The Episcopal Church has a long-held position that a just and lasting peace can only come through two states living side by side, and our position that negotiations must be the process for which this comes about.

This week, a group of 42 Christian leaders in the United States and Jerusalem – including both Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and the Anglican Bishop in Jerusalem, Suheil Dawani – wrote to Secretary of State John Kerry endorsing a framework for conclusive negotiations. You can add your voice and those of members of your congregation to their effort. Our colleagues at Churches for Middle East Peace have provided an endorsement form you can use in your congregation.

A negotiated two-state solution is not just the position of religious leaders, however. As the Presiding Bishop has reminded us in the past, “support for a two-state solution is the shared policy of the United States government, the government of Israel, and the Palestinian National Authority.”