“The only possible solution is the end of the illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories. There is no other way. But more immediate still is the end of every military action”. This is the opinion formed about the dramatic situation in the Middle East by Georges Lemopoulos on his return from a trip to Jerusalem. Lemopoulos formed part of a delegation of the World Council of Churches which visited Jerusalem from 2 to 4 April to meet the Greek-Orthodox patriarch, His Beatitude Irineos I, and the leaders of the Christian Churches and communities. “We are explains the delegate constantly at the side of the Churches and their communities and no day passes without us taking a stance to defend their rights”, seeking first and foremost to “eliminate the underlying causes of the conflict”. In spite of their good intentions, “the offer of mediation made by the representatives of the Churches explains Lemopoulos was completely ignored by the Israeli government. The leaders of the Churches offered their services as mediators, but they were preaching in the wilderness. They asked to go to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem to ensure that the church was a place of peace, but they were turned back at the check-points”. !–OCCHIELLO–>the lay principl
