As the General Assembly 2005 of the Church of Scotland continues, the controversial issue regarding the investment into a luxury hotel in Israel is being put forward for debate. However, the General Assembly has been seen as being bitterly divided between opposite opinions and emotional criticisms.
The hotel project commenced in 1999, and since then the Board has spent over £10m in converting a former Kirk hospital at Tiberias in Israel into a luxury hotel in an attempt to enhance the dialogue between Jews and Arabs. However, due to political and social instability in Israel, the hotel finally opened in October 2004 after a number of long delays.
The concern over the investment project in the Holy Land was raised in last year’s General Assembly. The Church reported that the budget of the Board of World Mission will have to be cut down by £426,000 as part of overall savings of more than £800,000. Many have attributed the cash crisis to the Israeli investment failure.
A new report to the General Assembly 2005 from the Board of World Mission shows that the Israeli hotel development project will drain the Kirk of a further £555,000 by the end of this year. This will include £380,000 unpaid interest on a loan made by the board to the resort, and £175,000 in trading losses for this year alone.
The hotel's current financial situation was poor, as quoted the report, "The stark reality is that the day-to-day operating costs are considerable, and with the highly competitive tourist market which exists at present, the return is not as it was when the decision to proceed with development was taken.
"The level of income to the hotel from usage by local churches and pilgrim groups is low. Such groups undertake visits in a highly competitive market and even if the hotel is filled with such it would not break even in financial terms."
There is a growing row among the missionaries, criticising that the project hampers the world mission. In fact, a dozen overseas posts have already been cut over the last year including funding for HIV/AIDS workers in Africa.
