News,
articles and documents from the Holy Land
Issue No. 176 - Saturday, 26 October 2002
Dear Friends, Brothers
and Sisters,
Since I am a little bit tired and want to go to sleep,
because I was working the last two days in the Olive picking with several
families in my parish Taybeh, I will leave you with the following long
documents. But let me share with you that I was very impressed by the huge amount
of Olive Trees in the village (around 200 thousands) which means that our
fathers and grand fathers were very hard workers, and planted all the hills and
mounts of the village with trees. With great fatigue their sons now can finish
the harvest these days, even if they have more facilities and modern
technology. Indeed, it is true that old things are more valuable than new
things.
After his trip to Washington for the meetings of the
HCEF, the Patriarch continued last week to London, were he attended the
meetings with other religious leaders from the Holy Land in continuation of
Alexandria initiative of Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. George Carey. You will
find hereby the final communiqué with the ten points plan. The Patriarch with
Sheikh Talal Seder and Rabbi Mickael Melkior obtained Canterbury peace award
for their efforts in the interfaith dialogue and peace seeking and making in
the Holy Land.
The Patriarch continued now to Lebanon were he is
supposed to attend the annual meetings of the Catholic Patriarchs of the Arab
World. I might send you more details about this meeting when I got more
information or documents.
You will find in today’s Olive Branch the following
important documents:
1)
Final communiqué from
the meeting of the Permanent Committee for the Implementation of the Alexandria
Declaration.
2)
Alexandria meeting
establishes ten-point plan.
3)
The Holy Land Christian
Ecumenical Foundation final report: “All Major Christian Denominations in Total Solidarity with
the Christians of the Holy Land”. (it is a long report but very well done with
many valuable information).
4)
“Struggling One Day at a
Time in the Holy Land”, the last article of Dr. Maria Khoury.
A lot of things to read, but useful things for you
also. Hoping that things will get better and we will not be obliged to disturb
you with all these news and documents.
Best wishes from Taybeh Fr.
Raed Abusahlia
Final communiqué from the meeting of the Permanent Committee for the Implementation of the Alexandria Declaration
Lambeth
Palace
25th
October 2002
As Muslims, Jews and Christians coming from the Holy Land we have met at Lambeth Palace under the leadership of The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey.
First, we affirm the first Alexandria Declaration, celebrating its respect for the three major religious traditions of the region, underscoring its rejection of violence, incitement to hatred and misrepresentation, cherishing its call for a just, secure and durable solution for the Holy Land and support for a religiously sanctioned cease-fire; and promoting its ambition to create an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect.
Second, we commit ourselves to discuss the issues presented by the occupation and the ongoing violence.
From the Palestinian side it has been underlined that the ending of occupation, the withdrawal to the borders of 1967, the alleviation of the suffering of their people and the establishment of a strong, viable Palestinian state are preconditions for a peaceful future for all peoples living in the Holy Land.
From the Israeli side it has been underlined that the end of violence and the open acceptance of their presence in a Jewish state in the Holy Land are fundamental to the attainment of peace.
We acknowledge the fear of communities that there will never be open acceptance by the other of their right to be present in the Holy Land and believe that all have a duty to combat the mistrust that this generates.
Third, we recognised that it is essential to work together to establish a better understanding across the divides; to find ways of enabling each to see the common problems afresh, with the eyes of the other.
Fourth, as a sign of our ability to trust each other and work together, we believe that establishing the freedom for the faithful to worship each in their holy places should be a visible outworking of our commitment.
In looking to the future, we recognised the fundamental importance of ensuring that what we say of one another is free from invective and rhetoric and is not cast in stereotypes or generalisations. We need also to ensure that what is passed on to the next generation is not wrapped in fear and mistrust.
Therefore we, the members of the Alexandria Permanent Committee condemn all and any derogatory remarks directed to the faith, tenets and / or central figures of any of our faiths. Such remarks undermine our efforts and commitments to advance peace between our communities and, in their very character, do harm both to the faith defamed and the very religion in whose name they are made.
We call upon all responsible religious leaders to emphasise the essential need to demonstrate respect and dignity towards other faiths and their attachments for the sake of peace in the Middle East and the world at large and for the glory of the one Creator and Lord of the Universe.
We take this opportunity, on the eve of Ramadan, to greet the Islamic world in peace as they prepare for their Holy season.
****
We acknowledge with gratitude the central role played in our deliberations by the leadership of His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, the support of His Eminence Dr Said Tantawy, the Grand Imam of AlAzhar and the enormous contributions of the Centre for Reconciliation at Coventry Cathedral.
25th October 2002
Alexandria meeting
establishes ten-point plan
A consultation of religious leaders from
the Holy Land has issued a ten-point plan detailing the task and challenges
ahead of them.
The two-day consultation, hosted by the
Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, follows on from the first meeting of
leaders in Alexandria which for the first time established personal
relationships and a formal framework for discussion and consultation across the
religious divides. The original meeting produced a Declaration signed by
representatives from the three main faiths which remains a unique commitment to
work together for peace and reconciliation.
The ten-point plan recognises the
challenges ahead in implementing that agreement and seeks to set areas of work
for the future.
The ten points are:
- To maintain the relationship and channels of
communication developed from the Alexandria Declaration;
- To increase local ownership of the Alexandria
Declaration implementation process;
- To establish an inter-religious council for Jerusalem
and the Holy sites;
- To sustain the existing close working relationships
with the political leadership of both the Government of Israel and the
Palestinian National Authority;
- To engage with those religious leaders who are seen to
be instruments in the perpetuation of violence;
- To establish and set in motion clear channels of
communication with the Quartet;
- To establish a program of education – through religious
institutions – that will foster and encourage an environment of tolerance
and eventual reconciliation;
- To systematically work through the implementation of
the Alexandria Declaration;
- To provide encouragement for the delegates to the
Permanent Committee, to enable them to continue the bold work that they
have started;
- To engage with other nations of the Middle East region,
at the highest level.
All Major Christian
Denominations in Total Solidarity
with the Christians of
the Holy Land
Report from The Holy
Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation*
News Release
For Immediate Release Contact: Robert Younes, MD
October 24, 2002 (301) 983 3022, younes@hcef.org
The three events
of the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation's Fourth International
Conference on the Christians of the Holy Land were attended by over 700 people
from 17 states and 12 countries. Attendees pledged fifty new Child
Sponsorship Scholarships and 250 additional Child Sponsorship Scholarships were
pledged by the Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore. Attendees also agreed
to work on forming HCEF Committees in 5 cities (Charlestown, SC, Austin TX,
Lexington, KY, Toronto, CA and Montreal, CA.). Committees in two other cities
have been reinvigorated. A total of 15 North American cities have active
or soon to be active committees committed to informing American and Canadian
Christians about the Christians of the Holy Land and providing them spiritual
and material support. Descendents of the first Christians who heard the words
spoken by Jesus Christ now have the support of Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox
and mainline American Protestant denominations. All major Christian
denominations have committed themselves to maintain Christianity in the land of
its birth.
Opening Prayer
Rev. Dr. Frank Trotter prayed for God's goodness and love to sustain us and
that we seek guidance and wisdom as we work to strengthen the Christians in the
Holy Land. All the speakers reiterated this prayer by emphasizing that what
would bring healing to the Holy Land is God's justice and peace.
Opening Remarks
Rateb Y. Rabie, KHS, President, Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation (HCEF),
offered the opening remarks for the Fourth International Conference. He
explained the theme for the conference, The Divine Light Still Burns: the Holy
Land Christians Endure, was picked because Palestinian Christians continue to
carry the light of Christ despite hardship and suffering. He noted that
HCEF continues to provide for the housing needs of Christian families. Last
year, due to the generous contributions of donors, HCEF was able to send a half
million dollars to support construction of housing units for 24 families in
Beit Jala. HCEF would like to see support for construction of housing units for
30 families in Taybeh through the Greek Orthodox Housing Project.
The Emergency Relief Fund set up job creation programs in 10 Christian towns
and enabled workers to earn a wage while rebuilding homes and infrastructure
destroyed in shelling. Over 177 workers and 220 Christian families benefited.
Sir Rabie mentioned the Holy Land Gifts program that provides artisans skilled
in carving traditional olivewood crafts, a source of income by finding markets
for their products in the US. The Child Sponsorship Program for Christian
education support helps cover costs of educating youth in the Holy Land's
Christian Schools.
Sir Rabie stated that HCEF had invited all churches in the Holy Land to
participate. Currently, over 600 children of all Christian denominations are
sponsored in Latin Schools in the Holy Land. This year, the Greek Orthodox and
Greek Catholic church school systems in the Holy Land are participating and
HCEF hopes the rest will accept the invitation. The Child Sponsorship Program
continues to grow, but there are still approximately 18,000 Christian children
that need to be sponsored. Sir Rabie urged conference attendees to sponsor one
of these children. He then stated that HCEF has the capability to develop
networks of support for programs to benefit our Christian brothers and sisters
in the Holy Land, but it needs you to volunteer your time and provide financial
support. He would like attendees to put together concrete plans for introducing
some of these programs in their areas. He then urged attendees to take the
information received this weekend back with them to their respective churches,
schools, organizations, and families. He asked that participants encourage the
faithful in their communities to join HCEF's efforts through the Holy Land
Christian Support Network. Sir Rabie closed by thanking everyone for coming to
the conference to show their solidarity with and support of Holy Land Christians.
Update on the Arab Christians in the Holy Land
The first part of the conference provided participants with an update on the
Arab Christians in the Holy Land. Father Alex Kratz moderated as Brother
Vincent Malham and the Honorable Hanna Nasser gave first-hand accounts on the
suffering of Palestinian Christians. Father Kratz began by stating that
Christians in the Holy Land are Christian ambassadors to the rest of the world.
Father Kratz also stated Jesus is calling us back to our Christian roots to
remind us who we are today. Brother Malham, President, Bethlehem University,
then gave an eyewitness account of recent events on Palestinians, specifically
the students and teachers at Bethlehem University. Brother Malham spoke of the
numerous obstacles faculty and staff had to overcome, and continue to overcome,
to stay open for their students. He gave detailed accounts of the material and
financial lose as a result of damage done to buildings from Israeli military
missiles and bullets, imposed curfew, loss of summer school, and the constant
disruption of the academic year. Brother Malham concluded by stating that one
of the hardest things for Palestinians Christians is living with the
unknown-always wondering what will happen tomorrow.
The Honorable Hanna Nasser, Mayor of Bethlehem, began by stating that while the
church of Bethlehem is small in size it is the most important church, it is the
Mother Church. Mayor Nasser told how at the turn of the century the Christian
population was 18% of Palestine, and now it is less than 2% and within the last
18 months 1,500 Bethlehem Christians have left for good. He attributed the
declining existence of Christians to the continuing arrest, political
situation, fear, and frustration. He spoke of the dying tourism industry in
Bethlehem and unemployment rate around 70%. In closing, Mayor Nasser urged all
Christians of the world to stretch their hands to support the Palestinian
Christians.
Zionist Israeli Settlements in the West Bank and Gaza
Rev. Dr. Michael Prior, C.M., Chair of Living Stones of the Holy Land Trust,
U.K., stated his conclusion that, "it is one of the anomalies of recent
Church history that while Christians, embarrassed by past association with
colonial enterprises, have supported oppressed peoples virtually everywhere
else, there has been little protest against the historic injustice perpetrated
on the indigenous population of Palestine by Political Zionism, a movement
thoroughly at home in the colonial spirit of nineteenth century Europe."
Describing the Evangelical Zionist's immoral and heretical interpretation of
biblical prophetic and apocalyptic texts, Prior concludes that the god of such
revelation is a "militaristic and xenophobic genocidist, who is not
sufficiently moral even to conform to the requirements of the Fourth Geneva
Convention or any of the Human Rights Protocols which attempt to set limits to
barbarism." He criticized the perspectives and actions of the World
Council of Churches and of the Holy See, citing the example of the agreement
between the Holy See and the State of Israel that does not make any reference
to Palestinian Arabs or any injustice done to them upon the establishment of
the State of Israel. Indeed, the Holy See essentially silences itself by
committing to remain "a stranger to all merely temporal conflicts, which
principle applies specifically to disputed territories and unsettled
borders." Prior reiterated that the performance of the mainstream
Christian churches (not merely that of the Holy See) has not been a model of
ethical engagement. Prior suggested that Church authorities ought to be
prepared to insist that Israel (1) apologize for its injustice to Palestinian
Arabs, (2) undo the damage it has perpetrated, (3) honor its commitments
regarding the Palestinian right of return, (4) make appropriate compensation
for the damage it has done, and (5) on the basis of confession of restitution,
move towards a less ethnocratic polity. Rev. Prior also encouraged
conference attendees not to be a
because we are calling for justice.
Presbyterian Ministry to the Holy Land
Rev. Dr. Victor Pentz, Pastor of Peachtree Presbyterian Church, began by
sharing his own Damascus Road experience in opening his eyes to the plight of
his brothers and sisters in Christ in the Holy Land. Rev. Pentz then asked the
questions: how do we affect change in the present situation and what does the
Lord require of us? Rev. Pentz listed five areas that Christians must recognize
and become involved in. These five areas are:
( Relationships-calling us to make personal connections between Christians in
the West and the Living Stones of the Holy Land.
( Repent of bad theology-Rev. Pentz went into further detail on the theological
problems of interpreting political-Zionism as a fulfillment of Biblical
prophesy.
( Receive gratefully the heroic example of pastoral ministry in the Middle
East.
( Utilize our resources in support of the Mother Church.
( Finally, the Lord requires that we reconcile in all ways possible with those
in
conflict.
In conclusion, Rev. Pentz spoke of the long history the Presbyterian Church has
had in working towards peace and reconciliation and stated, "today's hour
calls for high moral grandeur and spiritual audacity-and if it does not come
from the Church, from where will it come?"
Palestinian Christian Woman Witness to the Holy Land
Claudette Habasch, Director, Caritas International, Jerusalem
Ms. Habasch began by saying, "I am a Palestinian. Palestine is my
country. I am one of 12 million Christians from the Middle East. That
is my faith." Describing her many roles - a mother, wife, daughter,
friend, fighter, member of a community, survivor, and human who wants to live
with dignity and respect - she asserted that her most important facet is that
she is someone who believes in the power of peace. She told a story about
a parent whose daughter, like every child, must go through a checkpoint at
gunpoint on her way to school. The parent was concerned because one day
he heard his daughter describing feelings of happiness about a suicide bomber
she had her about, saying that this suicide bomber was trying to
"protect" her. Knowing that the suicide bombings are
unjustifiable violence, the father described his disappointment that in spite
of his attempts to raise her according to Christian principles, the violence
around her "took over" her sense of morality. Because it came
into his home daily, his daughter now identified violence as something that
could protect her. Many parents are working, like this one, to raise
their children and grandchildren without hate and ready for
reconciliation. Even so, students ask their teachers at school, "How
are we to love this enemy who constantly shells our homes?"
"I propose to reframe the debate," said Ms. Habasch. "The
situation is not about Israel and Palestine. It is about those who choose
violence versus those who choose peace." She described her respect
for the Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah whose relentless call to peace and
nonviolence. She lauded the advocacy efforts of groups like Caritas
International, Churches for Middle East Peace, the World Council of Churches,
and Caritas U.S. Any organization who is working for economic or social
reform must now challenge injustice because if they don't, according to
Habasch, they do harm. "I call it applied social justice . . . As
Palestinians we are well-researched and analytical. We explore the
relationship between our belief in God and how we live our life.
What is needed is to establish common ground that will allow us to join
together and make an appeal for action . . . We need to mobilize people who
want peace but are afraid to take action." Habasch applauded her
staff, who have great courage and tend to needs in spite of the dangers they
face every day. She thanked the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation
(HCEF) for keeping the Christian presence on the international map, and she
urged everyone to work for unity so that we can "speak truth to power,
name the sin without condemning the sinner, cooperate among Palestinian and
Israeli peace groups, and sacrifice what is necessary for peace."
Viveca Hazboun/Ninos, M.D., Director, Guidance and Training Center, Jerusalem
Dr. Hazboun framed her words by invoking Jesus' cry from the cross, "My
God, why hast thou forsaken me?" She quickly answered that the work
of HCEF's conference reassured her that Palestinian Christians are not quite
forsaken and that these words of Jesus and this feeling of having been forsaken
were only the beginning of the great things that followed. "I have
Israeli colleagues," reported Hazboun, "who are ashamed to be
Israelis. I do not know any Palestinians who are ashamed of being
Palestinian. Indeed, I now realize that none of us would change places
with one another." Living in Jerusalem, Dr. Hazboun travels through
the checkpoint to Bethlehem each day to see patients. Citing statistics
from a clinic's studies, she said that 45% of the people in Gaza are suffering
from acute malnutrition, 54% of the population is suffering from Post Traumatic
Stress Disorder, 56% of children are experiencing bedwetting, and 13% of the
children have developed serious mental disorders and aggressive behavior.
Witnessing these kinds of problems, Dr. Hazboun confessed, "I haven't
reached the level of maturity to turn the other cheek, but I'm working on
it." Because of her Christian faith, she knows that justice will be
done, whether now or in the hereafter. Speaking scientifically, she
reiterated that people who think that they can make their own laws (i.e.,
criminals) generally have much shorter life spans. In addition, she noted
that injustice goes through a vicious cycle. If we feel pain, we think we
can get rid of it by causing pain to someone else. Clearly, this cycle is
self-defeating. "I hope that we do not fall into the same cycle and
fall into abuse when this occupation ends."
During the occupation of Bethlehem, Dr. Hazboun's patients called her to say
that the only reason they maintained hope in life was the "talks"
they shared with her when she came to see them. Dr. Hazboun reiterated
the importance of al-karame, or dignity, for people suffering under the
occupation. "You see this karame in the eyes of children who are
aching and suffering." But it is difficult to maintain. Dr.
Hazboun shared a story of a child who was very afraid and whose mother
continually reassured her that they were in the safest room of the house.
The child went totally mute on the day that a bullet came through the window
and lodged in the wall beside her. Children are learning in very real
terms that even parents are not perfect.
Continuing her descriptions of children's mental health issues, Dr. Hazboun
described the difference between the drawings made by children in 1993, after
the Oslo agreements. There was hope throughout Palestine, and the
children's drawings were of such scenes as weddings and olive picking.
Today, the pictures are of dead people, coffins, bleeding, tanks, barbed wire,
and helicopters. Children tell her that they have no hopes or dreams for
their future. "We can't dream," they say literally, "we
can't even sleep." 90% of the dreams reported by children are about
people coming to take them or their fathers away. In asking children what
they would wish for if they had three wishes, a typical response in the past
was to ask for more wishes. This request has stopped. "For a
child to not express wishes is worse than cancer."
One of the major pains for Dr. Hazboun has been that people outside the region
have virtually no means of knowing the truth because the U.N. is denied the
right to investigate, reporters are the victims of violence and are kicked out
of controversial areas, and the call for international observers is still
denied by the Israeli government. Dr. Hazboun closed by saying that there
are many reasons people choose to commit violence and otherwise abuse their own
maturity levels. There is only one reason that we choose not to do these
things - we have a conviction against such things. She reiterated that,
if we cannot create peace on a public level, we must at least continue to work
toward some kind of inner harmony.
Mother Agapia (Stephanopoulos), Administrator, Orthodox School of Bethany
Mother Agapia arrived in Palestine six years ago "with no intention of
working with people in Palestine." She intended to live an inner
life and remain within the walls of her convent. "When you become a
monastic, you wear a cross and carry it with you inside the monastery.
I've learned from Palestinians what it means to carry a cross." Her home
is at the school in Bethany on the Russian Orthodox compound. Bethany is
Area B which means that it is under Palestinian civil control and Israeli
military control. Muslims are the majority in town; and Muslims and
Christians have always had friendly relations. By May 2000, according to
the Wye Agreements, Bethany was supposed to come under full Palestinian
control. During the time leading up to this transfer of authority,
according to Mother Agapia, there was a general acceptance between the Palestinians
and the Israeli settlers nearby. The transfer of authority never
happened, and four months later, Ariel Sharon made his appearance on the Temple
Mount. Describing the 2001-2002 school year, Mother Agapia remarked that
it was impossible to plan a day at school because the military repeatedly put
the town under curfew. "Rather than being awoken by the call to
prayer or the church bells, we would hear the armed personnel carriers and
Israeli jeeps driving through town calling out, 'Curfew' from their
loudspeakers."
It became impossible to feel that the school was a safe place for the sisters,
the 300 local girls, and the 12 boarding students. "The effects of
curfew are powerful. In broad daylight, there is not a soul in the
street, but I know that the girls are in the building, even though I can't hear
them." In 2001-2002, the Orthodox School of Bethany missed two full
weeks due to curfews, and there were innumerable days when portions of the
faculty and staff could not get to the school. The new school year began
on August 21, and so far, they have been closed already for three days due to
curfews. The crisis is escalating as fewer and fewer parents can pay any
tuition, and the Israeli economy is also in a downward spiral. The maintenance
work that the school has contracted is incomplete because workers and materials
can't get through the checkpoint. "It is edging toward anarchy . . .
there are now settlers placing bombs in front of school yards." The
girls from the school now play "checkpoint," where students acting as
Israeli soldiers make a Palestinian stand for an hour in the playground while
they "check" her papers. There is now a nursery rhyme that
students sing that mimics the curfew call that they hear from the Israeli
jeeps. Parents come into the school in tears because, despite their
message about nonviolence and Christian love, their children are coming to see
suicide bombing as an accepted retaliation. She remarked that Christ's
entryway into Jerusalem (the road from Bethany) is now covered with mounds of
dirt and cement blocks to prevent the road's use by Palestinians.
Mother Agapia described her violation of a curfew one night when she went, with
two sisters and two priests, to Lazarus' tomb to celebrate Lazarus
Saturday. She described three nonviolent marches that were dispersed by
the Israeli army with tear gas and jeeps driving through the crowds of
protesters. Despite the Israeli government's concerted efforts to squelch
any nonviolent resistance, Mother Agapia urged concerned Christians
everywhere: (1) Do not despair. (2) Speak when you can. (3)
Give as you can. (4) Visit when you can. (5) Do not be afraid to
speak because according to her Russian Orthodox tradition, "by silence,
God is betrayed." Mother Agapia also urged people to make contact
whenever possible with Holy Land Christians because these words of consolation
are of great significance for a people who are so isolated. "The
last and greatest thing is prayer, and the greatest reward comes in prayer."
Quoting an Orthodox hymn to the Mother of God, she prayed, "Lord, grant
patience to the oppressed and fear of God to the oppressors," and closed
by quoting the Epistle of James which urges that we should count it all joy
when we fall into trials and realize that when our faith is tested, it makes
for endurance.
Views on the Crisis in the Holy Land
Rev. Dr. Donald Wagner, North Park University, Chicago, IL
Rev. Wagner began his talk about the influence of the Christian right in the
United States by decrying Jerry Falwell's recent television address in which he
called for the 70 million evangelical Americans to become Israel's safety net
in the U.S. Wagner noted that such messages are often deliberately
provocative and that, in other cases as well, the alliance has deliberately
inflamed Arabs and Muslims to justify the control that the Israeli government
exerts over Arabs and Muslims. He reminded listeners that the Christian
right is not "newly" Zionist, citing an Anglican priest who called for
the creation of Jewish state in 1585 so that Biblical prophecy could be
fulfilled. By 1800, Christian Zionism had taken root, though it was still
not called Christian Zionism. At this point, there were a variety of
fundamentalist theologians arguing that the Bible must be read literally and
taken as the infallible word of God. The Church, and Arabs in particular,
are called, within the movement, "a parenthesis that will be removed from
history" in the Rapture, when all who will be saved, will ascend into
heaven in a cloud. The covenant with God, in Christian Zionist theology,
has shifted to Israel. It is not with the Church of all Christians.
Clearly, this is heretical teaching and is not based on Christian
theology.
Christian Zionism came to the United States in the 1880s with the Bible
Prophecy Conference Movement, and in this same timeframe, William Blackstone
developed the first American Zionist lobby. In other words, noted Wagner,
the Christians Zionist lobby existed before the Jewish Zionist lobby. Blackstone's
movement was financed by the likes of John D. Rockefeller and had Supreme Court
justices as signatories. Its aim was to create a state for Israel in
Palestine in order to help Jewish settlers escape the pogroms in Russia.
Thus, long before Theodore Herschel, Christian Zionists were advocating the
Zionist cause. Indeed a British politician used the phrase "A land
of no people for a people with no land" in 1839!
When Israel was created in 1948, the Christian Zionist movement in the U.S. was
revived. It is, according to Wagner, a very pessimistic theology - not a
theology of hope. The 1967 war increased the momentum of the Christian
Zionists who believed that the following things were necessary to urge along
the Rapture: (1) Jews needed to recapture Jerusalem. (2) The temple
needed to be rebuilt. Indeed, many Christian Zionist groups are funding
the yeshivas in order to move toward this rebuilding of the temple. (3)
The rise of the antichrist, described as a ten nation coalition must
occur. For now, Christian Zionists describe the enemy/antichrist as
Islam. During the Cold War, it was Communism and the USSR. Wagner
distinguished between evangelicalism, which is a movement that emphasizes the
Bible, a personal relationship with Jesus and a commitment to mission (among
other things). Fundamentalism is a branch that has spun off from
evangelicalism.
Regarding the specific influences of the Christian right on Presidents, Wagner
stated that Jimmy Carter had the support of the Christian Right when he was
elected. "Pro-Israel voters put him over the top in the 1976
election." But in March 1977, when Jimmy Carter inserted into a
speech that his administration supported the rights of Palestinian people to a
Palestinian homeland, he began to lose his right wing Christian constituency.
Ronald Reagan on seven separate occasions stated that he supported the views of
Armageddon and that he was a Christian Zionist in world view. James Watt,
his Minister of the Interior, sold land on the West coast of the U.S. because
he knew that Jesus was coming back and, so, we need not be too worried about
the environment. The 1980s election of the first Likud government in
Israel brought about new language for Zionism. The West Bank was now
referred to as Judea and Samaria. Christians began to visit the Holy Land
at the request of the Likud government, and Jerry Falwell was given his own
Lear jet by the Israeli government. The potency of America's Christian
right can be seen in the fact that when Israel, in 1981, bombed the Iraqi
nuclear reactor, the Israeli government contacted Jerry Fallwell before
contacting President Reagan to explain their decision.
Christians Zionists send money to support Israel in ever increasing
amounts. The strength of this movement fell away a bit during the Clinton
years, but it is completely back in place in the George W. Bush
administration. Franklin Graham, the son of Billy Graham, has the ear of
the President, and AIPAC (American Israel Political Action Committee) cultivates
this relationship. More than 200 organizations had Israeli Prime Minister
Ariel Sharon speaking at their events in the U.S., and the movement appears to
be growing.
Rev. Wagner stressed that if Americans want to counter the strength of this
movement, they must reach out to Evangelical brothers and sisters. They
must partner with mainline Christian churches. They must educate Muslims
that the Christian right only represents a small, heretical movement of the
Christian church. They must reach out to Palestinian Christians as their
best allies. They must be sharper in Biblical analyses and expose the
human rights violations committed in the cause of Zionism. We must assert
that our cause is both just and biblical and expose the Christian Zionist cause
as racist, heretical and ethnocentric. It is not a truly Christian
movement since it does not recognize that every person is created in the image
of God and deserves the respect and dignity required by the Christian faith.
Michael Tarazi, Esq., Advisor to the Palestinian Authority
In 1988, reported Michael Tarazi, Israel was recognized on 78% of historic
Palestine, and it was agreed that the remaining 22% would become the
Palestinian state. Statehood has not happened for Palestine, and
according to Tarazi, there is good news and bad news. The good news is
that the perceived obstacles of Jerusalem, the settlements, and the refugees
are not really obstacles. On the subject of Jerusalem, Tarazi defined the
Israeli position that Jerusalem is the eternal undivided capitol of the Jewish
people. He also reiterated that under international law, Israel does not
have a right to any part of East Jerusalem. With this in mind, though,
Tarazi was confident that there were enough options available to reach a compromise
on Jerusalem. Option A would make it an open city where anyone could come
into the city without a passport and, upon leaving, would have to show a
passport to enter either Israel or Palestine. Option B would create a
shared city with one representative municipal council. Option C
would be a shared city with divided sovereignty over particular areas.
Indeed, Tarazi said, there are options even beyond these with regard to how we
can share Jerusalem.
With regard to the settlements, Tarazi noted that there are currently about
400,000 settlers in over 200 settlements. Half of these settlers are in
East Jerusalem. Israel generally asserts that this is just too many
people to move and that they should be allowed to annex the territory of the
settlements and the water beneath the settlements and the agricultural land
near the settlements. They offer, in exchange, other Israeli land which
in every case is less appealing than the land for which is it offered.
"They want East Jerusalem in exchange for areas in the Negev
Desert." Even so, according to Tarazi, there are options that could
resolve the issue of the settlements. Option A asserts that most settlers
live in settlements not out of religious conviction or extremist views but
because they had extraordinary financial incentives provided by the Israeli
government. They received such things as special mortgages, subsidized
education, and tax benefits for moving to the settlements. So, it is
reasonable to assume that after 35 years of providing incentives for people to
move into the settlements, the Israeli government could, over the course of a
transition period, incentivize these same settlers to move back to
Israel. Option B is that these settlers could become permanent residents
of the Palestinian state, as many Arabs are currently permanent residents of
the Israeli state. They would carry green cards and have the same rights
as permanent residents of Israel. Option C is that the settlers could
become Palestinian citizens. There is no inconsistency for Palestinians
in the idea of a "Jewish Palestine." Palestine has never been a
place that was only for Jews or Christians or Muslims. Rather, it has
always been defined simply by the fact that Palestinians (of many faiths) live
in it.
The issue of the Palestinian refugees creates a concern for Israelis. In
general, the response of the government is "Don't talk to me about 3
million Christians and Muslims coming back into the Jewish state."
Tarazi asserts, "I understand the concern. I don't share it. I
don't share it because it means that a Jewish state reserves the right to
discriminate against Muslims and Christians. There is no denial that
these refugees are, indeed, from this land. There is only the statement
that they are not wanted. We do have to address this Israeli fear - not
because it is legitimate, but because it is there." Knowing that
being a refugee means the denial of the ability to create one's own identity,
Tarazi suggests four options. Option A is that Palestinian refugees would
stay where they are. Many Palestinians would choose this option because
they have very stable and happy lives where they are. "Queen Rania
or Jordan will probably not step down from her throne to return to
Israel." Option B is for the refugees to go to a third country (or
countries). Canada, among others, has offered to help absorb
refugees. Option C is for the refugees to be allowed to return to the
newly created Palestinian state. The state would acknowledge that it is
not the land on which the refugees lived for centuries (which is in Israel),
but that they are welcome to create new homes and lives within Palestine.
Option D is that the refugees would have the right to return to their own land
in what is now Israel.
Believing that there are enough options to come to reasonable agreements,
Tarazi then presented the bad news: the Israeli government is unable to view
Christians and Muslims as having an equal right to live in the Holy Land.
Of course, there are notable exceptions to this assertion, but by and large, it
is true. There is a "disillusioned Israeli left" who feels
betrayed by Palestine's refusal of Barak's offer, and while most Israelis do
say that they want a Palestinian state, this is primarily because they are
desperate to find a way to get rid of the 3 million Palestinians who threaten
their demographic concerns. They worry that the Palestinians will request
such things as equal passports and would prefer a Palestinian state so that
Palestinian people won't ask to come back to Israel.
Tarazi showed maps that reveal the current (and continuous) Israeli
strategy. (He noted that these maps were delivered to Condoleeza Rice in
early October). Essentially, the maps revealed that the location of
settlements and settlement roads effectively cut off Jerusalem from the South
and leave no ability for the Bethlehem towns and cities to expand. The
Israelis have said from the beginning of the occupation that these settlements
would be built in this manner, and Israeli academics like Professor Jeff Halper
have affirmed that in the case, for example, of one new settlement, there is no
need for it based on housing needs of the Israeli population. So, this
settlement will consist of such things as shopping malls and hotels rather than
homes. Of course, the settlement is necessary if the intent of the
government is to annex East Jerusalem by having a wall of settlements around
the city that "will have to be annexed" in any final status
negotiations.
Tarazi also commented on the "security fence" being built by the
Israeli government. When first hearing the idea, Tarazi said he thought,
"Great. Build a wall on the Green Line. But, of course, the
wall is being built within Palestinian territory." He gave the
example of Qalqilya in the South, most of which was taken by Israel in the 1948
war, is now facing a complete loss of its agricultural land to the Israeli
government. This pattern of taking away the livelihood (agricultural land
and water) of the Palestinians and constructing walls (or Israeli-access roads)
has become quite predictable. B'tselem now reports that 42% of the West
Bank belongs to colonies/settlements.
With all this, Tarazi asserts that the Israeli government believes in a
Palestinian state that has: no agriculture, no industry, no meaningful access
to Jerusalem, not enough land for its population, and no access to water.
If this continues, he said, there will soon be no point in talking about a
two-state solution. The only two other options are (1) a one-state
solution with equal opportunity for all citizens, or (2) ethnic cleansing of
the Palestinians. Unfortunately, the second option is no longer out of
the realm of possibility. There are billboards now in Israel reading
"Transfer = Peace", "No Arabs. No terror." And
"Land of Israel for the People of Israel." Also unfortunately,
ethnic cleansing would be accepted by most of the world if it occurred in the
form of "transfer" and was claimed to be the result of security
needs. The fact that the international community would likely not
intervene in such a transfer is only a sign of the truly bad news.
Seeking a Path to Peace (Part One)
Rev. Dr. Fahed Abu-Akel, current Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, USA and
the first Palestinian to be elected to this position, began with a reading of
the Beatitudes focusing on the role of God's call to Christians to be
peacemakers. Rev. Abu-Akel then shared two faith influences-witnessing his
mother's strong faith and two Scottish Presbyterian missionaries who stayed his
Abu-Akel's family. He then discussed how American Christians could lift up the
story of Christians in Palestine and Israel. He stated that Christians should
help their fellow Christians in the Holy Land be able to live as human beings
in their land. Rev. Abu-Akel cited six areas in which Christians in the U.S.
can play a role.
1. Challenging the leadership of the various Christian denominations to pass
down the information about Palestinian Christians from the top to the local
church
members and ministers.
2. Christians can become better educated about this issue by witnessing the
situation for themselves. Rev. Abu-Akel encouraged each denomination to plan
at least 12 mission trips every year to the Holy Land.
3. American Christians need to form relationships with the Living Stones (the
Christian community in the Holy Land) by starting prayer groups, sending
encouragement and support.
4. Spread the word about the plight of Christians in the Holy Land. Rev.
Abu-Akel stressed the importance of visiting elected officials and sharing
information with people at work, church, and in the neighborhood. He
specifically encouraged
each participant to share with 10 other people who are not already aware of the
situation.
5. Every church in Palestine should have a sister church in the United States.
He stated, "We need to smell their suffering for real."
6. The last area is education. Rev. Abu-Akel encouraged participants to sponsor
a child in Palestine; to learn more about the daily economic situation of
Palestinians; and for medical doctors from the United States to visit Palestine
to
see the suffering first-hand and to assist.
Rev. Abu-Akel concluded by sharing the story of David and Nathan as a metaphor
for the relationship the United States needs to have with Israel. He stated
that Nathan loved David and believed in him, he also told David when he made
mistakes, just as the United States can say to Israel, "I love you and
believe in your security, but what you're doing with the Palestinians is
wrong."
Seeking a Path to Peace (Part Two)
After lunch, His Beatitude Michel Sabbah, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, once
again addressed the attendees. His Beatitude Sabbah focused on the role of the
churches in supporting Christians in the Holy Land. Patriarch Sabbah stated
that this moment, now more than ever, is when churches need to revitalize their
communion with the Mother Church of Jerusalem. He then stated that there are
two main needs of the Mother Church today: justice and daily bread. Under
the banner of justice, Patriarch Sabbah stated that Christians needs to
"interfere" in the Israeli policies and state clearly what is moral
and what is immoral. He encouraged Christians to have the courage to say
"no" when all of public opinion says "yes." He further
stated that Christians must demand justice for those who are oppressed, just as
Christ did. Those Christians who call themselves Christian Zionists are
heretics and are not Christians. Christian Zionists do not follow the
teachings of Christ. Patriarch Sabbah stated that, "Whether
Palestinian or Israeli, Christians are equally for all human beings." The
conflict is not just a Palestinian/Israeli conflict, but the conflict affects
the whole world. He reminded that attendees to follow Christ's model to love
everyone, even our enemies. The second main concern of the Mother Church is
"daily bread," referring to survival. He stated that there are 50,000
Christians in the Holy Land and it is not so difficult to volunteer to sustain
the Holy Land Christians. Patriarch Sabbah explained that with the recent
Intifada, Holy Land Christians feel as if they have been abandoned. He warned
against political leaders who do not obey the Bible, but rather make the Bible
meet their own needs. He also stated that it is the responsibility of American
Christians to live in communion with those Christians who are distressed.
Patriarch Sabbah concluded by saying that there needs to be a plan of action
now, because we are in a time of war. He stated that the Christian community
needs to help their brothers and sisters
practical steps that can be taken to live in communion with Palestinian
Christians. These practical steps include the various HCEF programs:
child sponsorship, job creation, housing projects, emergency aid, church
partnerships, and Holy Land gifts.
Workshops on the Christians of the Holy Land
There were three workshops that attendees could attend: Christian
Grassroots Activities, Holy Land Economic Support Programs, and Christian
Solidarity.
( Christian Grassroots Activities
At this workshop, participants discussed the importance of constant education
of and through schools at all levels, schools of theology, conferences,
pilgrimage, media, politicians, church hierarchies, web sites and fellow church
members. The group discussed the role that HCEF plays by creating an electronic
resource which would include various website information and resources that
could be used by members and the Holy Land Christian Support Network (HSCN).
President Rateb Rabie challenged attendees to give just two hours a week as a
start. At this point several attendees volunteered to form an HSCN committee in
their area. He also encouraged attendees to pick a day once a month as a day
devoted to praying for peace in the Holy Land.
( Holy Land Economic Support Programs
George Ghattas, Claudette Habasch, and Viveca Hazboun each spoke about the work
that their particular agencies accomplish in the Holy Land. All three
stressed the importance of the agencies reaching out to one another to have a
unified plan of action for addressing the economy of the region. They
also expressed a concern about creating a culture of dependency and agreed that
the best response to the current crisis is to help create jobs for Palestinians
so that they may earn wages with dignity. Julie James briefly described
the existing HCEF programs that help accomplish this, focusing on Child
Sponsorship, Emergency Relief (in the form of job creation), Holy Land Gifts,
and the matching of American churches with sister churches in the Holy Land.
In addition, Ms. Habasch talked about the great need for affordable housing,
especially for young couples, so that they can afford to purchase or renovate
their own homes (not live in shelter that was provided out of charity).
George Khoury initiated a discussion about other industries that might do well
in Palestine, such as light industry and technical industries. Indeed,
because the families in Palestine live on so much less than Americans do, it
was agreed that no ideas for job creation were too small. A small amount
of money has a big impact. Ms. Habasch described that her organization
occasionally receives donations of things that they simply cannot use and that
they would have preferred to simply receive a donation for the amount of the
shipping costs so that they could create a local job. HCEF has a uniquely
capable Holy Land Coordinating Committee to allow for excellent lines of
communication about what Holy Land Christians really need.
( Christian Solidarity
At this workshop, participants discussed and emphasized the importance of
creating and maintaining relationships with fellow Christians in the Holy Land.
The main venues discussed for relationship building focused on the HCEF
programs of child sponsorship, church partnership, and the Living Stones
Pilgrimages. Additionally, speakers mentioned that since the recent outbreak of
violence, there haven't been many visitors, which is severely affecting
Palestinian Christians both financially and emotionally. Speakers also stressed
the importance and uniqueness of Christian schools in Palestine and the
essential role they play in Christian-education of children.
Struggling One Day at a
Time in the Holy Land
24-Oct-02
Maria C. Khoury, Ed. D.
The Islamic call to prayer wakes me daily at 4 am or sometimes at 4:20 am. I don't complain when it is an extra 20 minutes later but than again after seven years of listening to the loud speakers' blasting in Arabic "God is great" from the two Muslim villages that sandwich our little Christian village there is no point in complaining about traditions and customs in a land that is sacred to Christians, Muslims and Jews. We don't have a government, we don't have a police department, and we don't have law and order, just total military occupation to protect the hundreds of illegal Israeli settlements that surround our small village of Taybeh known as Biblical Ephraim in one of the highest mountain regions in Palestine between Jerusalem and Jericho. However, what we do have here in the land of Christ's birth is the responsibility and the moral obligation to keep our Christian presence. Unfortunately, the mere existence of only 2% Christians among three million Palestinians is a number constantly dwindling due to the awful military occupation that deprives people of their basic human rights and human dignity.
It is too dark and I can't get up so early in the morning. The minute I will look out my kitchen window I will see the new expansion of the Israeli settlement of Ofra, the largest settlement in the West Bank that has just practically reached my front door. Finally when the sunlight hits my room, I will get up and stare out my bay window at the beautiful hills and valley of biblical Judea and recall this is the village that Christ visited before his crucifixion "Jesus... went thence unto a country near the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim..." (John 11:54) Each and every day I feel I truly live in a sacred and holy place. But I believe there is a high price to pay as a Christian living in the Holy Land under Israeli guns and struggling to teach my children their Palestinian Christian roots.
After a little screaming and yelling at the boys to try and leave the house on time by 7 am, we finally pass up the Latin Church in the village center and the Orthodox Church down on the right while the Melkite Church is on the left as we pray to arrive to school safe for another day. However, the magnificent site of all is the extraordinary ruins of St. George Church from the fourth century built by St. Constantine and Helen. And daily as I see this historic site, I am reminded of the great faith and deep commitment these two great saints had to help preserve the Christian faith and value the spots that Christ walked by building shrines and churches all over the Holy Land. As a matter of fact, it was Constantine the Great that called Palestine the "Holy Land." At every Christian event and holiday we are reminded that this land was indeed made holy by Christ Himself because He walked among the people teaching salvation and He is the truth, the way and the Light in this world of darkness. "In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not." (John 1:4). It has never been darker in the Holy Land than today following two years of state sponsored terrorism against the Palestinian people who are desperately seeking a homeland, freedom and independence from Israeli occupation and brutality that has almost totally destroyed the land of Christ's birth along with several precious Christian sites.
We need to travel out of the village to go to school in the city but the only two main roads have been technically blocked for over two years by large concrete cement blocks and piles of dirt so that no one passes. Constantly the young men from the village move these blocks a little to the side so at least one car can squeeze by at a time and sneak on to the Israeli settlement roads to get out of the village at least for those that have foreign passports and Israeli registered vehicles. You can just count these people on one hand. The rest of the 1300 residents are practically prisoners in the village. Sometimes they walk the mountains and the valley when absolutely necessary but they often get caught in the middle of shooting or get detained for many hours. Many times I return home to the village to find the same road I used in the morning completely blocked and can't get back home after a very tiring and hot day. Thus the children get out of the car and walk over the dirt piles with those heavy back packs that feel like rocks and I call my husband to meet me at the checkpoint and drive the car through the valley because he will hit fewer rocks than me. At least if he damages the car there is less screaming and yelling at home.
After climbing over a dirt bump on this bright autumn morning we drive for at least 45 minutes on the settlement roads listening to church tapes that Fr. Bill Chiganos records in the Holy Apostles Church in Chicago. Taped and emailed sermons have kept my sanity the last few years. I must mention that prayers from others have also saved me and given me inner peace. If suicide was not forbidden by my religion I would have taken my own life years ago. Now I have placed my life in God's hands and pray daily for a peaceful passing without suffering and without pain. By the time I finish this prayer, I have passed up two empty checkpoints that have been uplifted from the main road and the soldiers stand on the mountain tops with their full gear and American paid weapons ever since June when seven soldiers were killed at a nearby checkpoint on a Sunday morning.
As the sun shines in my face and I can barely see the road I do notice the soldiers holding their guns on top of the mountain and right next to them is an Israeli settler draped with a white towel or robe on his head holding his book and praying next to the Israeli flag by swinging himself back and forth. If you need guns and soldiers to protect you while praying than there is a great injustice somewhere. This is not a normal thing. People should pray in peace and freedom. But not of course if you have confiscated land that belongs to another nation and you deprive the local people from their human rights and cage them in their villages like animals. Obviously some type of misery will follow this great injustice that was initiated with the creation of Israel in l948 and the massacre of thousands of Palestinians and millions of refugees with the total destruction and disappearance of whole villages in one day.
Finally I reach another major checkpoint blocking the main road called Beit El before entering Ramallah. On the mountain tops and the valleys there are many students and teachers walking through the weeds, dirt and rocks to avoid the checkpoint so that they might pass and go to school or work in the city of Ramallah. On the bottom of the mountain, off the road is an Israeli jeep with a least six soldiers all out of the jeep, fully armed and holding a group of ten or fifteen Palestinians at gun point, mostly young men. This is a daily scene. It is customary that Israeli soldiers stop people at random for no reason whatsoever and harass and hassle them. Just the other day, Lui, a twenty year old neighbor in my village was detained from 9 am until 3 pm when the soldier finally returned his identification card to him to pass after a boiling hot day in the sun. He is one of the few that has work in the gold factory (60% of the people are unemployed from the siege) but can not get a salary when soldiers deprive him from moving around. It is so unbelievable. It is so unreal that this would happen to innocent human beings. What is more frustrating is that these are people going between Palestinian villages and cities. They are not trying to enter Israel proper before the l967 boarders. These are people hassled and harassed on the West Bank where the Israelis invaded in l967 and refuse to leave by building illegal settlements and continuing their heavy army presence that initiates violence because of the daily tortures and ordeals that are totally inhuman.
The minute I reached the checkpoint in order to pass, the soldier signals me with his hand to turn around and not even approach him. I drive up anyway and make him angrier by just saying "good morning." He responds harshly: "curfew, go back." I beg him to pass and that to my knowledge there is no curfew because all the people are walking by the mountain side to reach the city and I need to send my children to school. It was terrible to have had only nine school days in September because the Israeli army imposes curfew as they wish. If there is school today, we want to get there and learn. The soldier responded again with a fierce voice and look: "I told you Ramallah is closed, now go back."
Well, frustrated and angry I backed up my car a few meters away and called Fr. Jack our religion teacher from Taybeh to see if he had passed up the checkpoint and if truly the school was open. I just absolutely hate it when priests have more privileges than me. Because I am willing to serve Christ in this manner but my religion will not allow women to be priests. Now I am angrier than ever because the soldiers let Fr. Jack pass and not me. I called up my husband for help but his advice is always the same, come back home and don't go to school today. Feeling helpless and totally disappointed at this crazy system I approached the soldier again and showed him my Greek passport with a valid visitor's visa and demanded my internationally right to pass at my own risk and die inside Ramallah. He responded: "Do I have to damage or shoot your car so you can go back?" Having had my car damaged by soldiers before I didn't want this expense so I finally turned around went to the closest valley side and let the children walk across the weeds and dirt to catch a taxi on the other side to take them to school. This is not the safest thing in the world with tanks and armored jeeps flocking the area. As the children got out of the car my heart began to beat a little faster.
I continued to be very worried and fearful something would happen to them so I kept calling every five minutes until I knew they had reached the school safe. Almost two thousand Palestinians have been killed since Sept 2000 and a great number have been children going to school. My two boys are becoming young men now of sixteen years of age and fourteen years of age and when the Israelis start rounding up Palestinians they pick up boys as young as fifteen. Speaking to many mothers in Ramallah in April, it was the scariest thing for families to wait for their sons to come back home safe after being interrogated by the Israeli army with the house to house invasions carried out by the democratic country of Israel as they were telling the world "they were getting the terrorists," they were actually terrorizing us to death with their tanks, armored jeeps, apache helicopters, F-16 war planes, destructive assassination campaigns and endless bombings and shooting of every neighborhood in Palestine. Although international regulations forbid such weapons to be used against unarmed civilians, the Israelis are above all laws.
My struggle for the day is not over because I still have to pick up the children from their school at 3 p.m. in a city that is totally under siege, so I must try another checkpoint. I opted for the one that is a half hour away called Qalandia, famous for three to four hours wait to pass. As I reached Qalandia during this beautiful hot day I decided to just cheat and pass up the countless trucks and cars waiting because I find it bizarre to wait many hours when I can just drive by at the risk of being shot. It is so chaotic and confusing at these checkpoints that if I don't cheat someone else will come and cheat the checkpoint line and I will be seating there for many hours wishing it was me. There is so much disorder, mess, and delay that when my mother was visiting me during the Uprising she said: "there is no way they would keep me in this country even if they tied me up with chains." During the nightly bombings of many Christian homes in Beit Jala, a very prominent bishop from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese instructed me to pick up my children and leave because he felt it's not necessary to have a Christian presence in the Holy Land. Sharon is doing such a great job at making all of us want to leave which I would assume in some places this forced emigration is called ethnic cleansing.
The true meaning of serving Christ is to sacrifice our life so that we may gain eternal life in God's kingdom. If truly we accept God as our savior, we must accept the cross he hands us to carry. No one can understand how Christians and Muslims possibly live under such horrible and awful daily conditions while most of them have known the freedom and life in the western world. However, as a Christian living in the Holy Land, the challenge is to see God in each and every human being under these tragic and brutal conditions and at any risk to give witness to Christ our Savior in the land of His birth by believing and practicing peaceful resolutions. Truly Christ is in our midst and we are one body because the prayers of people everywhere are powerful and justice will one day prevail in the Holy Land. If we can not have peace in our world right now, let us at least have peace in our souls: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27).
Editor's note: Maria C. Khoury is the author of Christina's Favorite Saints and four other Orthodox Christian children's books published in Jerusalem.
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