton administrations. He was instrumental in assisting Israelis and Palestinians to reach the 1995 Interim Agreement; he also successfully brokered the 1997 Hebron Accord, facilitated the 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty, and intensively worked to bring Israel and Syria together.

Presbyterian Action, a committee of the Institute on Religion and Democracy, located in Washington, D.C., works within the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to renew the denomination's social witness.

The biennial Presbyterian General Assembly, the church's top governing body, could vote later in the week to renew a push toward divestment from Caterpillar Corporation because of its operations in Israel, or to call for cessation of all U.S. military aid to Israel. Presbyterian Action opposes such actions, seeking instead a more evenhanded approach to Middle East peace, recognizing the need for fairness toward all legitimate partners in a just peace.

Jim Berkley, Director of IRD's Presbyterian Action Committee, commented:

"Presbyterian Action laments the lack of balance in the narrative offered by denominational leaders. Such unfettered hostility toward Israel sparks further discord with our Jewish friends. Decision makers are not getting the full story, the whole truth.

"Ambassador Ross will interject into the General Assembly discussion a level of realism and fairness, both of which seem to be in short supply among some of my fellow Presbyterians."

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