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July 2002
Dear Friends,
Greetings in Jesus’s precious name from Bethlehem! We do
hope that this finds each of you doing well and with the spirit
of the Lord. I must start this communication with a very heartfelt
thank you for all of the e-mails that we have been receiving.
It is certainly good to know that we are being thought about and
prayed for by so many; we have certainly been making many new
friends. Please know that we cherish all the letters of support
that we have received and encourage all to write us for information;
or to just let us know you are out there praying for our mission
work. It is all very encouraging.
The situation on the ground this past month has not been an easy
one. I do constantly watch the international media to see just
what it is that is "getting out" to the world about
the situation here. Unfortunately, as many know, the U.S. media
is extremely biased. When a Palestinian terrorist attack is carried
out inside Israel, CNN and other news agencies make it their top
priority, however, when the terrorism is the reverse, meaning
Israelis on Palestinians, there is not even an apparent effort
to bring those happenings to the mainstream media. How then do
we attempt to educate the world about the true suffering that
is happening here daily?
This past month I met a Jewish American man who was traveling
in the Middle East to learn about the situation on the ground.
He told me that he was tired of speaking with Jewish family and
friends about Israel and not feeling like he knew for himself
what was actually happening. A mutual Israeli friend told him
that as long as the Palestinians suffered in silence, there was
never a problem. He wanted to understand that statement for himself.
I therefore invited him to visit us here in Bethlehem in order
to speak with people and see some of the destruction of the city
by the Israeli military. He accepted and came to Bethlehem for
five days. In that time, he spoke with many people, visited the
city of Bethlehem, as well as its largest refugee camp outside
the city. (Officially, we have three camps.) He was surprised
that people told him they wanted peace desperately and was genuinely
touched by the amount of hospitality that he was shown in the
community. He told people he was Jewish, but not in a single instance
did he have any sign of anger or resentment shown to him.
He told me about his previous trips around the country. He had
been to Gaza and had then traveled to a Jewish settlement; he
had also visited some friends from the U.S. whom live in Beer
Sheva in the south of the country. He was surprised to find that
the only people who expressed resentment and anger toward him
were his friends and family from the U.S. and those on the Jewish
settlement. He was told several times that he was a self-hating
Jew when he defended the rights of the Palestinians. On the Jewish
settlement he was even called anti-Semitic. He was very affected
when he was called that—the first time that he came face
to face with the right-wing Israeli notion that to be supportive
of Palestinian rights meant to be anti-Semitic. He asked the person
who called him an anti-Semite if they had ever been to Gaza. Of
course, the answer was negative. He asked the same person if they
knew any Palestinians, again the answer was negative. He told
this person that they should not base their judgments on right-wing
propaganda and on a hatred based on fear. He was then told to
leave.
He has now returned to the U.S. with the knowledge to discuss
and educate people about the situation here. Upon his return to
the U.S., he planned to tell his family and friends about his
trip to Bethlehem and Gaza. (He did not dare tell them before.)
When he told his friend in Beer Sheva that he had been to Gaza
for four days, he was told, "You should get down on your
knees and kiss the earth that you got out alive." He made
some good friends in Gaza and plans to return to visit them; they
know he is Jewish.
Granted, this is only one picture of the maze in which we are
living. Nothing here is black and white. In fact, everything is
gray. However, unless we do reach out our hands and minds to the
other sides of the now five-meter high wall built around the Palestinian
cities in the West Bank, how will there ever be understanding?
Isn’t it with understanding that we gain love and respect
for one another? Isn’t it one of the most basic concepts
of Christianity that we must love our neighbor as ourselves? Wasn’t
it Moses who brought this to us from God directly? This is also
a basic concept in Islam. We must continue to pray for a time
when all peoples and their leaders—from the biggest to the
smallest—will actually begin to follow their faith, instead
of treating their faith as an issue that causes divisions. We
must pray that we will all come together with brotherly love and
respect. I will trust that all of you who are reading this will
do just that.
Please know that we are safe and giving Him praise for our chance
at trying to bring together the peoples of the Holy Land. We will
look forward to hearing from you and knowing what you are thinking
about.
Peace and Blessings,
Chris, Hala, Nadiim and Adeeb
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