In Memoriam
We are deeply saddened by the loss of three incredible members of our community this past week. Please take a moment to read about Abla Aranki, John Erickson, and Ron Sider, without whom Sabeel and FOSNA would not be what they are today.
Abla Aranki
After many years of living and working in the States, Abla Aranki returned to her hometown of Birzeit, near Ramallah, and for 12 years she taught English at Birzeit University.
During these years, Abla was very active in various charitable organizations and volunteered in giving extra lessons to kids of different ages. Abla was also very active in the church and at Sabeel especially during its international conferences. Abla was loved and respected by family, friends, colleagues, and students.
She left a legacy of a wonderful and beautiful human being."
—Naim Ateek
John Erickson
John Hilmer Erickson, civil rights attorney, proponent of Palestinian rights, descendant of Vikings and grandpa to a horde, died July 30 at his home in Berkeley, California. He was 85, and the cause was prostate cancer.
John devoted much of his work life and retirement to human rights issues. He was the lead attorney on a groundbreaking case for women’s rights, Crutchfield v. AC Transit. The Alameda County agency, which had a policy against hiring female bus drivers, was forced in 1976 to end that policy as a result of the lawsuit. He also represented the Native American tribes that occupied Alcatraz Island from 1969 to 1971. He co-founded the law firm Erickson, Beasley & Hewitt in 1977 and worked for the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund on employment discrimination cases.
After retiring in 2010, he became an activist for Palestine. He served in several leadership roles with FOSNA including executive director. He was committed to hiring and mentoring young leadership in FOSNA and was a committed to increasing FOSNA's impact through intersectional advocacy. John and his wife Barbara were key leaders of one of FOSNA's strongest local organizations, NORCAL, based the Bay Area. FOSNA extends its love and prayers to Barbara, the children, grandchildren, and greatgrandchildren.
—Donald Wagner
Ron Sider
Professor Ron Sider was born in Ontario in 1939. He is a well known scholar who authored over 30 books, including the beloved Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger. He is survived by his wife, Arbutus, and three children.
Ron had his greatest impact by teaching that hunger, poverty, war, and racism were essential issues for Christians, particularly evangelicals. He was a prophetic voice calling a complacent church to live up to the teachings of Christ where it mattered most. For him, this was not just a theological stance but a tenant of his life. As a renowned professor and author, he could have lived an easy life in the suburbs. Instead, he chose to live a simple lifestyle in poor neighborhoods. He joined political campaigns for justice, and he started the organization Evangelicals for Social Action (now Christians for Social Action). He urged Christians to reflect the teachings of Christ in their lives and in their politics. He gave the speech which practically resulted in the creation of Christian Peacemakers Team (CPT, now Community Peacemakers Teams) when he challenged Christian pacifists (mostly Mennonites, Quakers, and Brethren) to organize units of nonviolent peacemakers to move into areas of conflict and risk themselves in their mission for peace. He said we cannot expect the world to take us and our teachings of nonviolence seriously if we are not willing to invest resources and risk our lives, just as those who raise armies and join militias to fight and kill are doing. CPT teams ended up being deployed in different areas of the world, including Palestine.
I came to know Ron as a teacher and activist, but also as a friend. He helped me with my own spiritual journey with his teaching on the historicity of the resurrection when I was a student at Messiah College. Later, in his capacity as a pastor, he married me and my wife Beth. Over the years, including a wonderful visit I had with him and Arbutus two weeks ago, we had many conversations, including discussions of Israel/Palestine, nonviolence, and Christian Zionism.
One of the amazing things about Ron and Arbutus is their down to earth humility and willingness to listen to others. Towards the end of Ron’s life, he and Arbutus would take time to conduct a monthly Bible study in the home of my brother Sam. We will miss him greatly and pray for solace for Arbutus and the family.”
—Jonathan Kuttab
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.