Christian School to Divest From Businesses Profiting From Israel, Hamas War

A Christian seminary in New York affiliated with Columbia University recently announced plans to divest from Israel and other companies involved in the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas militants.

Pro-Palestinian protests began at Columbia University on April 18 before spreading to college campuses across the U.S., with students calling for schools to divest from Israel.

On May 9, the Union Theological Seminary in New York announced that its board of trustees had endorsed a divestment plan from "companies profiting from war in Palestine/Israel."

"Over the decades, we have developed what are called 'socially responsible investment (SRI) screens' to express our values and not financially support damaging and immoral investments," the seminary said in a statement. "With respect to companies that are profiting from the present war in Palestine, we continue to hold these standards high and have taken steps to identify all investments, both domestic and global, that support and profit from the present killing of innocent civilians in Palestine, whose numbers are now over 34,000—and a humanitarian crisis of ever-growing magnitude."

The seminary said it remained "unequivocal" in its denouncement of the civilian deaths caused by Hamas militants on October 7. It added, "Our investment policies will continue to adapt, guided by our values, to strengthen the resolve that undergirds our decision today."

In a statement to Newsweek, Serene Jones, the president of Union Theological Seminary, said: "Union has a 187-year tradition of advancing peace and justice. The Board of Trustees was driven to undertake this months-long process to ensure that we have a proactively just investment policy in accordance with our deep religious, spiritual, and core values. We're constantly evolving to better embody our core values. This was an act of conscience and the vote was an extension of Union's policies to ensure our investment portfolio reflects those core values."

A spokesperson for the seminary also told Newsweek that the divestment process initially began in November.

Tensions have remained high on college campuses since October, after Hamas militants launched an attack on southern Israel, killing more than 1,200 people and taking more than 200 people hostage. Israel then launched strikes against Hamas in Gaza that have left more than 34,000 people dead, the Associated Press reported, citing Gaza health officials.

At Columbia University, students held a large pro-Palestinian protest and established a "Gaza Solidarity Encampment." The Columbia Daily Spectator, a student-run newspaper, reported that the Union Theological Seminary has a partnership with Columbia University. The seminary is home to Columbia's faculty of theology, but the institutions have separate endowments, the newspaper reported.

In April, in response to the pro-Palestinian protests, Columbia University President Minouche Shafik issued a statement saying the university would not divest from Israel, but that it would work with an advisory committee to consider investments.

However, Jones criticized the NYPD's operation at Columbia in response to the student protests and takeover of an academic building on campus.

"This is a horrible, awful day in the midst of ravaging, cruel times. It breaks us all. Please do not be afraid to reach out," Jones said in a statement on April 24. "Second, on behalf of Union, I want to reaffirm what I hope everyone at Union knows. We have never and will never take the actions that occurred today, including to some of our students. Whatever our differences, all of your voices and values are too important to me and to Union to shove them away and dispose of them."

Update, 5/13/24, 11:16 a.m. ET: This story has been updated to include a statement from the president of Union Theological Seminary.

Update, 5/14/24, 2:44 p.m. ET: This story has been updated.