By Lani Lanchester 

A call for congregants to urge pastors and pulpits to break their silence on Palestine and stand with the oppressed. 

In the Book of Esther, a decree is signed for genocide, Haman convinces King Xerxes that a certain people are “different,” their customs strange, their loyalty questionable. The solution, he says, is to destroy them. A day is chosen by lot, Purim, for their annihilation. 

Esther lives inside the palace, shielded from danger. Speaking up could cost her privilege, her position, even her life. Yet Mordecai challenges her: “Do not think that because you are in the King’s house you alone will escape… Who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:13-14). 

Her courage saves her people. 

Today, Palestinians echo Esther’s cry: “We have been sold to be destroyed, killed and annihilated.” Since 1948, when the Nakba, “catastrophe,” drove 750,000 people from their homes and destroyed over 500 villages, the erasure has not stopped. Land has been seized, churches attacked, families scattered, and Gaza’s Christian community has fallen from 35,000 in 1948 to fewer than 1,000 today. Bethlehem, once 85% Christian, is now about 12%. 

The United Nations defines genocide not only as killing, but also as deliberately inflicting conditions meant to destroy a people and erasing their identity. By this definition, what Palestinians face, bombed churches, blockaded cities, the apartheid wall, mass displacement, is an ongoing genocide. 

Why Pastors are Silent

Like Esther in the palace, many pastors today face pressure to remain quiet. They fear dividing congregations that already feel polarized. They worry about losing financial support, alienating church members, or being accused of antisemitism. Some denominations actively discourage speaking out on controversial issues, warning about tax-exempt status or denominational politics. Others admit privately that they don’t feel like “experts” and fear saying something wrong. 

These are real pressures. Pastors already carry heavy burdens, working with grieving families, mediating conflict, and managing the daily crises of congregational life. Speaking about Palestine may feel like one more risk that could cost them dearly. That is why any letter of conversation must be written with kindness, not condemnation. Encourage your pastor, remind them they are not alone, and offer to walk with them as they discern how to speak faithfully. 

The Theological Call

Silence, however, is not neutral. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer warned: “Silence in the face of evil is itself evil… Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act. “ 

And Jesus himself calls us to this path: 

• “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Matthew 5:9). 
• “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32)
• “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40). 

The 2009 Kairos Palestine Document calls this a “Moment of truth”. And urges the global church to stand with Palestinian Christians in prayer, advocacy, and love. Their nonviolent resistance, sumud, or steadfastness, exposes the imbalance of power and unmasks injustice for the world to see. 

From Individuals to Movements

Change does not happen when one person alone writes a letter. Change happens when congregations gather courage together. You can:

• Form a small group in your church to study the Kairos Document or watch a documentary on Palestine, then approach your pastor as a group. 
• Include prayers for Palestine in weekly services and prayer meetings. 
• Share articles, sermons, or statements from other Christian leaders who have spoken boldly, so your pastor feels less isolated. 
• Invite Palestinian Christian speakers to your church or host a joint Bible study.
• Create a justice or peacemaking committee that can formally encourage pastoral leadership. 

These collective steps not only support your pastor but also build the kind of congregational power that can shift the church’s witness from silence to solidarity. 

A Final Word

So here is the question pastors: What will you do with your pulpits? Will you risk comfort to name the truth? Will you pray publicly for Palestinian Christians, our brothers and sisters in Christ? Will you dare to call apartheid, dispossession, and genocide by their names? 

Like Esther, you are positioned “for such a time as this.” The church will be remembered either for its silence and betrayal or for its courage and obedience to Christ. 

We invite you to share this call, alongside The 2009 Kairos Palestine Document, with your pastors, friends, and faith communities. Let it spark prayer, courage and truth-telling in the face of genocide. And let it be done with kindness, so that our pastors know we long not to condemn them but to walk with them toward truth, justice, and peace.                                                                                          

Sample Letter to Your Pastor

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Why I Wrote “Learning to Listen to Palestine”

By Lani Lanchester

What does it mean to pursue peace in a world that feels irreparably broken? For me, the answer began with one simple but radical practice: listening. 

Why did I write this book? Because I believe hope is born when we take the risk of listening, really listening to one another. For me, that meant learning to listen to Palestine. 

This book is my personal quest, but it is also a calling for all Christians. I was raised within the framework of Christian Zionism, certain I already knew the story of the Holy Land. But when I finally traveled there, expecting my beliefs to be affirmed, I was confronted instead with a different truth: the silenced, lived reality of Palestinians. 

My wake-up call came in 2022 after the killing of Palestinian-American Christian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. I was shaken by the silence in the U.S. media and among Christian leaders. How could such a blatant injustice go unacknowledged? That moment became the seed of transformation. 

Through travel, research, and, most importantly, relationships, I uncovered a history I had never been taught, the Nakba of 1948, when hundreds of villages were destroyed and hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were forced to flee. Friends I met shared stories of their resilience, of their love of their land, and of their enduring faith. What began as disorientation grew into clarity: peace cannot be forced or propagandized. It is born in the right relationship, in listening, in love. 

As a teacher, I know that listening is the foundation of trust. I have seen this in my classroom when students who were once resistant to me learned to trust because I slowed down, listened, and loved them through conflict. That same posture of listening that transformed my classroom was what Palestinians were inviting me into. 

I wrote this book because I believe listening is never passive. Jesus said again and again, “For those who have an ear to hear…” To listen is to love, to act, and to take the first step toward justice. But you do not need to go on the journey of learning to listen alone. You can travel with me through my confusion, my questions, my research, and my contemplation as I grow in learning to listen to Palestine. 

If peace in a broken world is possible, it begins here, with the simple, radical act of listening. Available on Amazon & Barnes and Noble.

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Learning to Listen to Palestine by Lani Lanchester