The vote reportedly took place in Salt Lake City, Utah, with the Assembly comprising 422 delegate commissioners and 82 advisory delegates.
Earlier this week, the Presbyterian Church (USA) voted to divest from financial bonds in Israel and denounced Christian Zionism, the Religion News Service reported.
The church’s General Assembly voted on Monday in favor of legislation to divest from Israel bonds and initiated efforts to urge two companies, accused of human rights abuses against Palestinians in the occupied territories, to cease their practices, according to the Anadolu news agency.
The vote reportedly took place in Salt Lake City, Utah, with the Assembly comprising 422 delegate commissioners and 82 advisory delegates.
The resolution condemning Christian Zionism described it as “an ideological vision that it says links the State of Israel with biblical views of the ‘promised land,’ and therefore justifies taking land away from Palestinians.”
With approximately 8,800 churches and 1 million members, the PCUSA is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the US.
BREAKING: Yesterday, the Presbyterian Church (USA) voted to divest from Israel bonds and denounce Christian Zionism, citing human rights abuses against Palestinians.https://t.co/2g4wtEMqor
— IMEU (@theIMEU) July 2, 2024
Bob Ross, a member of the steering committee of the Israel/Palestine Mission Network, told the news service that the resolution aims to prevent the church from profiting from Israel’s occupations.
“Addressing Israel’s prolonged occupation of Palestinian territory is especially urgent today, as it is directly connected to the devastating war in Gaza and ongoing violence in the West Bank,” he emphasized.
US-based institutions, including universities and tech companies, have repeatedly faced demands to divest from Israeli firms profiting from the onslaught against the Gaza Strip since October.
Ongoing Genocide
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 38,000 Palestinians have been killed, and 87,445 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.
(PC, Anadolu)
To all Presbyterians worldwide, we fully support your stand to divest from Israel bonds and Christian Zionism! May your tribe increase more in this world.