Let's pay attention and gather our prayers for an upcoming international theological consultation on Israel/Palestine to be held Sept. 10-14 in Bern, Switzerland. The event is organized by the World Council of Churches.
The text of the news release is below. I'm especially taken by the phrase, "the Gospel imperative for costly solidarity." What a concept!
Here's a link to more info: http://www.oikoumene.org/en/news/upcoming-events/ev/se/article/1722/international-theological-3.html
-- --
Around 65 theologians and church representatives from member churches of the World Council of Churches (WCC), theological faculties and regional ecumenical organizations will gather in Bern, Switzerland, from 10 to 14 September 2008, in order to reflect on issues such as the “Promised Land”, “the Church and Israel” and “Justice and Peace”.
The consultation, hosted by the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches and the Reformed Churches in Bern-Jura-Solothurn, is organized by the WCC in the framework of the Palestine Israel Ecumenical Forum (PIEF), which was launched at an International Peace Conference in Amman, Jordan, in June 2007, as the cornerstone of a comprehensive ecumenical advocacy initiative on the Middle East. Delivered at the end of the June 2007 Conference, the Amman Call reminds us that this initiative has been taken in response to three fundamental imperatives that call us to action:
- The ethical and theological imperative for a Just Peace
- The ecumenical imperative for unity in action
- The Gospel imperative for costly solidarity
The Amman Call also states that the “peace building” track will include “furthering theological and biblical perspectives and Christian education resources around those issues central to the conflict.” To this end, the consultation will address theological and biblical issues related to the conflict in Palestine/Israel.
-- --
Full text of the Amman Call - http://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/documents/wcc-programmes/public-witness-addressing-power-affirming-peace/middle-east-peace/20-06-07-the-amman-call.html
WCC Programme “Churches in the Middle East: solidarity and witness for peace” - http://www.oikoumene.org/en/programmes/public-witness-addressing-power-affirming-peace/churches-in-the-middle-east.html
Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches - http://www.sek-feps.ch/home/home.html&lang=3
---- -----
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog - A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
Friday, August 29, 2008
Saturday, August 23, 2008
My review of The Lemon Tree in the Dallas Peace Times
This summer the Dallas Peace Times invited me to write a review of Sandy Toland's 2006 book, The Lemon Tree, and I was happy to do it. You can find the review at this web link: http://dallaspeacecenter.org/DPT%20Archive/0807.pdf
It's a big pdf file, so scroll ahead to page 9. You can also go to the archived newsletters and click on July 2008: http://dallaspeacecenter.org/DPT/Archive/2008
I'll put the text here too:
The Lemon Tree – An Arab, A Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East, by Sandy Tolan (2006, Bloomsbury Publishing).
I have been recommending Sandy Tolan’s book, The Lemon Tree, since its publication in 2006. I was completely engrossed reading the book, and I will continue to urge everyone interested in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to discover its fascinating story. The Lemon Tree offers a remarkable witness to the power of empathy and reconciliation.
In 1988 someone gave me a photocopy of “A Letter to a Deportee,” an opinion piece that outlined the friendship between two people - a Palestinian and an Israeli - who each grew up in the same house in Ramle, Israel. The Lemon Tree expands that story, detailing the history of Jews and Arabs in Israel through the experiences of the two families. It provides a unique lens for seeing the events of the region from 1936 to 2005.
My bookshelf is full of books about the lands of Palestine and Israel and that pivotal struggle between their people. The Lemon Tree is different. I hope everyone who reads it can be as willing as these two people to explore the truth behind they myths they were taught and the personal experiences that color their understanding.
Dalia Eshkenazi Landau, whose family came to Israel from Bulgaria, calls it a “strange destiny” that linked her family with that of Bashir Khairi, Palestinian refugees living in Ramallah. Their connection revolved around the house in Ramle (Al Ramla in Arabic) built by Bashir’s father, where Bashir lived until the family fled before the advancing Israeli army in 1948. Dalia’s immigrant family moved into the house a few months later, and she grew up there.
Toland’s book details the background of each of the families: the Khairi’s prominent position in Al Ramla, the Eshkenazi’s breathtaking escape from the Holocaust, and the unbelievable misery of Palestinian refugees.
The entire Arab population of Al Ramla was forcibly driven from their homes. The expulsion order came from the top of Israeli military command. The city was sacked and its citizens – judged to be about 30,000 - sent east by bus or on foot. The Khairi family and all the others from Ramle and Lydda believed they would be allowed to return to their homes in a matter of weeks. That never happened, and readers learn that it was never intended. European immigrants sent by bus to Ramle found an empty city.
The key meeting of two children of these events took place 19 years later when Bashir was allowed to travel to Ramle. He approached his family’s house and rang the bell. Dalia answered the door. His approach and her openness led to the dialogue which has lasted almost 40 years.
The house itself is a central character in the story, and as we read we come to know its contours, its garden and symbolic lemon tree. We long for a solution that will allow everyone to enjoy its beauty and peace and somehow translate into a larger peace for the region and all the people.
Dalia wrote, “The house with which our childhood memories were connected forced us to face each other.” She went on, “I appeal to both Palestinians and Israelis to understand that the use of force will not resolve this conflict on its fundamental level. This is the kind of war that no one can win, and either both peoples will achieve liberation or neither will. Our childhood memories, your and mine, are intertwined in a tragic way. If we can not find means to transform that tragedy into a shared blessing, our clinging to the past will destroy our future.”
The relationship was always warm but never easy. While Dalia learned Bashir’s history and the truth about her own, she struggled with his absolute commitment to the right of expelled Palestinians to return to their homes. Bashir sought to understand but could not accept Dalia’s sense that the house in Ramle and the land of Israel are truly home to her as well.
While Dalia and Bashir have not succeeded in reconciling their ideological positions, they decided to share their home with a purpose. Bashir sought to bring joy to the Arab children of Ramle. Dalia’s dream was a center where Jews and Arabs can engage in reconciliation, seeking justice and loving-kindness. Now Open House is a preschool for less advantaged Arab children and a community center.
Open House provides a witness as solid as the stone house to the power of dreaming together in spite of differences that cannot be completely healed, division brought about by real and telling life experiences.
When I visited Open House several years ago, I traveled to Ramle with a couple of my oldest Israeli friends, zionists who came to Palestine 15 years before Dalia’s family. They live today on rural land that once belonged to neighboring Arab villages. The ironies and dissonance of the Israeli/Palestinian story never cease.
-- --
Here are some more links to info about The Lemon Tree:
"Frontline" - http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/blog/2006/06/the_lemon_tree_1.html
NPR's All Things Considered, Books - http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5449840
NPR's Fresh Air - http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5405369
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
It's a big pdf file, so scroll ahead to page 9. You can also go to the archived newsletters and click on July 2008: http://dallaspeacecenter.org/DPT/Archive/2008
I'll put the text here too:
The Lemon Tree – An Arab, A Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East, by Sandy Tolan (2006, Bloomsbury Publishing).
I have been recommending Sandy Tolan’s book, The Lemon Tree, since its publication in 2006. I was completely engrossed reading the book, and I will continue to urge everyone interested in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to discover its fascinating story. The Lemon Tree offers a remarkable witness to the power of empathy and reconciliation.
In 1988 someone gave me a photocopy of “A Letter to a Deportee,” an opinion piece that outlined the friendship between two people - a Palestinian and an Israeli - who each grew up in the same house in Ramle, Israel. The Lemon Tree expands that story, detailing the history of Jews and Arabs in Israel through the experiences of the two families. It provides a unique lens for seeing the events of the region from 1936 to 2005.
My bookshelf is full of books about the lands of Palestine and Israel and that pivotal struggle between their people. The Lemon Tree is different. I hope everyone who reads it can be as willing as these two people to explore the truth behind they myths they were taught and the personal experiences that color their understanding.
Dalia Eshkenazi Landau, whose family came to Israel from Bulgaria, calls it a “strange destiny” that linked her family with that of Bashir Khairi, Palestinian refugees living in Ramallah. Their connection revolved around the house in Ramle (Al Ramla in Arabic) built by Bashir’s father, where Bashir lived until the family fled before the advancing Israeli army in 1948. Dalia’s immigrant family moved into the house a few months later, and she grew up there.
Toland’s book details the background of each of the families: the Khairi’s prominent position in Al Ramla, the Eshkenazi’s breathtaking escape from the Holocaust, and the unbelievable misery of Palestinian refugees.
The entire Arab population of Al Ramla was forcibly driven from their homes. The expulsion order came from the top of Israeli military command. The city was sacked and its citizens – judged to be about 30,000 - sent east by bus or on foot. The Khairi family and all the others from Ramle and Lydda believed they would be allowed to return to their homes in a matter of weeks. That never happened, and readers learn that it was never intended. European immigrants sent by bus to Ramle found an empty city.
The key meeting of two children of these events took place 19 years later when Bashir was allowed to travel to Ramle. He approached his family’s house and rang the bell. Dalia answered the door. His approach and her openness led to the dialogue which has lasted almost 40 years.
The house itself is a central character in the story, and as we read we come to know its contours, its garden and symbolic lemon tree. We long for a solution that will allow everyone to enjoy its beauty and peace and somehow translate into a larger peace for the region and all the people.
Dalia wrote, “The house with which our childhood memories were connected forced us to face each other.” She went on, “I appeal to both Palestinians and Israelis to understand that the use of force will not resolve this conflict on its fundamental level. This is the kind of war that no one can win, and either both peoples will achieve liberation or neither will. Our childhood memories, your and mine, are intertwined in a tragic way. If we can not find means to transform that tragedy into a shared blessing, our clinging to the past will destroy our future.”
The relationship was always warm but never easy. While Dalia learned Bashir’s history and the truth about her own, she struggled with his absolute commitment to the right of expelled Palestinians to return to their homes. Bashir sought to understand but could not accept Dalia’s sense that the house in Ramle and the land of Israel are truly home to her as well.
While Dalia and Bashir have not succeeded in reconciling their ideological positions, they decided to share their home with a purpose. Bashir sought to bring joy to the Arab children of Ramle. Dalia’s dream was a center where Jews and Arabs can engage in reconciliation, seeking justice and loving-kindness. Now Open House is a preschool for less advantaged Arab children and a community center.
Open House provides a witness as solid as the stone house to the power of dreaming together in spite of differences that cannot be completely healed, division brought about by real and telling life experiences.
When I visited Open House several years ago, I traveled to Ramle with a couple of my oldest Israeli friends, zionists who came to Palestine 15 years before Dalia’s family. They live today on rural land that once belonged to neighboring Arab villages. The ironies and dissonance of the Israeli/Palestinian story never cease.
-- --
Here are some more links to info about The Lemon Tree:
"Frontline" - http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/blog/2006/06/the_lemon_tree_1.html
NPR's All Things Considered, Books - http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5449840
NPR's Fresh Air - http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5405369
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
Friday, August 22, 2008
EAPPI summer newsletter: 60 Years of Palestinian Nakba – It’s Time for Palestine
The summer newsletter is available from the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI). Find it at this link: http://www.eappi.org/fileadmin/eappi/files/resources/eappi_newsletter/June-August_2008_Newsletter.doc
The EAPPI is an initiative of the World Council of Churches (WCC). Learn about another WCC initative, International Church Action for Peace in Palestine and Israel (ICAPPI) at this link: http://www.oikoumene.org/en/news/news-management/eng/a/browse/3/article/1722/in-jerusalem-and-around-t.html
Here is the EAPPI newsletter's top story:
June-August 2008
Newsletter
Number 24
60 Years of Palestinian Nakba – It’s Time for Palestine
International Church Action for Peace in Palestine and Israel: 4-10 June 2008
15 May 2008 marked the sixtieth commemoration of the Palestinian Nakba or the “catastrophe” in which 711,000 Palestinians lost both their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict (a number that has risen to more than 4.6 million refugees today due to natural population growth).1 Although the Nakba events were small compared to the large celebrations of the establishment of the State of Israel, demonstrations and vigils were held in towns across the West Bank as well as abroad. Ecumenical Accompaniers (EAs) participated in the release of 21,915 black balloons (one for each day since the Nakba) over the skies of Jerusalem.2
The World Council of Churches initiative – International Church Action for Peace in Palestine and Israel (ICAPPI) – was successfully launched in Jerusalem with an Ecumenical Peace service on 4 June. The service used a prayer from the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem asking for political leaders to be “courageous enough to sign a treaty … that puts an end to the occupation imposed by one people on another, granting freedom to Palestinians, giving security to Israelis and freeing us all from fear.” [Find the prayer at this link: http://www.oikoumene.org/fileadmin/files/wcc-main/2008pdfs/Jerusalem_prayer_for_ICAPPI_08_E.pdf]
EAs also participated in the ‘Living Clock’1 on Manger Square in Bethlehem where each person symbolised a year or a letter in the sentence: It’s time for Palestine and contributed to an ICAPPI blog on the WCC website. In its third year, ICAPPI brought together 40 countries in a week of advocacy and action for a just peace in Palestine and Israel.
--
There's lots more in the full July-August newsletter. To read newsletters from EAPPI, go to: http://www.eappi.org/en/resources/newsletter.html
For eyewitness reports from accompaniers, go to the home page: http://www.eappi.org/
The EAPPI supports Palestinians and Israelis working for peace by monitoring and reporting violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, offering protection by accompanying local communities in daily activities, and by advocating with churches for a peaceful end to the Occupation. The programme, which began in 2002, is coordinated by the WCC, is a fellowship of 347 churches, in more than 100 countries in all continents from virtually all Christian traditions. Its office is in Geneva, Switzerland. For more information on the WCC: www.oikoumene.org
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
---
The EAPPI is an initiative of the World Council of Churches (WCC). Learn about another WCC initative, International Church Action for Peace in Palestine and Israel (ICAPPI) at this link: http://www.oikoumene.org/en/news/news-management/eng/a/browse/3/article/1722/in-jerusalem-and-around-t.html
Here is the EAPPI newsletter's top story:
June-August 2008
Newsletter
Number 24
60 Years of Palestinian Nakba – It’s Time for Palestine
International Church Action for Peace in Palestine and Israel: 4-10 June 2008
15 May 2008 marked the sixtieth commemoration of the Palestinian Nakba or the “catastrophe” in which 711,000 Palestinians lost both their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict (a number that has risen to more than 4.6 million refugees today due to natural population growth).1 Although the Nakba events were small compared to the large celebrations of the establishment of the State of Israel, demonstrations and vigils were held in towns across the West Bank as well as abroad. Ecumenical Accompaniers (EAs) participated in the release of 21,915 black balloons (one for each day since the Nakba) over the skies of Jerusalem.2
The World Council of Churches initiative – International Church Action for Peace in Palestine and Israel (ICAPPI) – was successfully launched in Jerusalem with an Ecumenical Peace service on 4 June. The service used a prayer from the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem asking for political leaders to be “courageous enough to sign a treaty … that puts an end to the occupation imposed by one people on another, granting freedom to Palestinians, giving security to Israelis and freeing us all from fear.” [Find the prayer at this link: http://www.oikoumene.org/fileadmin/files/wcc-main/2008pdfs/Jerusalem_prayer_for_ICAPPI_08_E.pdf]
EAs also participated in the ‘Living Clock’1 on Manger Square in Bethlehem where each person symbolised a year or a letter in the sentence: It’s time for Palestine and contributed to an ICAPPI blog on the WCC website. In its third year, ICAPPI brought together 40 countries in a week of advocacy and action for a just peace in Palestine and Israel.
--
There's lots more in the full July-August newsletter. To read newsletters from EAPPI, go to: http://www.eappi.org/en/resources/newsletter.html
For eyewitness reports from accompaniers, go to the home page: http://www.eappi.org/
The EAPPI supports Palestinians and Israelis working for peace by monitoring and reporting violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, offering protection by accompanying local communities in daily activities, and by advocating with churches for a peaceful end to the Occupation. The programme, which began in 2002, is coordinated by the WCC, is a fellowship of 347 churches, in more than 100 countries in all continents from virtually all Christian traditions. Its office is in Geneva, Switzerland. For more information on the WCC: www.oikoumene.org
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
---
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Report from On Holy Ground trip featured at ELCA blog Hunger Rumblings
Sue Edison-Swift posted this message to the ELCA World Hunger blog, Hunger Rumblings, in July 2008 - http://blogs.elca.org/hungerrumblings/2008_07_01_archive.html
Sue writes:
My husband, Paul, and I recently returned from a trip to Jordan, Israel, Palestine, and Egypt. There were 21 of us related somehow to St. Luke's Lutheran in Park Ridge, Illinois, traveling "On Holy Ground" together.
We had the time and the leadership to
(1) encounter people and groups representing many perspectives/views/sides of the issues;
(2) visit important Lutheran places and people at Augusta Victoria Hospital and Resurrection Lutheran in Jerusalem, St. Andrews in Cairo, and Christmas Lutheran in Bethlehem and others;
(3) experience the holy places and churches; and
(4) do some fun, touristy stuff like visit Petra and take a bob in the dead sea.
Our group had regular meetings to prepare for the trip and we've had our first meeting
to debrief and prepare for post trip. We talked about how we answer the question, "How was your trip?" We came up with words like engaging... enraging... enlightening... and others less
alliterative. We admitted that we couldn't yet really answer "How was the trip?" for ourselves,
much less for others. Most of us just answer "It was great!" and promise ourselves to work on a
better answer for the next time.
I invite you to visit our photo journal at http://imageevent.com/edisonswift/onholyground -- [contact Sue for the password at sue.edison-swift@elca.org].
And, if you or your congregation is planning a trip to the Holy Land, I heartily encourage you embrace a "Peace Not Walls" itinerary and to visit Lutheran "holy ground" places like those I mention above. I happen to know that, as I type, someone is attending New Global Mission Personnel Training who will be charged with helping travelers to the Holy Land accomplish these very things. Until we have direct contact information, please call 800/638-3522, ext. 2654 or 2117.
By the way, our trip was great, blessings on top of blessings. Sue-s
-- --
Visit http://blogs.elca.org/hungerrumblings/ to see all the postings (they're great!). Scroll down on the left-hand column and find a spot to sign up to receive new postings via e-mail.
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
Sue writes:
My husband, Paul, and I recently returned from a trip to Jordan, Israel, Palestine, and Egypt. There were 21 of us related somehow to St. Luke's Lutheran in Park Ridge, Illinois, traveling "On Holy Ground" together.
We had the time and the leadership to
(1) encounter people and groups representing many perspectives/views/sides of the issues;
(2) visit important Lutheran places and people at Augusta Victoria Hospital and Resurrection Lutheran in Jerusalem, St. Andrews in Cairo, and Christmas Lutheran in Bethlehem and others;
(3) experience the holy places and churches; and
(4) do some fun, touristy stuff like visit Petra and take a bob in the dead sea.
Our group had regular meetings to prepare for the trip and we've had our first meeting
to debrief and prepare for post trip. We talked about how we answer the question, "How was your trip?" We came up with words like engaging... enraging... enlightening... and others less
alliterative. We admitted that we couldn't yet really answer "How was the trip?" for ourselves,
much less for others. Most of us just answer "It was great!" and promise ourselves to work on a
better answer for the next time.
I invite you to visit our photo journal at http://imageevent.com/edisonswift/onholyground -- [contact Sue for the password at sue.edison-swift@elca.org].
And, if you or your congregation is planning a trip to the Holy Land, I heartily encourage you embrace a "Peace Not Walls" itinerary and to visit Lutheran "holy ground" places like those I mention above. I happen to know that, as I type, someone is attending New Global Mission Personnel Training who will be charged with helping travelers to the Holy Land accomplish these very things. Until we have direct contact information, please call 800/638-3522, ext. 2654 or 2117.
By the way, our trip was great, blessings on top of blessings. Sue-s
-- --
Visit http://blogs.elca.org/hungerrumblings/ to see all the postings (they're great!). Scroll down on the left-hand column and find a spot to sign up to receive new postings via e-mail.
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
Monday, August 18, 2008
Russ Siler: "When was the last time you got someone to change his mind by yelling at him?"
Lutheran Pastor Russ Siler's series continues since his return to the USA from Jerusalem. This one arrived in June, but it's very worthwhile now.
Not From Jerusalem # 11
16 June 2008
Some years ago a friend and I were discussing the circumstances under which people change their minds. Aware that I had been known to get fairly loud and forceful in expressing my own opinions, he asked, “When was the last time you got someone to change his mind by yelling at him?” With a small sheepish grin, I responded, “That would be never.” That bit of wisdom is on my mind every time I sit at the keyboard to write one of these periodic letters or any other presentation on the subject. It is also uppermost in my thinking when I offer public seminars and workshops on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. All of us—almost without exception—are prone to react emotionally to the subject, often to the extent that the content of what we hear is obscured or even ignored. All of which is why I try to emphasize to those to whom I am speaking that what I say or present is entirely what I have seen, experienced, or learned. Obviously, I have strong opinions on the issues, but what I want my hearers to do is listen, read, and learn, and then form their own opinions. Verbal force—just as physical force—may alter behavior, but it will not change attitudes and opinions in a positive direction. So I often place before others ideas and propositions which require all of us to think beyond our preconceived notions, images, and stereotypes.
For example when the subject of Iran and its potential for producing nuclear weapons arises, I may ask if the fact that Israel has a substantial stockpile of nuclear weapons and the capability to deliver them might act as a motivator for Iran to counter with its own such weapons. From there we might move to the fact that the United States has engaged in a kind of international, diplomatic word game with Israel which goes something like this: “If you don’t state publicly that you have nuclear weapons, we will act as if you don’t have them. OK?” And the “game” has now gone on for more than 50 years. Let me be clear: the fact of Israel’s nuclear arsenal should not determine how the rest of the world should treat Iran, but, if we are to make sound decisions which involve the welfare of countless millions of people, we should consider all the facts available to us.
Again, I recently was told that it is a “sin” to term the dispossession of the Palestinian peoples from their homes in 1948 a nakba [or naqba] , the Arabic word for “catastrophe.” The pronouncement came within an episode of written “shouting” in my direction. There was no attempt to share a differing point of view, just a desire to overpower me with one perspective rather than work to see if we might find points of concurrence from which we could proceed to greater understanding. My point is not that we both must agree, but that, if any progress toward a just peace is to be made, we will both understand these two parallel phenomena: Israel, many of the world’s Jews, and much of the rest of the world celebrate the events of 1948, marking the founding of the state of Israel, as a great, positive watershed development; at the exact same time Palestinians, other Arabs, and many in the international community look to that year as a time of grievous injustice, and the intervening years as having compounded what is seen as an international tragedy. We must not only realize that there are two diametrically opposite recollections of the same sequence of events; we must also understand what brought Israelis and Palestinians into such a fierce conflict.
For several generations people have been told of the vicious attack on the fledgling Israel by Arab forces immediately at the declaration of statehood in May 1948. Yet there is another perspective. Even Israeli historians today disclose that official pre-state records and files maintained by leaders of the national movement give ample evidence that there was far more to the situation than that: these now-open records show that para-military operations, marked by fear and terror tactics, long preceded the 1948 war. Our approach must not be to see which side can shout its version the loudest, but to acknowledge that there conflicting viewpoints which must be reviewed honestly and resolved with integrity.
There are three things I would ask of each of us:
1. Keep telling everyone you can that there are stories of two peoples—not one—written in the soil of the Holy Land.
2. Even while you are telling the neglected story, remember to listen to the concerns of those who stand opposite you.
3. Refuse to allow others to stifle the strong witness for peace with justice by raising concerns that we will be misunderstand and our relationships will suffer.
If we do not stand with courage in behalf of justice for those who are oppressed, I cannot see that we have anything left which will be worth standing for.
Russell O. Siler, Retired
thesilers@earthlink.net
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
Not From Jerusalem # 11
16 June 2008
Some years ago a friend and I were discussing the circumstances under which people change their minds. Aware that I had been known to get fairly loud and forceful in expressing my own opinions, he asked, “When was the last time you got someone to change his mind by yelling at him?” With a small sheepish grin, I responded, “That would be never.” That bit of wisdom is on my mind every time I sit at the keyboard to write one of these periodic letters or any other presentation on the subject. It is also uppermost in my thinking when I offer public seminars and workshops on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. All of us—almost without exception—are prone to react emotionally to the subject, often to the extent that the content of what we hear is obscured or even ignored. All of which is why I try to emphasize to those to whom I am speaking that what I say or present is entirely what I have seen, experienced, or learned. Obviously, I have strong opinions on the issues, but what I want my hearers to do is listen, read, and learn, and then form their own opinions. Verbal force—just as physical force—may alter behavior, but it will not change attitudes and opinions in a positive direction. So I often place before others ideas and propositions which require all of us to think beyond our preconceived notions, images, and stereotypes.
For example when the subject of Iran and its potential for producing nuclear weapons arises, I may ask if the fact that Israel has a substantial stockpile of nuclear weapons and the capability to deliver them might act as a motivator for Iran to counter with its own such weapons. From there we might move to the fact that the United States has engaged in a kind of international, diplomatic word game with Israel which goes something like this: “If you don’t state publicly that you have nuclear weapons, we will act as if you don’t have them. OK?” And the “game” has now gone on for more than 50 years. Let me be clear: the fact of Israel’s nuclear arsenal should not determine how the rest of the world should treat Iran, but, if we are to make sound decisions which involve the welfare of countless millions of people, we should consider all the facts available to us.
Again, I recently was told that it is a “sin” to term the dispossession of the Palestinian peoples from their homes in 1948 a nakba [or naqba] , the Arabic word for “catastrophe.” The pronouncement came within an episode of written “shouting” in my direction. There was no attempt to share a differing point of view, just a desire to overpower me with one perspective rather than work to see if we might find points of concurrence from which we could proceed to greater understanding. My point is not that we both must agree, but that, if any progress toward a just peace is to be made, we will both understand these two parallel phenomena: Israel, many of the world’s Jews, and much of the rest of the world celebrate the events of 1948, marking the founding of the state of Israel, as a great, positive watershed development; at the exact same time Palestinians, other Arabs, and many in the international community look to that year as a time of grievous injustice, and the intervening years as having compounded what is seen as an international tragedy. We must not only realize that there are two diametrically opposite recollections of the same sequence of events; we must also understand what brought Israelis and Palestinians into such a fierce conflict.
For several generations people have been told of the vicious attack on the fledgling Israel by Arab forces immediately at the declaration of statehood in May 1948. Yet there is another perspective. Even Israeli historians today disclose that official pre-state records and files maintained by leaders of the national movement give ample evidence that there was far more to the situation than that: these now-open records show that para-military operations, marked by fear and terror tactics, long preceded the 1948 war. Our approach must not be to see which side can shout its version the loudest, but to acknowledge that there conflicting viewpoints which must be reviewed honestly and resolved with integrity.
There are three things I would ask of each of us:
1. Keep telling everyone you can that there are stories of two peoples—not one—written in the soil of the Holy Land.
2. Even while you are telling the neglected story, remember to listen to the concerns of those who stand opposite you.
3. Refuse to allow others to stifle the strong witness for peace with justice by raising concerns that we will be misunderstand and our relationships will suffer.
If we do not stand with courage in behalf of justice for those who are oppressed, I cannot see that we have anything left which will be worth standing for.
Russell O. Siler, Retired
thesilers@earthlink.net
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Father Chacour in the Metro Lutheran: Christian Palestinians are an essential part of the Holy Land solution
The Metro Lutheran, newspaper of Lutherans in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, ran a feature story in its July issue profiling Father Elias Chacour of I'billin in Galilee.
The home page for the Metro Lutheran is http://www.metrolutheran.org/
Editor Bob Hulteen's article is at this link: http://news.mywebpal.com/news_tool_v2.cfm?pnpid=380&show=archivedetails&ArchiveID=1375043&om=1
Here is the lead...
Christian Palestinians are an essential part of the Holy Land solution -
An urgent plea for peace
"Father Elias Chacour loves his job and his homeland. He is the Archbishop of Akko, Faifa, Nazareth, and Galilee in the Melkite Greek Catholic Church."
And here are a few quotes...
“`The Galilee is known for being green. That makes the people hospitable,' Chacour claims. `Galilee for us Christians is the Galilee of the Resurrection. It is there that Christ appeared so often to his disciples.' Chacour is probably best known internationally for his book titled We Belong to the Land, which he wrote in order to explain to those who don’t know that the common claim for the same land is the primary reason for the conflict in the Middle East. `The land is so important to us that we teach our children to be respectful of wherever they are walking.'"
"Chacour warns that a selective reading of the Bible to support one’s own position is a crime against God and a crime against humanity. `If you use Biblical arguments to justify your political and geographical rights, you are making God the granter of your arguments, and there is no way for any concession.'”
"While preaching at a Luther Seminary [http://www.luthersem.edu/] chapel service, Chacour announced that he came as a beggar — not for money, but for friendship, for solidarity with Palestinian Christians.
"Chacour asks those people who visit the Holy Land to put aside at least one day to share food and water with Palestinian Christians. `We are very hospitable, and will share our food, and tell you the story of the open tomb. When you are an archbishop of a land that includes people named Jesus, Mary, and Judas, you realize you have a responsibility. And you recognize that you need to be in relationship with other Christians around the world.'"
-- --
While in Minnesota Chacour also spoke at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minn. His sermon in the chapel there is available on podcast: http://gustavus.edu//podcasts/chapel/2008/2008-05-12.mp3
Q&A with Father Chacour followed the chapel service:
http://gustavus.edu/podcasts/chapel/2008/2008-05-12%20Father%20Elias%20Chacour%20Q%26A.mp3
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran'sVoice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
The home page for the Metro Lutheran is http://www.metrolutheran.org/
Editor Bob Hulteen's article is at this link: http://news.mywebpal.com/news_tool_v2.cfm?pnpid=380&show=archivedetails&ArchiveID=1375043&om=1
Here is the lead...
Christian Palestinians are an essential part of the Holy Land solution -
An urgent plea for peace
"Father Elias Chacour loves his job and his homeland. He is the Archbishop of Akko, Faifa, Nazareth, and Galilee in the Melkite Greek Catholic Church."
And here are a few quotes...
“`The Galilee is known for being green. That makes the people hospitable,' Chacour claims. `Galilee for us Christians is the Galilee of the Resurrection. It is there that Christ appeared so often to his disciples.' Chacour is probably best known internationally for his book titled We Belong to the Land, which he wrote in order to explain to those who don’t know that the common claim for the same land is the primary reason for the conflict in the Middle East. `The land is so important to us that we teach our children to be respectful of wherever they are walking.'"
"Chacour warns that a selective reading of the Bible to support one’s own position is a crime against God and a crime against humanity. `If you use Biblical arguments to justify your political and geographical rights, you are making God the granter of your arguments, and there is no way for any concession.'”
"While preaching at a Luther Seminary [http://www.luthersem.edu/] chapel service, Chacour announced that he came as a beggar — not for money, but for friendship, for solidarity with Palestinian Christians.
"Chacour asks those people who visit the Holy Land to put aside at least one day to share food and water with Palestinian Christians. `We are very hospitable, and will share our food, and tell you the story of the open tomb. When you are an archbishop of a land that includes people named Jesus, Mary, and Judas, you realize you have a responsibility. And you recognize that you need to be in relationship with other Christians around the world.'"
-- --
While in Minnesota Chacour also spoke at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minn. His sermon in the chapel there is available on podcast: http://gustavus.edu//podcasts/chapel/2008/2008-05-12.mp3
Q&A with Father Chacour followed the chapel service:
http://gustavus.edu/podcasts/chapel/2008/2008-05-12%20Father%20Elias%20Chacour%20Q%26A.mp3
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran'sVoice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
Friday, August 15, 2008
OCHA's Humanitarian Monitor - how to get it and what you'll find there
I often send folks to the website of the U.N. in Jerusalem, technically the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). E-mail versions of their "Humanitarian Monitor" are available by signing up at the OCHA website - http://www.ochaopt.org/ - which also offers the one of the best selections of maps and online presentations.
Here is the link to The Humanitarian Monitor for July 2008 in a new shortened format (eight pages) - http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/Humanitarian_Monitor_July_2008.pdf
The Monitor provides a monthly analysis of different areas of humanitarian concern for the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt). The tables with monthly figures and indicators for each sector which appeared in the previous format, will be available in a separate annex in OCHA’s website by the third week of every month.
Highlights this month:
Protection:
· In the West Bank, 221 unarmed civilians, including 44 children, were injured by Israeli security forces during military activities, more than half of them in anti-Barrier demonstrations
· Inter-factional fighting in Gaza resulted in the killing of 14 people including two children, and the injury of 67 others including seven children.
· Hamas security forces raided and closed down over 184 community-based organisations allegedly connected to Fatah, disrupting activities involving thousands of beneficiaries. Some of the closed organisations were subsequently allowed to reopen. In the West Bank, the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) raided several Islamic institutions in Nablus district and closed some of them, disrupting services to over 3,000 children.
· This month OCHA recorded 41 incidents involving Israeli settlers targeting Palestinians and their property, the highest monthly total since the last olive harvest season.
Gaza crossings: This month saw little tangible dividend from the truce. The amount of commodities remained far below actual needs as the level of imports was 46% below the level in May 2007. Only 990 people succeeded in crossing Rafah (Gaza’s border with Egypt), compared to over 18,000 in May 2007.
Movement and access in the West Bank:
· Two major checkpoints, Wadi Nar/Container and Jab’a, were further entrenched by new renovations and expansions.
· There was a 190% increase in flying-random checkpoints from 76 to 221/week mostly in the Hebron area.
· About 80% of UNRWA attempts to pass their vehicles through the ‘Tunnels’ checkpoint without a search, failed, and resulted in a longer and more expensive re-routing.
· As of the end of July 2008, four years after the ICJ (International Court of Justice) advisory opinion, Barrier construction continues and the permit and gates regime is gradually tightening and expanding over additional areas.
Water crisis: Approximately 200 rural communities in the West Bank with an estimated population of 200,000 are struggling to meet their domestic and livestock water needs.
For comments or suggestions on the format or content of the Humanitarian Monitor please contact Mai Yassin yassinm@un.org
(The complete report is at) http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/Humanitarian_Monitor_July_2008.pdf
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Mac House
P.O.Box 38712
Jerusalem
Tel:++ 972-2-5829962/5853
Fax:++972-2-5825841
email: ochaopt@un.org
http://www.ochaopt.org/
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
Here is the link to The Humanitarian Monitor for July 2008 in a new shortened format (eight pages) - http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/Humanitarian_Monitor_July_2008.pdf
The Monitor provides a monthly analysis of different areas of humanitarian concern for the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt). The tables with monthly figures and indicators for each sector which appeared in the previous format, will be available in a separate annex in OCHA’s website by the third week of every month.
Highlights this month:
Protection:
· In the West Bank, 221 unarmed civilians, including 44 children, were injured by Israeli security forces during military activities, more than half of them in anti-Barrier demonstrations
· Inter-factional fighting in Gaza resulted in the killing of 14 people including two children, and the injury of 67 others including seven children.
· Hamas security forces raided and closed down over 184 community-based organisations allegedly connected to Fatah, disrupting activities involving thousands of beneficiaries. Some of the closed organisations were subsequently allowed to reopen. In the West Bank, the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) raided several Islamic institutions in Nablus district and closed some of them, disrupting services to over 3,000 children.
· This month OCHA recorded 41 incidents involving Israeli settlers targeting Palestinians and their property, the highest monthly total since the last olive harvest season.
Gaza crossings: This month saw little tangible dividend from the truce. The amount of commodities remained far below actual needs as the level of imports was 46% below the level in May 2007. Only 990 people succeeded in crossing Rafah (Gaza’s border with Egypt), compared to over 18,000 in May 2007.
Movement and access in the West Bank:
· Two major checkpoints, Wadi Nar/Container and Jab’a, were further entrenched by new renovations and expansions.
· There was a 190% increase in flying-random checkpoints from 76 to 221/week mostly in the Hebron area.
· About 80% of UNRWA attempts to pass their vehicles through the ‘Tunnels’ checkpoint without a search, failed, and resulted in a longer and more expensive re-routing.
· As of the end of July 2008, four years after the ICJ (International Court of Justice) advisory opinion, Barrier construction continues and the permit and gates regime is gradually tightening and expanding over additional areas.
Water crisis: Approximately 200 rural communities in the West Bank with an estimated population of 200,000 are struggling to meet their domestic and livestock water needs.
For comments or suggestions on the format or content of the Humanitarian Monitor please contact Mai Yassin yassinm@un.org
(The complete report is at) http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/Humanitarian_Monitor_July_2008.pdf
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Mac House
P.O.Box 38712
Jerusalem
Tel:++ 972-2-5829962/5853
Fax:++972-2-5825841
email: ochaopt@un.org
http://www.ochaopt.org/
--- --- ---
To receive regular bulletins from Ann Hafften, subscribe at the blog, A Texas Lutheran's Voice for Peace - http://voicesforpeace.blogspot.com/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)