NATIONAL INTERRELIGIOUS LEADERSHIP INITIATIVEFOR PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EASTWebsite: www.nili-mideastpeace.org IN A MESSAGE TO THE WHITE HOUSE, RELIGIOUS LEADERS SAY PEACE IS POSSIBLEFOR RELEASE: After 3:30 pm September 29, 2010For More Information contact: Ron Young at E-mail: usicpme@aol.com or (425) 327-7545WASHINGTON—In visits to the White House and the State Department, religious leaders representing the Christian, Jewish and Muslim communities offered support for the Obama administration’s efforts to continue peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.The leaders presented a statement at meetings on September 29 with National Security Advisor General James Jones and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, on behalf of the National Interreligious Leadership Initiative for Peace in the Middle East (NILI).“We are people of hope. We call upon the members of our religious communities to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and to support active, fair, and firm U.S. leadership to advance comprehensive peace in the Middle East,” said the statement. “It will be difficult to achieve, but peace is possible.”The statement called for a two-state solution as the only viable path to peace and said sustained U.S. leadership for peace is essential.FOR QUOTATIONS FROM RELIGIOUS LEADERSWHO ENDORSED THE STATEMENT,GO TO THE WEBSITES OF THEIR ORGANIZATIONSFull text of the statement and list of endorsers follows: New Hope for the Peace of Jerusalem:Jewish, Christian and Muslim Religious Leaders Support U.S. Leadership for PeaceOur faith traditions teach that every person is created by the one God and deserving of respect. This common religious heritage finds expression in our common commitment to peace with justice for all.With the support and engagement of the United States, earlier this month, direct negotiations resumed between Israel and the Palestinian Authority with the goal of reaching agreement within one year. It is imperative that the peace talks continue. While we have long supported a halt to all settlement expansion, we support the United States working with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas to reach a mutually acceptable agreement that will allow the negotiations to continue. We stand united in support of active, fair, and firm U.S. leadership for Arab-Israeli-Palestinian peace. Two years ago, we issued a statement on “a window of hope.” Today we declare there is “New Hope for the Peace of Jerusalem.” It will be difficult to achieve, but peace is possible.Since 2003 we have worked together for a two-state solution that will bring Arab-Israeli-Palestinian peace within the framework of U.N. Security Council Resolutions 242, 338 and 1397. As religious leaders in the United States, we have prayed for peace, made public statements, met with public officials, and stood in solidarity with religious leaders in Israel, the Palestinian Territories and throughout the region.Despite tragic violence and discouraging developments, there are signs of hope. Majorities of both Israelis and Palestinians still support a two-state solution. Arab states have declared their commitment to peace in the Arab Peace Initiative. There are U.S. diplomatic efforts to restart Israeli-Syrian and Israeli-Lebanese negotiations for peace. Official and informal negotiations have produced the outlines of concrete compromises for resolving the conflict, including the final status issues: borders and security, settlements, refugees and Jerusalem. Jewish, Christian and Muslim religious leaders both here and in the region reject the killing of innocents, support a just peace, and believe sustained negotiations are the only path to peace.As we said two years ago, there is a real danger that cynicism will replace hope and that people will give up on peace. With the resumption of direct negotiations, clarity is demanded. So let us be clear. As religious leaders, we remain firmly committed to a two-state solution to the conflict as the only viable way forward. We believe that concerted, sustained U.S. leadership for peace is essential. And we know that time is not on the side of peace, that delay is not an option.The path to peace shuns violence and embraces dialogue. This path demands reciprocal steps that build confidence. This path can lead to a future of two states, Israel and a viable, independent Palestine, living side by side in peace with security and dignity for both peoples, stability in the region, and a comprehensive peace between Israel and all her Arab neighbors.The United States has a unique and indispensable role which gives our nation a special responsibility to pursue peace. Achieving Arab-Israeli-Palestinian peace will have positive reverberations in the region and around the world. Our nation and the world will be much safer with the achievement of the peace of Jerusalem.We refuse, now and always, to give into cynicism or despair. We are people of hope. We call upon the members of our religious communities to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and to support active, fair, and firm U.S. leadership to advance comprehensive peace in the Middle East. The time for peace is now.September 29, 2010Endorsers of “New Hope for the Peace of Jerusalem”September 29, 2010 Christian Leaders:His Eminence Theodore Cardinal McCarrick, Archbishop Emeritus of WashingtonBishop Howard J. Hubbard, Chairman, Committee on International Justice and Peace, USCCBArchbishop Vicken Aykazian, Director, Ecumenical Affairs, Armenia Orthodox Church in AmericaFr. Mark Arey, Director, Office of Ecumenical Affairs, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of AmericaReverend Michael Kinnamon, General Secretary, National Council of Churches of Christ USAThe Rev. Mark S. Hanson, Presiding Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in AmericaMost Rev. Dr. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop and Primate, Episcopal ChurchRev. Geoffrey Black, General Minister & President, United Church of ChristThe Rev. Dr. Sharon Watkins, General Minister, President, Christian Churches (Disciples of Christ)The Reverend Gradye Parsons, Stated Clerk, Presbyterian Church (USA)Bishop Sharon Zimmerman Rader, Council of Bishops, United Methodist ChurchThe Reverend Michael E. Livingston, Executive Director, International Council of Community ChurchesThe Reverend Leighton Ford, President, Leighton Ford Ministries, Board Member, World Vision USRev. John M. Buchanan, Editor and Publisher, Christian CenturyDavid Neff, Editor in Chief and Vice-President, Christianity Today Jewish Leaders:Rabbi Eric Yoffie, President, Union of Reform JudaismRabbi David Saperstein, Director, Religious Action Center of Reform JudaismRabbi Ellen Weinberg Dreyfus, President, Central Conference of American RabbisRabbi Peter Knobel, Past President, Central Conference of American RabbisRabbi Elliot Dorff, Rector, American Jewish UniversityDr. Carl Sheingold, Former Executive Vice President, Jewish Reconstructionist FederationRabbi Amy Small, Past President, Reconstructionist Rabbinical AsssemblyMuslim Leaders:Dr. Sayyid Muhammad Syeed, National Director, Islamic Society of North AmericaImam Mohamed Magid, President, Islamic Society of North AmericaImam Yahya Hendi, Muslim Chaplain, Georgetown University, Clergy Beyond BordersDawud Assad, President Emeritus, Council of Mosques, USAEide Alawan, Interfaith Office for Outreach, Islamic Center of AmericaIftekhar A. Hai, Founding Director, United Muslims of America* Organizations for Identification Only# # # # #