What do our denominational campaign groups do?

Click below to see what your Church’s view on morally responsible investment in Israel/Palestine is, and see what our Church activists are doing to challenge this.

United Reformed Church

Responsibility for decision making in the URC rests fundamentally with the congregations.  The general approach is bottom up.  This is now reflected in the principle of decisions by consensus and, if possible, unanimity.  Therefore, concerns raised at a national level are unlikely to be resolved quickly and much time is taken in keeping as many churches and members as possible in agreement.  This applies to issues on investment and social action as well as theology.

Decisions, including those concerning investment, are made at three levels, which also reflect the levels at which financial resources are held.  These are 

• local churches
• synods (there are 13 in England, Wales and Scotland)
• nationally 

Each of these levels can make their own choices and decisions about investment, although there is guidance from the national church.  The amounts of money held by churches vary widely, with some churches being relatively well endowed and others struggling to meet expenses.  Property such as church buildings and manses are the responsibility of the Synods and are held in trust.  The Synods also have varying amounts of money to invest.  In general, when capital is released by the sale of a building this is quickly used in new projects.  The national church holds funds for ministerial pay and pensions.  It is likely that the Synods also have some money committed to this too.  

At present, national URC policy is as follows :- (taken from the URC website, July 2018)

URC Ethical Investment Policy Statement:

1. General Assembly recommends that trustees and all those with investment responsibilities connected with the United Reformed Church should avoid any investment in:

• a) companies directly engaged in the manufacture or supply of weapons;
• b) companies a significant part of whose business is in the manufacture or supply of: alcoholic drinks, or tobacco products, or military equipment (other than weapons); or the provision of gambling facilities; or the publication or distribution of pornography; or in the extraction of thermal coal or the production of oil from oil sands;
• c) companies who benefit by offering credit at usurious rates of interest to those who do not have access to funds through normal lending channels. 

General Assembly is of the view that in the definition of the activities outlined in b) above, ‘significant’ means that the share of turnover derived from the activity concerned is more than 10% of the company’s total turnover; for c) above the equivalent threshold should be 25%.

2. In addition to the exclusions listed above, the URC’s investment bodies should reserve the right to avoid investment in companies whose operations are deemed to: 

• contribute directly to human rights violations or support the maintenance of oppressive regimes who are guilty of gross human rights violations;
• contribute to a systematic, harmful impact on the social or natural environment;
• harm the society in which they operate more than they benefit it;
• promote injustice. 

3. Further, it is expected that governance standards of our advisers, our fund managers, their agents, and the companies in which we invest, both directly and indirectly, should meet internationally accepted norms. By focusing on these standards, investors will favour companies which will be seeking to develop their businesses sustainably in the long term interests of their shareholders and other stakeholders.

4. Nestle Clarification: for investment purposes all companies should be treated in accordance with this ethical investment policy. There is no further requirement to exclude holdings in this company.

5. General Assembly recognises that this policy cannot be binding upon those with responsibility for specific investment decisions but when these bodies seek advice on investment matters they should apply due diligence to ensure that the integrity and reputation of the United Reformed Church is, as far as is practical, protected.

While there is no specific statement regarding the situation in Israel Palestine, paragraph 2 could be interpreted as encouraging avoidance of investment in companies involved in the settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, as well as companies maintaining the separation barrier and in other ways breaking international law.  Others will already be excluded by paragraphs 1a and 1b (with reference to military equipment).

What have URC activists done so far? 

URC campaigners began by gathering information on how URC funds are invested at national and Synod level and whether this provides an adequate filter against investing in companies that support violations of international law.  Several of the 13 synods were contacted by local campaigners, as well as the central Investment Committee which oversees URC investment policy.  The COIF Ethical Investment Fund managed by CCLA is a popular choice for URC funds.

In 2021 after several years of campaigning, 10 resolutions were put forward to URC General Assembly referencing Israel and Palestine, including the following resolution directed to both Synod and National investments:

Resolution 32: General Assembly recognises the ethical principles-based approach of the URC Trusts and Pension Funds to investing and commends them in this long-established commitment, so that they can continue to avoid investing in any international company which facilitates the following activities in the occupied Palestinian territories:

• • construction, production and services for the illegal settlements
  • the economic exploitation of labour and the captive Palestinian market
  • the illegal extraction and procurement of natural resources
  • population control through private security and surveillance where it contravenes international law
  • provision of specialised equipment for the forced demolition of Palestinian homes and structures
  • building and servicing of the separation wall / barrier and its checkpoints on Palestinian land
  • and any other breaches of international law.

Our URC campaign group is now calling on the URC to implement these resolutions as soon as possible, and helping in any way it can to support the URC in all 10 of these resolutions. More information can be found here about the 2021 General Assembly resolutions  

The Quaker Church

Quaker Involvement in the Middle East

Quakers have a long history of peacemaking in the Middle East, especially in relation to Palestine and Israel. In 2002, the World Council of Churches responded to a call from Palestinian Christians and set up the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI). Quakers are responsible for running it in the UK and Ireland. Ecumenical Accompaniers (EAs) are sent out for three months to live alongside Palestinians and Israelis who are working for a just peace. As a result, Quakers now have a deep knowledge of the situation on the ground and campaign actively for an end to the occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza, and the protection of human rights.

Quaker Policy on Investment 

Quakers have always stood for principles of ethical investment ie that money should not be used to invest in companies that go against Quaker principles of equality, human well-being, social justice and peace. Accordingly Britain Yearly Meeting (BYM – the national body of Quakers) state in their investment policy that no investments should be made in the armaments industry, gambling, or companies connected with tobacco, pornography or alcohol. More recently owing to a Quaker commitment to a low carbon economy, that list now includes the fossil fuel industry.

What have Quaker activists done so far?

In Devon there is an active group on Palestine and Israel. In 2017, we decided to press for BYM to add to the above exclusion list companies that profit from the military occupation of Palestinian territory. BYM encourages participation in decision making by Quakers at every level.  Decisions about day-to-day policy issues are taken by a variety of BYM committees but they are guided in this by a body called Meeting for Sufferings which meets every two months.  So our working group put forward a motion via Devon Area Meeting to Meeting for Sufferings on this issue.

Campaign success! Quakers will not profit from the occupation of Palestine  

On the 19th November 2018 the Quakers in Britain announced it had become the first church in the UK which will not invest any of its centrally-held funds in companies profiting from the occupation of Palestine.

The decision, made by the church’s trustees in consultation with Meeting for Sufferings – the national representative body of Quakers – fits into a long Quaker history of pursuing ethical investments. It follows decisions not to invest funds in, among others, the fossil fuel industry, arms companies, Apartheid South Africa, and – going even further back – the transatlantic slave trade.

Paul Parker, recording clerk for Quakers in Britain, said:

“Our long history of working for a just peace in Palestine and Israel has opened our eyes to the many injustices and violations of international law arising from the military occupation of Palestine by the Israeli government.

“With the occupation now in its 51styear, and with no end in near sight, we believe we have a moral duty to state publicly that we will not invest in any company profiting from the occupation.

“We know this decision will be hard for some to hear. We hope they will understand that our beliefs compel us to speak out about injustices wherever we see them in the world, and not to shy away from difficult conversations.

“As Quakers, we seek to live out our faith through everyday actions, including the choices we make about where to put our money.

“We believe strongly in the power of legitimate, nonviolent, democratic tools such as morally responsible investment to realise positive change in the world. We want to make sure our money and energies are instead put into places which support our commitments to peace, equality and justice.

“We hope that by announcing our refusal to profit from these companies it will encourage others to think about their own investments, and help challenge the legality and practices of the ongoing military occupation.”

For the full press release, please click here

Roman Catholic Church

Our Catholic group, from across the UK, come together with their joint values, ethics and our respect for International Humanitarian Law and the human rights provisions it makes, to speak out on the injustices faced by Palestinians around the world and those in the Holy Land.  They take their inspiration from Catholic Social Teaching and argue that the investments, whether made by dioceses or religious orders of charities, or individuals or the funds they influence (such as pensions) need to promote these values.  They are alert to their own context – in which Pope Francis calls them to empathy and communion with all the Earth and with all people (for example in Laudato Si and Fratelli Tutti).

The group’s focus has been to campaign to try and ensure the Catholic Church does not profit from companies complicit in denying human rights, or the breaking of international law in oppression of any people, and use investments to promote transition to a more just future. They seek to accomplish this by influencing the screening policies applied by fund managers. While they argue negative screening must apply to the oppression of any, their particular focus is to raise awareness and response to the situation concerning Palestinians.

What has the denominational group done so far?

The Bishops from the 22 dioceses of England and Wales and 8 dioceses of Scotland come together in their respective Bishops Conferences to undertake nationwide initiatives through their Departments, Commissions and Agencies. The Catholic Campaign group currently relate to:

• The Holy Land Coordination which coordinates an annual visit of Bishops from Europe and North America to the Catholic Communities in the ‘Holy Lands’ of the Middle East and issues a final communique detailing the findings of that visit including human rights issues
• The Justice & Peace commissions at both national and diocesan level
• Pax Christi UK working for international peace and partnered in Bethlehem by the Arab Educational Institute
• CAFOD the official Catholic Aid Agency partnering organisations in the West Bank, Gaza & Israel
   

Investments are managed at Diocesan level and independently by religious orders, so the group have worked in the following ways:

• Pax Christi sent copies of Investing for Peace to every diocesan finance officer  
• Group members have followed up on this in their own dioceses in partnership with justice & peace commissions/coordinating councils and are trying to extend toe network of active diocesan members
• A new Catholic investment fund was set up at CCLA investment managers and the group have tried to engage with the advisory group re criteria/screening for investment
• The group are trying to engage with religious order both individually and through the conference of religious and one religious order is now represented on the group
• The group are looking to locate their work within the ethos and actions arising from ‘Laudato Si’ and have become members of the Laudato Si’ Action Platform.

Methodist Church

Background on Methodist engagement in Palestine/Israel

The Methodist Church was one of the first Churches in the UK to establish the principle of morally responsible investment in Palestine/Israel and to call for the boycott of goods from the illegal settlements. Decisions are made in the Church by its annual Conference, and the Conference has been consistent, over many years, in its opposition to the occupation.

Engagement on the issue of Israel/Palestine goes back many years.  In 2001, the Methodist position on the Occupation involved a call for a return of Israel to the borders of 1967 and for Jerusalem to be shared equally between the two nations and three faiths.  The Conference also requested to know the extent to which the UK was exerting its influence to ensure adherence to the Fourth Geneva Convention and for UN Security Council Resolutions 242, 338 and 1322 to be followed.  Furthermore, the Conference sought clarity as to how the UK was using its influence to ensure the right of return and compensation for all refugees who chose to return under UN Resolution 194. 

Initial call for disinvestment 

However, in April 2005, just before the Palestinian call for BDS, the Synod of the York and Hull Methodist District passed a resolution endorsing the decision of the Presbyterian Church of the US “to divest from any multinational corporations involved in the Occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip”. It called on the national Conference, “to undertake a review of all investments under its control, with a view to divesting from any corporations or activities which support the illegal occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.”

The issue therefore came before the Conference of 2005 where it was referred to the Church’s Joint Advisory Committee on the Ethics of Investment. As the name suggests, this committee advises the Church on its investments. Its usual policy is one of “Constructive Engagement”, where it establishes principles that it expects companies to follow, engages with companies to encourage them in the direction it seeks, but ultimately reserves the right to disinvest if the company shows no interest in investing ethically. As such, the Conference of 2006 endorsed this same approach regarding investments in Israel/Palestine, calling on the committee to establish the key concerns that would guide this constructive engagement, “but which could ultimately lead to selective disinvestment.”

Methodist policy on investment

Mandated by the Conference, the ethics committee proposed their “by no means exhaustive list” of activities that would give rise to ethical concerns”.  These were:

1. Provision of equipment or services to the military or police in support of operations in the occupied territory or to terrorist groups in support of any military or terror activities.
2. Construction of facilities within the occupied territories without the express permission of the Palestinian Authority.
3. Construction or management of transport links between Israel and settlements in the occupied territories.
4. Contracts for the supply of materials or other activities related to the construction of the separation barrier
5. Manufacture of goods/produce within Israeli administered areas of the occupied territories or the sale of such items.
6. Appropriate country of origin labelling of goods sourced from Palestinian administered areas of the West Bank or Gaza.
7. The establishment of new operations in the region or partnerships with Israeli or Palestinian companies without due regard to possible human rights implications or impact on the conflict.

Companies that the Methodist Church may have investments with, would be assessed on the basis of the above criteria, especially in relation to the significance of their activity, impact on individuals or communities, record of the company in relation to human rights more generally, the importance of Israel/Palestine to their business and the significance of their business to what is happening on the ground.

Initially, constructive engagement with companies would be the key. However, if engagement proved to be fruitless, disinvestment would be the only ethical response.

Regular reports to Conference

The commitment of the Ethical Investment Committee since 2006 has been to report to the national Conference every year on its engagement with companies involved in Palestine/Israel – a commitment it has kept. In practice, there have not been very many investments to report on – for example, it never had investments in Caterpillar.  It did, for a time, invest in Veolia which was widely known to have been involved in the Jerusalem Light Railway where the Church’s policy of engagement perhaps went on longer than campaigners would have liked.  Today, however, it no longer has investments with that company after it fell off an investment index.

Boycott of the illegal settlements

After several more years of passing motions critical of the Occupation and in support of organisations such as ICAHD, the Conference made headlines in 2010 when it received a major report on the Occupation, which it had commissioned; and adopted a statement on the Methodist Church’s position.  This included a call for Methodists to support the boycott of goods from the illegal settlements. It further mentioned the support being given to this by Christian leaders in Palestine, including in what was then the newly published “Kairos Document”. Amongst many things, the report called for an end to the Occupation, the demolition of the Separation Wall, an end to the blockade of Gaza, an arms embargo and adherence to international law by all sides. It further called on Methodists to find out more, to write to their MPs, MEPs and Government ministers and to visit the region to meet with Palestinian Christians. Specifically, it also encouraged support for the World Council of Churches Week of Prayer for Palestine/Israel and also support for a precursor to Sabeel-Kairos – the “Just Peace for Palestine initiative of the Amos Trust”.

In a later Notice of Motion in 2012, the Conference went further in its call for a boycott of settlement goods, by joining with Christian Aid and the Quakers in Britain in calling for “the Government to introduce legislation to end the trade in products from illegal Israeli settlements”. The Church contributed to campaigning reports on this issue in a similar vein.

Finally, from 2013-14, the Methodist Church conducted a consultation on whether to support the BDS movement. A full debate was held on this in the Conference of 2014, but no firm conclusion on BDS was reached. However, it reaffirmed the Conference resolutions of 2010, and also encouraged work with organisations such as EAPPI, ICAHD UK and Sabeel-Kairos UK.

Continuing opposition to the Occupation

Over the years since 2001, the Methodist Conference has passed numerous resolutions calling for an end to the Occupation and in favour of peace with justice for all.  It has supported practical action to achieve this, and has led the way amongst many Churches within the UK – often in the face of quite fierce criticism from those who disagreed with its stance. It has reaffirmed its support for organisations such as EAPPI and ICAHD as well as campaigns such as those inspired by the Kairos Document.  At the time of the centenary of the Balfour Declaration in 2017, it expressed regret at the damaging consequences it had for the Palestinian people.  And in 2018, it passed another strongly worded Notice of Motion about the situation in Gaza, including a demand that the Israeli Army observes international law by ceasing to fire on civilians.

The Methodist Church stands against the Occupation and in favour of a just peace for all.

What have the Methodist Campaign group done so far?

For the last 5 years (since an initial fringe event and stall at Conference in 2017) the Methodist Campaign group have put forward memorials regarding Israel and Palestine to Conference every year, with a huge amount of success. Of particular importance to this campaign are:

Memorials to Methodist Conference 2019

In 2019 the Methodist working group wrote a memorial to conference regarding the current policy of the CFB/JACEI asking them to update it in light of the deteriorating situation in Palestine, to ensure that no companies profiting from occupation were included in their investment portfolio. Of particular concern was the on-going investment in Heidelberg Cement, a subsidiary owned by UK company Hanson. You can see a profile of them here on the Who Profits website.

The group distributed the memorial amongst other Methodists across the country and in total 12 circuits and 5 synods passed the memorial, amounting to over 800 votes in favour of it.

The memorials committee reviewed the memorial before the Conference in June, and decided to decline it on the grounds that they felt the current investment policy went far enough. You can read the memorial, and the reply here in this public document (starts on page 47): Memorials to the Conference 

There were plans to put forward a ‘notice of motion’ at Conference to ensure that this important memorial was not ignored, but unfortunate circumstances prevented this from happening.

However, shortly after the CFB withdrew its investment in Heidelberg Cement, citing ‘financial reasons’ as the cause. .

In 2020 the campaign group once again submitted a request for the JACEI and CFB to revise their investment policy, this time in light of the deteriorating situation in Palestine/Israel, including the proposed formal annexation plans regarding the West Bank and Jordan Valley in July 2020. This time the Conference commissioned the Methodist Council to investigate and write a report (here) with recommendations, which was released in January 2021 and advised the JACEI and CFB to revise the current investment policy with a view to:

• ensuring that companies operating in Israel can demonstrate how they will address the systemic challenges that come with the further integration of settlements into the legislative and economic
  fabric of the State of Israel.
• encouraging companies to outline the due diligence that they exercise in this regard
• responding to a request of the Methodist Council that, when a company is unwilling to refrain from operating in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (oPts), JACEI would, in most cases, advise exclusion from investment.

Following the release of the report, the group campaigned directly to the CFB to divest from Caterpillar, when it became aware that it was investing once again in this company, despite the recommendations from the Council to strengthen the existing investment policy. In May 2021 the CFB formally announced it was divesting from Caterpillar due to both financial and ethical reasons. You can read our press release here: Methodists Divest from Caterpillar citing Palestinian Evictions | Sabeel-Kairos

At Methodist Conference 2021 memorials submitted by group members called for the revision of the investment policy to be carried out swiftly, and for the Methodist Churches and members to engage with the Palestinian Cry for Hope, issued by Palestinian Christians in July 2020. Following the acceptance of these memorials the group proposed and were heavily involved with the Sabeel-Kairos ‘Cry for Hope in Lent’ series which ran for 5 weeks in March-April 2022.

After these great success, the new Israel/Palestine investment policy was released by the CFB and JACEI in September 2021 and can be read here: Israel Palestine – Policy Statement – Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church (cfbmethodistchurch.org.uk)

Following the revision of the policy, the work of the group has still continues, and they still seek to raise the voice of Palestinian Christians in the Methodist Church, and to actively campaign against investment in any company that violates Palestinian human rights, even in a small way.

Church of England

The Church of England works under a framework of five marks of mission including “to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and pursue peace and reconciliation”
Marks of Mission  

Investment Policy
Decisions concerning investment are made at three levels.  These are: 
·      local churches
·      diocesan
·      nationally

Each of these levels can make their own choices and decisions about investment, although there is guidance from the national church.

The C of E has an investment fund of approximately £12 billion.

The investment is managed by three National Investment Bodies (NIBs) who receive help and support from the Church’s Ethical Investment Advisory Group (EIAG). These are the Church Commissioners, the Church of England Investment Fund, managed by CCLA (Churches, Charities and Local Authorities) and the Church of England Pensions Board. The NIBs say:

Our ambition is to be at the forefront of responsible investment practice. We believe that taking account of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues is an intrinsic part of being a good long-term investor, for both ethical and financial reasons.

The Church Commissioners have always attached great importance to investing in a way that is consistent with Christian values. Together with the Church of England Pensions Board and CBF Church of England Funds, we sponsor the Church’s Ethical Investment Advisory Group (EIAG) to ensure that we receive expert, independent advice on ethical investment matters. In 2010 we signed the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment(PRI), committing us to incorporating ESG issues into our investment analysis and decision-making process.

They also say that they expect companies in which they invest to be ‘conscientious with regard to human rights’ and ‘do not wish directly to profit from, or provide capital to, activities that are materially inconsistent with Christian values …’

(C of E Statement of Ethical Investment Policy, March 2017)

In 2021 the EIAG finally released a long-awaited for Human Rights Policy, which is there to guide the national investing bodies in their screening, engagement and divestment decisions. You can read that policy here: EIAG Human Rights – web (1).pdf (churchofengland.org)

Other policies regarding Israel/Palestine
The Bishops of the Church of England formally adopted the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism in September 2018. Bishop David Walker commented that;

“The Jewish community, among whom I live in Salford, carry with them the vivid memory and scars of the Holocaust; they know all too well that antisemitism is never far below the surface of our society.

Today’s statement from the Church of England bishops assures them that we will continue to reject such prejudice and bigotry firmly, in line with our practice over 75 years.

At the same time we will continue to speak out critically when governments here and elsewhere act in ways that our faith calls us to challenge.”  

C of E campaign group activities

The C of E campaign group works to raise awareness of the Investing for Peace campaign at all levels of the Anglican Church. Some of those activities include:

• Putting forward resolutions at deaneries, dioceses (and in the future General Synod) regarding the Churches investment policy on Israel/Palestine
• Writing letters to the key investment bodies including the Church Commissioners, CBF, EIAG and Pensions Board. Requesting meetings where possible.
• Writing to and meeting with regional Diocesan finance officers to make them aware of the Investing for Peace campaign and finding out how diocesan money is invested locally.
• Meeting with representatives from the Church of England senior leadership team including interfaith advisors and finance officers.
• Hosting events, training days and awareness raising in their own Churches and parishes.

In October 2021 the Carlise Diocesan Synod passed the first motion relating to Israel/Palestine in many years, committing itself to endorsing Cry for Hope, and calling on General Synod to:

• Endorses the “Cry for Hope”[1] expressed by Palestinian Christians and the ‘Global Kairos for Justice’ coalition[2] (GKfJ);
• Requests that the Faith and Order Commission produce a report which analyses and refutes any theological justifications, for example, those promoted by some Christian Zionists, for the oppression of Palestinians.
• Instructs the Ethical Investment Advisory Group to provide guidance to the National Investing Bodies (NIBs) and Dioceses that will enable them to screen their investments and thereby make decisions regarding engagement with, and divestment from, companies which profit from the occupation.

This motion was proposed and led by a member of our campaign group, and now joins a queue of Diocesan Synod Motions to be debated and voted on nationally at General Synod some time in the coming quinquennium (4 year cycle).

Church of Scotland

Background

The Church of Scotland has had a physical presence in Israel/Palestine for over a century. At present the church has several properties including churches in Jerusalem and Tiberias, a guesthouse, a hotel and a school for both Palestinian and Israeli children of all faiths. Employment and expenditure where possible supports the Palestinian community and thus makes a positive investment into that economy. Support is also given to small producers and artisans, selling their goods both locally and in Scotland.

The Church works alongside other Christian denominations and faith groups bringing humanitarian aid and support where they can. They also partner Israeli and Palestinian organisations who are striving to end the occupation and bring about a society where all are equally included and there is justice and peace for all who live in Israel and Palestine.

Investment Policy

Most Church of Scotland investments are managed by the denomination’s Investors’ Trust. It runs three funds – Growth, Income and Deposit – into which local congregations and national church bodies can put their money. The Investors’ Trust makes ethical decisions by “taking into account” the views of the Church of Scotland’s General Assembly, while not technically being bound by them. Ethical screens are in place on the Growth and Income Funds and no direct investments are held in Israel/Palestine.

Ethical considerations are an important part of the management process and investment is avoided in any company involved in gambling, tobacco products, alcohol, armaments and other activities felt to harm society more than benefit it. In general investment is sought in companies that demonstrate responsible employment, good corporate governance and have regard to the environment, human rights and sensitivity to local communities.

The Investors’ Trust is a member of the Church Investors Group giving connection with current thinking on Ethical, Social and Corporate Governance matters. This year the Trust has endorsed projects dealing with issues such as Modern Slavery, Mental Health and COP26.

2019 Strategic Review

In 2019 the Church of Scotland produced a strategic review of its work and presence in Israel/Palestine. This can be accessed from the 2019 General Assembly section of the Church of Scotland Website. 

The church is exploring the area of Faith Consistent Investing, asking if investments held are morally responsible and is profit being made from the physical, structural or economic violence of the occupation in Israel/Palestine. There are international companies and conglomerates such as Caterpillar and JCB which sell equipment which is known to support the occupation but which do not show up on general ethical screens. There is a desire to discuss issues raised about Israel and Palestine and consider the possibility of a general screen which highlight companies which flout International and/or Humanitarian Laws.

Like the Quakers the Church of Scotland does not adopt BDS actions but have emphasised that they “support the right of organisations and citizens to engage in such democratic and legitimate means of nonviolent protest”

Amongst the report’s deliverances approved were:

a) Encourage all members and agencies of the Church to engage with the Sabeel Kairos ‘Investing for Peace: a guide for local church activists’ and consider the key issues of Morally Responsible Investment.

b) Encourage congregations to invite speakers and to buy fairly traded Palestinian goods from Hadeel and other outlets.

c) Instruct the Council to ensure that the Church’s institutions, resources and investments in Israel and Palestine aim for the highest ethical considerations.

Church of Scotland campaign group activities:

We were delighted to launch our Church of Scotland group in 2022, following several years of engaging with a number of individuals within the Church that have been raising the issue of Palestine for years. We now have an active group who are working towards raising this in the 2023 Kirk General Assembly, and are connecting with relevant people in the Church to help them do so.  

The Iona Community

The Iona Community is an ecumenical Christian community of men and women from different traditions within Christianity. The community headquarters and publishing house (wild goose publications) are based in Glasgow. The main center for worship, retreats and other activities takes place on the island of Iona and also the island of Mull.

What does the Iona Community say about investments in Israel and Palestine?

The Iona community has had a long-standing commitment against funding companies that profit from the occupation, and uses its influence within the Church of Scotland to regularly challenge and raise the concerns regarding Palestine. Several members of our campaign groups are members of the Iona Community too.

Baptists 

We are delighted to be starting up a Baptist denominational group. If you are interested in joining this group please contact