Presbyterians ease Mideast divesting policy

Palestinians remove a damaged car after an explosion
near a Palestinian security forces building in Gaza city
June 21, 2006. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

By Verna Gates

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (Reuters) - The largest U.S. Presbyterian church on Wednesday backed away from a policy that ordered it to divest stock holdings in companies doing business with Israel that profit from the violence in the Middle East.

The 2.5 million-member Presbyterian Church U.S.A. voted at its biennial convention to replace an order of divestment adopted two years ago with a broader directive to employ its investments only for peaceful pursuits.

No money in its $8 billion portfolio had yet been divested, but the church could still take that step.

"If they do not change their behavior, then it could lead to a recommendation to the 2008 general assembly to divest," said the Rev. Leonard Bjorkman of New York.

He called the directive, approved by 94 percent of the delegates voting, a "softening" of the church's stance.

The issue had divided the church, where some members thought the divestment threat was anti-Jewish, and it damaged the church's relationship with Israel. Wednesday's vote was in part a reflection of those concerns.

Glenn Dickson, an elder from Gainsville, Florida, who helped write the request for divestment two years ago but supports the change, said the intent of the original action was to "spur the Jewish community in this country to reclaim their heritage of justice."

The church's 2004 meeting endorsed a "phased, selective divestment" of holdings in firms whose products, activities or services underpinned the conflict in Israel and Palestine.

FIVE COMPANIES TARGETED

A committee pursuing such divestment had singled out five companies -- Caterpillar Inc., Citigroup Inc., United Technologies Corp., Motorola Inc. and ITT Industries Inc. -- for "dialogue, shareholder resolutions and public pressure."

While other U.S. churches have explored similar divestments, none had taken it as far as the Presbyterians. How much the church has invested in those companies has not been disclosed.

"We are thrilled," said David Elcott, director of inter-religious affairs for the American Jewish Committee. "This validates our strategy of engagement and outreach over assault."

He called the action "courageous. ... This is a win-win situation not only for Jews and Christians.

Even more, it is a victory for Israelis and Palestinians and those committed to end the suffering."

Rabbi Jonathan Miller of Temple Emanuel in Birmingham, Alabama, told the convention: "I am grateful to all people who stuck with us to make right this mistake."

The resolution urged that "financial investments of the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. as they pertain to Israel, Gaza, East Jerusalem and the West Bank (be invested) in only peaceful pursuits" and continue the "customary corporate engagement process" to make that happen.