September WATERtalk with Kwok Pui-Lan and Mary E. Hunt
Follow-Up to WATERtalk “The Anglican Church and Palestine”
with Professor Kwok Pui-Lan and Ms. Nuha El-Far Shaheen
Wednesday, September 23, 2026, 1 PM ET
Introduction
WATER thanks Professor Kwok Pui-Lan and Ms. Nuha E-Far Shaheen for a stimulating and moving session on the pathfinding new book The Anglican Church and Palestine which Pui-Lan edited. It is a thorough introduction to the British Empire’s colonial legacy in Israel/Palestine and the roles played by The Church of England and The Episcopal Church. In light of the current conflict, this forms a helpful backdrop to discussion of life in Palestine today. Gaza has the highest rate of children with amputations, telling us most of what we need to know about the urgency of this situation.
The video of the session can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bROHjVQsWj0&feature=youtu.be and see our website category WATERtalks: Feminist Conversations in Religion – WATER – Womens Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual for these notes.
The book can be purchased at https://indiepubs.com/products/the-anglican-church-and-palestine-9781640659841?variant=48170314662139.
Church Publishing very kindly offered WATER people a 20% discount. Put in the code ANGLICAN20 when you order. We thank Ann Zaccardelli and Staff at Church Publishing for their generosity. This is a book to read and share.
We were honored to have with us Nuha El-Far Shaheen from Palestine to enlighten us about the efforts of women there to survive in a warzone. Her presence was an invitation to us for active solidarity.
Introduction to Kwok Pui-Lan by Mary E. Hunt
Kwok Pui-Lan came to the U.S. from Hong Kong. Her family practiced Chinese religion and she became an Anglican in her teenage year. She did early studies at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and a doctorate at Harvard Divinity School focusing her writing on Chinese women and Christianity.
For nearly 30 years, she taught at Episcopal Divinity School (EDS) and then at Candler School of Theology at Emory University. Then, she returned to the new iteration of EDS where she has served as a Distinguished Scholar. More than twenty books later, she continues to be a prolific scholar.
But this is just the tip of a very deep iceberg. Pui-Lan was a distinguished Editor of the Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion, President of the American Academy of Religion, and a founding sister of Pacific Asian and North American Asian Women in Theology and Ministry (PANAAWTM).
Pui-Lan has continued to push her scholarship and activism in tandem with the times. She has taught herself much of what there is to know about utilizing AI for all its pluses and minuses. Her popular Podcast, Kwok ‘n Roll, and her Substack are new go-to places for information, conversation, and connections. We have collaborated on several sessions and I look forward to more!
A little-known fact about Pui-Lan is that in addition to being a world-class scholar, she is also deeply engaged spiritually in practices that promote health and well-being. But even less known is the fact that she is a stand-up comedian by avocation. I can personally attest to how very funny she is. Who knew! Thanks for being with us, Pui-Lan, and always know that you are a welcome collaborator at WATER.
Pui-Lan’s remarks
Professor Kwok Pui-Lan described her process of coming to edit The Anglican Church and Palestine. She told of her first visit to the region where she crossed easily into Palestine from Jordan despite the fact that many local people had been waiting for days to do so. She spoke vividly of seeing old typewriters in Jerusalem so Palestinians who did not understand Hebrew could have translation. It reminded her growing up in Hong Kong where the majority of people did not speak English which was the official language until 1971. Colonialism controls people by language and practice.
She spoke of her connection to the Sabeel Center and the work of the Rev. Naim Ateek who wrote Justice and Only Justice: A Palestinian Liberation Theology (Maryknoll, NY; Orbis Books, 1989).
After the October 2023 Hammas attack, and during the war on Gaza, Pui- Lan deepened her commitment to the region, especially to the Anglican community there. The lack of resources on the topic nudged her to edit this book. See her essay “Why I edited The Anglican Church and Palestine,” https://kwokpuilan.substack.com/p/why-i-edited-the-anglican-church, September 3, 2026.
The book begins with the earliest Anglican roots in the region and brings the reader up to the present. It is a globally sourced volume with 16 contributors from South Africa, Brasil, Australia, the UK, Canada, and the U.S.
The 13 chapters are divided into 3 sections:
- Historical Perspectives
- Debates on Christian and Jewish Zionism
- Ethical and Pastoral Reflections
What Pui-Lan learned editing this book:
- Colonial legacy in Palestine and Middle East; French and Russian influences; 1841 established first Anglo-Russian Bishopric.
- The Church Missionary Society started in late 19th century to build educational and medical organizations. The 1917 Balfour Declaration called for return of Jews to their alleged homeland. The 1920-1948 return of Jewish people was largely encouraged by evangelicals.
- Evangelicals made Christian Zionism strong in the U.S. and the UK, but also in Korea. Koreans see themselves as the “Chosen People of God in Asia.” The essay in this volume by Christine Pae treats this topic. Similar dynamics play out in Brasil as well. Christian Zionism is on the rise in the Global South.
- Settler Colonialism is a major problem in Palestine, just as it was in Hong Kong where almost 750,000 Palestinians were forced out of their communities since the Nakba or the Catastrophe in 1948. See Mitri Raheb. Decolonizing Palestine: The Land, The People, The Bible (Maryknoll, NY: 2023). The Bible cannot be used to justify settler colonialism. How can we hear the stories of Palestinians without being accused of anti-Semitism?
Pui-Lan introduced Nuha El-Far Shaheen and Nuha’s remarks follow
Ms. Shaheen is a member of St. Andrew’s Anglican Episcopal Church in Ramallah, West Bank, where she serves on the vestry. She on is the Board of Friends of the Holy Land. Her work in Biblical studies and contemporary public theology makes her a welcome colleague in the justice struggles in the region.
Nuha commented that while it is true that British missionaries opened schools and hospitals, theirs was a colonial, imperialistic approach. Based on her experience in Ramallah, she and colleagues developed an Initiative for women as a response to the current situation. The statement follows here:
Nuha summarized this Palestinian Initiative as reorienting the mission of the Church away from Zionism and toward a Christian narrative of peace.
Problems include:
- Legitimation of Gaza using Hebrew scriptures to create violence: apartheid, destruction, starvation, and dehumanization of Palestinians all done in the name of God.
- Ongoing suffering of Palestinians in West Bank by settlers in the name of God.
- Unlimited support to Israel from Christian Zionists from many countries; God is not a tribal God.
Two additional documents that flesh this out are at the end of these Resources below.
Women’s Creative Role in Palestinian Struggles
Older women who experienced the Nakba are “Living Stones of the Holy Land,” our grandmothers. Women were co-founders of Palestinian liberation theology including Mrs. Cedar Duaybis from Haifa, Mrs. Samia Khoury from Jerusalem, and Mrs. Jean Zaru from Ramallah.
Contemporary Palestinian Christian women who are prominent Palestinian Christian advocates include Miss Lama Mansour from Nazareth, Mrs. Suzan Rantisi Barhou, and her sister Miss Hilary Rantisi from Ramallah.
Women’s Initiative is a start with many other forms of inclusive theology needed to make lasting change.
Comments from participants
- A colleague from Birmingham, England raised the matter of the “Jews returning.” Romans did not expel ordinary people according to Shlomo Sans in The Invention of the Jewish People, London and New York: Verso, 2020. This language of return needs to be examined carefully.
- A Canadian colleague asked what the most helpful role might be for Catholics in the Palestinian situation.
KPL replied that settler colonialism in the complex Jewish history does
not mean there were no Jews there. But in the 20th century after Nakba there has been an influx of Jews from Europe. There is no possibility of 2 state solution until half a million people are allowed to live in their land of Palestine.
Catholics need to know more about the situation of Palestine. In the U.S. it is easier to get Jewish rather than suppressed Palestinian perspectives.
Jewish security requires thinking about security for Palestinians. Visit Palestine to see how dire it is. Get informed, organize, push churches and NGOs to speak more.
NS said that Catholics and other Christian groups have given such attention to the Jews that the normative understanding is about a Jewish return to their homeland. Churches need to repent and be held accountable to rectify their failures with regard to the Palestinian people.
Conclusion
WATER offers thanks to Kwok Pui-Lan and Nuha Shaheen. Thanks, too, to Wed Naji for technical help. Best wishes and Happy Fall from WATER.
Future WATER Programs
Given the state of the world, and issues closer to home as well, we are designating October as a Month of Action. In lieu of the usual WATER Meditation, Talk, and Ritual, we are inviting people to spend time focusing on the extraordinary challenges presented daily to the lives and well-being of so many people around the globe.
Specifically, for those in the U.S., please focus on the midterm elections by VOTING, educating, and helping others to exercise their democratic right to participate. Lots of people are sending post cards to encourage their fellow citizens to VOTE (for example, https://www.networkadvocates.org/vote/postcards/). Ours went out last week. There are countless ways to get involved NOW.
Others are signing up to be election judges, helping in their own communities. Some religious professionals are planning to be de-escalation poll chaplains in case of on-site problems on voting day. Working for and donating to candidates of your choice are all important ways to take seriously how crucial this time is for the future of democracy.
Peace efforts around the world are needed more than ever. Let no effort be considered trivial. Just act! It is the WATER way.
WATER programs planned for November and December 2026 include rituals, WATERtalks and meditation so please plan to join us for shared contemplation, stimulating conversation, and meaningful ritual. A program flyer with those dates and times will go out in October. Meanwhile, see our website for details.
RESOURCES
- Kwok Pui-Lan, “Anglican Women and Mission: What Women in the Global South Are Doing.” This includes information on a course on this topic to be held October 21-Nov. 18, 2026 on line. Here is the link for registration: https://www.eds.edu/programs/684/anglican-womens-voices-from-the-global-south-kwok-pui-lan.
- A suggested book on Jews and Palestinians: The Wall Between: What Jews and Palestinians Don’t Want to Know about Each Other by Raja G. Khouri and Jeffrey J. Wilkinson, Northampton, MA: Olive Branch Press, 2023.
- Poetry by Moudi Sbeity was recommended, including Alhamdulillah Anyway, Newberg, OR: Fernwood Press, 2026; and Habibi Means Beloved: A Queer Memoir of Death, Stuttering and Belonging. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 2026.
- The film “American Doctor” was suggested. It depicts Palestinian, Jewish, and Zoroastrian doctors working in Gaza with all of the complications that entails. See https://americandoctorfilm.com/.
- These two documents are from Nuha Shaheen: