An IDF Caterpillar D9—a machine that comes under fire when the Presbyterian Church considers divestment companies doing business with Israel. Photo: Math Knight.

More than 12,000 Jews signed a letter urging Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA) General Assembly delegates to reject a resolution that asks for three companies to be placed on the general assembly’s divestment list until “they have ceased profiting from non-peaceful pursuits in Israel-Palestine.”

The “Letter of Hope,” which follows an earlier letter signed by 1,300 rabbis sent to the PCUSA, comes in advance of the church’s June 30-July 7 conference in Pittsburgh, Pa. Presbyterians should deepen their “understandings of the multiple narratives in the region” and “focus on positive steps including economic development, Palestinian state building, and a return to negotiations.”

“Peace is our mutual goal,” Jewish Council for Public Affairs Chair Larry Gold said in a statement. “Divestment is the wrong means for achieving it.”

Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard, and Motorola Solutions are the three companies in question under the Presbyterian resolution. Last month, the United Methodist rejected a similar divestment resolution by a 2-1 margin.