The Evangelical Lutheran Church, a part of the movement I'm calling Confused Mainline Protestant anti-Zionism, has recently done a two-steps-forward, one-step-back tango with respect to divestment from Israel. The gist of their confused parliamentary meanderings is that they want to move toward investment in Palestinian businesses, and "consideration of refusing to buy goods or invest in activities taking place in Israeli settlements". The grammar of that phrase being inscrutable, opposing it presents difficulties, so let's ask a question: what are "goods...taking place in Israeli settlements"? Goods produced by Israeli businesses on the other side of the Green Line? (That would be my guess.) Would this include goods produced by Palestinians on the West Bank and traded by Israelis? Those goods might fall into both the positive and negative categories, so it's hard to say. Would investment "in activities taking place in Israeli settlements" include any business selling products to Israelis on the other side of the Green Line? Any product? Strictly interpreted, this modest proposal becomes a Swiftian Modest Proposal with Evangelical Lutherans boycotting the makers and sellers of a vast range of consumer goods.
So, in response, here is my question for the Evangelical Lutheran Church: "Huh?"
read about it at Solomonia: "Evangelical Lutheran Church Adopts ... well not Divestment exactly..."
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