%1

When a delegation of U.S. Protestant and Orthodox representatives returned in late April from a visit to the Middle East, they immediately issued a statement “equally and unequivocally” condemning the suicide bombings against Israelis and “the violence of the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.” Both types of violence, the Christian leaders said, were “counterproductive to achieving peace with justice.” The statement went on to outline “a just resolution” that would include “secure borders” for Israel and an end to Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza.

The ecumenical tables in the U.S. are too small. None is large enough to encompass the full diversity of Christian life in this country. The National Council of Churches includes 36 Protestant and Orthodox bodies, but the member churches account for only one-third of U.S. Christians. Glaringly missing from its ranks is the nation’s largest Christian church, the Roman Catholic.