“We come with intense pain and grief over the suffering of Palestinians and Israelis.”
With those words, Marta Bunnett Wiebe welcomed about 95 Winnipeggers to a peace service of prayers and songs on December 19 outside the office of Liberal Member of Parliament Dan Vandal.
“As people of God’s peace, we are called to mourn for those killed by Hamas in Israel and those killed by the Israeli military in Gaza,” said Bunnett Wiebe, a member of Home Street Mennonite Church.
Michael Pahl, executive minister of Mennonite Church Manitoba, outside the office of MP Dan Vandal in Winnipeg. Photo by John Longhurst
The group in Winnipeg was among about 1,500 people who gathered that day at the offices of elected representatives in 40 locations in Canada and the U.S.
The gatherings were organized by Mennonite Action, a new group seeking to mobilize Anabaptists across North America to use creative nonviolent actions to demand a ceasefire in Gaza and an end to the occupation of Palestine.
Allegra Friesen Epp, also a member of Home Street, shared with the gathering about people she knows in Hebron where she served for three months with Community Peacemaker Teams.
She spoke about their life under curfews and lockdowns of the occupation, stating the Israeli government is “doing everything in its power to crush the livelihoods and existence of the Palestinian people.”
Palestinians “dream of a future of living with justice and freedom,” she said, adding that Canadian Mennonites should “stand with them and pressure our politicians” to help them achieve that goal.
Also speaking was Joanna Hiebert Bergen, a member of Fort Garry Mennonite Fellowship.
Bergen, who served in Palestine and Israel with Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), spoke about visits to Gaza where signs on the Israeli side of the fence tell people they are “exiting” to that community.
Today, she said, thousands of Palestinians are “exiting” Gaza by “flying upward”—not by choice, but because they are being killed in the war.
James Alty, a member of Crossroads Mennonite Brethren Church and until fall, the MCC country representative for Palestine and Israel with his wife, Joan, shared about how lasting peace in the region “seems to be an illusion, like a mirage in the desert.”
But there are faith-based organizations and individuals in the region “determined to work for justice and peace,” he said.
Alty said it will “take a long time to recover from the war in Gaza,” adding “the pain is real on both sides . . . all are in pain, all are heartbroken.”
He invited members of the gathering to “celebrate the gift of hope this time of year,” and to know “there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and that light is Christ.”
As part of the service, representatives of the group delivered a letter to Vandal’s office. Vandal was not there. The letter demands an immediate and permanent ceasefire; a halt to providing funds to arm the Israeli military; and a call to advocate for an end to the occupation of Palestine and for the “freedom and dignity of all Palestinians and Israelis.”
On December 12, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a statement calling for a “sustainable ceasefire.”
Along with the calls for a ceasefire, the group offered a prayer for hostages still held by Hamas.
For Karla Braun, who helped organize the Winnipeg service, the event was a way to make a statement that was “peaceful and non-confrontational, growing out of our Mennonite commitment to peace.”
“We wanted to speak up for all who are suffering, Israelis and Palestinians,” said Braun, a member of the Crossroads Mennonite Brethren Church.
In addition to Winnipeg, peace services were held in Waterloo, Tavistock, St. Catharines, Toronto and Niagara Falls in Ontario, and in Nelson and Abbotsford in B.C.
Additional actions are planned by the network for the New Year.
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