Traveling on the train in Egypt
made me wonder how the impoverished communities in Egypt deal
with their life and that this must be like purgatory. A purgatory
on earth: massive impoverishment, low education levels, malnutrition,
child labor, etc. What are the thoughts inside these many heads
that seem to have abated happiness?
As I am writing this, I am now in Palestine. The same thoughts
as those on the Egyptian train come into my mind. Here we have
whole communities of people who are living in a reality in which
they constantly wonder what worse thing will happen next to their
communities, themselves, and their children. Most people I meet
are fighting severe depressions and wondering how they’ll
be able to put food on the table. A woman I met in one of the
camps told me she gives to her children whatever meal she can
pull together late in the afternoon and then makes them go to
sleep early before they get hungry again. I saw these children,
and I don’t think they can get much thinner. The thought
that runs through my mind is, “If this isn’t what
I’ve been taught about purgatory, what is?” Constantly
waiting and thinking and thinking and waiting for something to
happen. Whether it be something better or worse, no one will dare
guess.
As much as we hope and pray for a better situation to arise here
in this region, we fear that things will probably get worse before
they get better; whether it be in Palestine, Iraq, or Egypt. When
coming from Jordan the other day, I was in a car with an Englishman
who works with the NGO “Save the Children” and a young
man going to the Friends School in Ramallah to teach English.
(This young man had flown into Tel Aviv on August 20, but when
he stated he was going into Ramallah to teach, he was placed into
a detention holding cell and sent back to the United States two
days later. Now, a month later, he was trying to get into the
Holy Land from Amman, but this time he had learned that he must
not be so honest with the Israelis at the borders.) We were all
talking about the situation here in the Middle East in general
and in Palestine more specifically. The “Save the Children”
representative clearly stated what I think most are fearful to
come out and say: “Sharon’s Government’s policy
is a policy of genocide of the Palestinian people, but it’s
been given the green light by the Bush Administration so no one
can speak with them (the Israelis) and tell them to stop what
they are doing.” Being here and seeing and listening and
experiencing the hour-long waits under the hot sun to pass through
military check points can only lead one to know that history repeats
itself. I shake my head as I think, “When will we learn?”
Keep praying, keep seeking and keep trying to stand for justice.
We all know and see what happens when we don’t.
Blessings,
Chris, Hala, Nadiim & Adeeb
The 2003 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p.
156
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