BethBC Hosts the 4th Global Leadership Summit in Bethlehem.

For two days this October, Bethlehem Bible College’s staff, students and faculty joined efforts and worked diligently to host, for the 4th time, the Global Leadership Summit (GLS) in Bethlehem. Started by renowned pastor Bill Hybels, the GLS is a two-day leadership event telecast LIVE in HD from Willow Creek’s campus near Chicago to hundreds of locations in North America and to 675+ sites in 125 countries.

The Summit, which drew more than 150 participants, is an opportunity for the whole College to work together and serve the community. Leaders from various backgrounds and disciplines from all over Palestine attended the conference. The College was thrilled to receive Christian and Muslim leaders from Hebron, Nablus, Jerusalem and Galilee. A wide range of sectors were represented including business, government, nonprofit, education and religion.

For our President, Jack Sara, bringing the GLS to Bethlehem is a catalyst that empowers more and more leaders for Christ and for the greater good. For Pastor Jack the government is striving for a fresh, new awakening among politicians to find a way to build a concrete civil society. “As a church and ministry, we are striving for that, too. We work with leaders from all communities—men and women, politicians, the marketplace and business leaders—to help them learn more about leadership, especially moral and ethical leadership.”

The speakers at the summit this year were exceptional. We had on stage Ayman Odeh the head of the Joint List, the third-largest party in the current Knesset. He talked about the challenges he faces as a Palestinian Arab leader in the state of Israel and how he overcame them. His speech was inspirational, he insisted that a good leader leads within the people, he is part of them, he feels their pain and challenges, and he goes before them.

One highlight of the conference was the live panel discussion of three successful inspiring Palestinian female leaders, entitled: “Leading through Pain”. Madleine Sara has been a teacher at Bethlehem Bible College for 16 years. She also runs a counseling office in the College for the past four years. She is also a teacher and trainer for leading women in Palestine and the Middle East, and is part of a leadership committee that works to train and empower leading women in the Middle East and North Africa. The panel also featured Kathrin Shahwan is a wife and mother of three children. She holds a BA in Biblical Studies from Bethlehem Bible College. She served previously in various Christian ministries with children and women, and is currently a fierce fighter against cancer. The participants also heard Rania Gicaman Murra, the Director of the Arab Educational Institute in Bethlehem. She is also a member of the Pax Christi International Council. Rania holds a BA in English Literature from Bethlehem University and a Master’s Degree in Gender and Development from Birzeit University.

Bethlehem Bible College is honored to serve the Palestinian community with events that empower leaders to sharpen their skills and develop the people they lead. We are excited for our next Leadership Summit in October 2018.