As violence flares anew between Hamas and Israel, which is preparing for a ground invasion of Gaza in response to Hamas rocket attacks reaching as far as Tel Aviv, CT checked in with Jerusalem-based reconciliation ministry Musalaha for an update on reconciliation efforts between Palestinian Christians and Messianic Jews.

In 2009, CT reported how three weeks of Israel-Hamas fighting—which killed 1,400 Palestinians and 13 Israelis—left Gaza's beleaguered Christians beginning 2009 in their worst situation since the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. However, reconciliation work between Palestinian Christians and Messianic Jews continued.

Salim Munayer, executive director Musalaha, offered CT the following update on what, if anything, has changed since 2009:

A group of Gaza Christians protested Monday against what they believe to be the forced conversions of two members of their community, according to the Associated Press.

Police claim the man and woman seem to have freely converted to Islam but, fearing reprisals from their families, have been staying with a Muslim religious official, the AP reported.

An estimated 1,500 Christians remain among the 1.7 million Muslims living in the crowded coastal strip.

CT has regularly reported on Gaza's Christians, including how reconciliation efforts continued during the region's worst violence since the 1967 war. CT also went to Gaza to profile Hanna Massad and his many challenges as pastor of the coastal strip's only Baptist church.

Other key events include the seizure of Gaza's Baptist church by Fatah, as well as the bombing of Gaza's only Christian bookstore and martyrdom of its manager.

Update: Monday, Feb. 9, 12:50 p.m., Chicago time.

AP is now reporting a release order for Philip Rizk has been issued but not yet implemented. AP credits this to international media pressure. CT readers would credit international prayers as well....

----------------------------

Christianity Today news has learned that Philip Rizk, a well-known blogger, journalist, grad student, and activist currently based in Cairo, is reportedly being held by State Security Investigations officials in Sadr City, a northern suburb of Cairo (see also here and here). His sister reports that police came to the Rizk household at 1:30 a.m. this morning searching for evidence related to Philip's activism and attempted to take Philip's father Maged with them. They left empty-handed at 5 a.m.

On Friday, Feb. 6, Rizk was present during a protest march focusing on the situation in Gaza. Apparently, others were also taken into custody, but have since been released.

These details are just emerging and not independently confirmed as yet.

According to one web account:

Phil's parents went to the Police Headquarters to file a missing persons complaint. There they were told it might take 2 or 3 days to process the paperwork and get Philip out. A lot of friends have gathered outside the Police headquarters to show support and solidarity.

For one account of the protest march, published in the Egyptian media, click here.

Here's one comment from Rizk:

"We anticipated that when Israeli bombing stopped, the momentum would end and we were right," Rizk said, "but we wanted to follow up on this momentum with a series of popular actions."

I have met Phil several times, including in November 2006 in Gaza. He is a graduate of Wheaton College and at one time worked for Anglican Canon Andrew White, who has been quite active in faith-based reconciliation work in the Middle East, especially Iraq.

If you are in Egypt and have additional information about this, email me here.

For additional information, see Phil's blog.

His last posting was on Wednesday, Feb. 4. The website created to detail the protest march has been taken down. Rizk recently has been doing graduate work at the American University, Cairo.

Click here for the AP report and here for the Reuters report.

Family and friends have created a group on Facebook for updates. Click here.

AUC student media is actively covering the story.

There is one eyewitness account to his abduction and alleged kidnapping. Click here.

....All hell broke out at 11 p.m. [Friday] The lawyers rang down to say that Philip had been kidnapped: state security officers had told him that they wanted him for questioning without the lawyers in a room next door. They took him downstairs and put him in a Suzuki microbus which, when it appeared at the police station's exit, we attempted to prevent moving by blocking its path. It forced its way through while state security officers frenziedly threw us out of the way.

CT has been in contact with a member of the Rizk family and will update this account as events warrant.

Photo via Facebook.

CT has received two credible accounts regarding Gazan Christians as Israel's military campaign against Hamas militants ends its third week.

The first comes from Hanna Massad, exiled pastor of Gaza Baptist Church, the only evangelical congregation in the 25-mile coastal strip. The second comes from Cairo-based freelance journalist Philip Rizk, a Wheaton College graduate who lived in Gaza from 2005 to 2007. Both Massad and Rizk described the reality faced by Gazan evangelicals over the past three weeks.

Since the outbreak of Israel's military offensive against Hamas in late December, I have received -- almost daily -- fresh accounts from those close to the conflict.

In November, 2006, I met Labib Madanat, executive director of the Palestinian Bible Society, on my way into Gaza for a reporting trip to follow up on our 2005 coverage by Deann Alford, which we titled: Love in the Land of Enmity.

This week, as the fighting and dying continues, Labib shared some recent experiences with me, which he agreed could be released publicly:

January 2009:

Last year, and after the killing of Rami Ayyad, I had the chance to visit Gaza several times. The most memorable one of those visits was late February 2008 together with Brother Andrew. On that visit I stopped to pick a stone from a location where an Israeli soldier got killed in action 18 years ago; I did so according to a request from the soldier's father, who later became a friend of mine. We also visited Rami's widow Pauline Ayyad and her new born baby girl Sama; we encouraged her shared with her pain, joy, and grief.

But also during that visit we met with a main Palestinian leader in Gaza, we expressed our condolences for the loss of his son who got killed as he clashed with Israeli soldiers three weeks before our visit. A Christian, a Jew, and a Muslim; in one visit we moved across the dividing lines sharing the love of our Father and his compassion for His tortured humanity in Israel/Palestine.

The last two weeks, and even now, we witness atrocities in Gaza; too painful and too ugly. In south Israel hundreds of thousands keep close to or inside their shelters for the fear of rockets from Gaza.

Sure there is no comparison between the loss of life and injuries in Gaza and inside Israel. Michael Sabbah; the retired Latin Patriarch in Jerusalem said "every person's pain is human pain". Whom to blame and how far back we should go? What is the baseline for deciding justice? As a Palestinian/Jordanian Arab Christian I should naturally blame Israel and hold them responsible for the killing of many children in Gaza.

But at the same time a Jewish friend can come and say the same against Hamas or other Palestinian or Arab governments or organizations and hold them responsible for the killing of many Jewish children.

To engage in the blame game is to perpetuate the effect of violence and evil; it adds fuel to the fire. This does not mean acquitting the guilty, it means we submit the file of all the guilty ones, and I am one of them, to the one who judges justly and whose gates of mercy are always open for those who seek it.

So what do we do? To say it is God's business and run away? Absolutely not. He took the responsibility of justice and gave us the responsibility of compassion. "Love your enemy" in such days mean a lot and so does "love your neighbour as yourself". In Luke 4, Jesus said to the assembly in Nazareth's Synagogue " What you have just heard me read has come true today" . We are the continuation of that fulfillment. So let it be so in action today.

Within the body of Christ, we are people who also belong to our nations. This belonging and citizenship should receive meaning and value and form from our belonging to our heavenly citizenship.

Two days ago I was struck by anger and pain, yesterday I met my brother and colleague Victor, who is a Messianic Jew, we debriefed shared our hearts and prayed. The body of Christ should be a safe territory to walk in the light, receive healing and practice forgiveness. It should not be betrayed to become an additional battle ground, as Jesus said " My house is a house of prayer for all nations and you made it a den of thieves".

I invite you all; living stones, the body of Christ, to be that safe place, and a fulfillment of God's good news to our hurting human family.

May Palestinians and Israelis be saved.

Pray for the cease fire negotiations and a durable end to the border conflict.