...There are several commonalities apparent in these and other statements issued by Churches and Church organizations since July 12. These commonalities include:

• An attempt to portray Israeli use of force solely as an overreaction to kidnappings (by themselves and act of war) without acknowledging the hundreds of rocket attacks against Israeli civilians launched by Hamas since Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and the rocket attacks that preceded the Hezbollah’s kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers;
• A failure to acknowledge that Hezbollah has, with Syrian and Iranian support, stockpiled weapons for use against Israel;
• A failure to acknowledge the fundamental difference between the motives of the warring parties. Israel uses force to protect its citizens; Hamas and Hezbollah use force in an effort to destroy the Jewish State;
• A failure to acknowledge the fundamental difference between the practices of the warring parties. Israel works to avoid civilian casualties by warning people to leave areas before attacks; Hamas and Hezbollah target civilians while hiding amongst their own civilians, guaranteeing civilian casualties. Hezbollah has also used checkpoints to prevent Lebanese civilians from fleeing combat areas; and
• A failure to acknowledge that Israel was attacked by territory from which it had previously withdrawn from in the pursuit of peace.

It is also important to note that the organizations that offered these statements offered little if any criticism of Hamas and Hezbollah’s provocative actions before Israel responded. Criticism of Hamas and Hezbollah’s misdeeds typically serves as an adjunct to statements primarily focused on condemning Israel...