WASHINGTON, March 24 (UPI) -- While violence was still flaring in the Middle East, a host of religious leaders representing the three Abrahamic faiths -- Judaism, Christianity and Islam -- convened on Capitol Hill Tuesday night in an effort to promote interfaith harmony and peace.
Under the banner of "forging a path to reconciliation and peace," the Interreligious and International Peace Council hopes to establish greater acceptance among the three faiths -- all spiritual descendents of Abraham -- and in so doing, hopefully bring about an end to the bloodshed that has torn apart the volatile Middle East for more than 50 years.
But given Monday's events in Gaza, when Israeli attack helicopters fired three missiles killing Hamas' spiritual leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin and his bodyguards, promoting peace to this region will be, by no means, a simple task. Particularly difficult will be to encourage the disputing parties in the Middle East, where all current efforts to promote peace talks seems to have been shelved in favor of a more aggressive policy.
Following Monday's dramatic events in the Palestinian occupied territories, both Israel and the Palestinians now appear to be heading toward confrontation, rather than negotiations.
Following the assassination of Yassin and threats of violent retaliation by the Islamic Resistance Movement, better known by its Arabic acronym, Hamas, and counter-threats of more killing by the Israeli government of Hamas leaders, chances of a Mideast peace solution might look rather dim at the moment.
Indeed, the much-publicized Middle East Road Map drawn up last year by the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations has been momentarily forgotten in favor of allowing violence to take its course.
However, that prospect did not deter the group of dedicated promoters of peace who gathered for a dinner at the Dirksen Senate Office Building from pushing ahead with their agenda of promoting understanding among people of different faiths and races.
In a ceremony organized by the Interreligious and International Peace Council to celebrate their "Ambassadors for Peace Awards," the organization recognized their continuing efforts to bridge the inter-religious and inter-racial divide and applauded efforts undertaken by a number of representatives of the three faiths who were present at the dinner.
The Interrelgious and International Peace Council is one of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's initiatives and a project of the Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace. Its mission is to facilitate cooperative efforts among individuals and global institutions to create world peace. Moon is also the founder of News Word Communication, which owns United Press International.
Only hours before the Ambassadors for Peace met for their awards dinner, President George W. Bush announced he would dispatch a team to the Middle East in a renewed effort to jump-start the all-but-dead Middle East peace initiative. However, some critics say Bush's efforts come with no clear-cut policy on how to defuse the explosive situation in the Middle East, a situation that now appears to become even more dangerous than ever.
"We stand at a critical point for America and the world," said Chung Hwan Kwak, chairman of the Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace. Kwak is also president of UPI.
During a symbolic ceremony, leaders of the Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths embraced and exchanged religious artifacts.
"We know that the world is in great turmoil," said Rev. Michael Jenkins of the American Clergy Leadership Conference. "There must be healing and an end of killing."
Moon, the keynote speaker of the evening's event, concluded by saying that he would continue to "work harder than anyone else until the day ... guns in the Middle East fall silent and give way to fireworks of peace and joy."
