Rev. David Runnion-Bareford, Executive Director of Biblical Witness Fellowship, the largest renewal group in the United Church of Christ, has released the following statement, in response to the silence of the denominational leadership following the recent Palestinian election that gave Hamas victory.

“With the tragic rise to power of the terrorist organization Hamas in the Palestinian Territories, it is now obvious that resolutions against Israel by the United Church of Christ and other mainline Protestant denominations were ill conceived, misdirected and only served to place Israelis and Palestinian Christians at greater risk. The President of the United Church of Christ was part of a small secretive team that undid the due process of UCC’s national General Synod meeting this past July, overriding the work of the delegates to press an anti-Israeli resolution upon Synod.

“We call on President John Thomas of the United Church of Christ now to admit his error and publicly denounce Hamas. We call on members and congregations of the United Church of Christ to stand in prayer and solidarity with the people of Israel, and our fellow Palestinian Christians, who are suffering from the oppression and violence of Hamas, and their terrorist allies. We encourage our fellow members, churches and structures of the United Church of Christ to urge the U.S. Government to actively pursue peace and justice by doing all in their power to protect those who seek to peacefully coexist in this region.”