February 21, 2001

Dear Friends,

Turmoil

People here experience turmoil on many levels. There is the obvious conflict between the Israeli and Palestinian peoples. This turmoil isn't exactly what the American press shows. It is deeper and more extensive. Palestinians are protesting with what they have, and Israel responds with what they have. In this oversimplification, I point out that Israel is a nuclear power with a strong military, the latest in technology, and could easily overpower the Palestinians at any moment they choose. They choose to tolerate the Palestinian "terrorist acts," which in fact are occasional, horrible, emotional, irrational acts, such as the bus driver who ran into a line of people killing and wounding mostly Israeli soldiers. Palestinians have no army, no real military capabilities. They have only small arms, some tanks and airplanes, perhaps, but no real arms with which to inflict damage.

Westerners like me are safe. We know where to go and where not to go. The violence is on the seams around Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory. Further, neither side wants to injure or harm foreigners in any way because of repercussions.

So the turmoil I experience personally is inconvenience at the least, and moral outrage on occasion at the cycle of violence. At night I can hear the periodic shelling of Beit Jala, a Christian town near Jerusalem. Sound carries on the wind across the city to where I live on the Mount of Olives, a high point around here. Last night a Palestinian man was killed by the shelling.

But this violence doesn't affect my daily routine. I live in a small apartment inside Augusta Victoria Hospital compound which is located on the Mt. of Olives east of the Old City of Jerusalem. I rent office space in a building across the road. The hospital, office building, and several other buildings are located on app 40 acres of land owned by the Lutheran World Federation. There are two olive tree groves, and we process and bottle the olive oil for sale. So, I can walk to my office which is nice and convenient.

My Work

Like the other mission personnel employed by the PC(USA)’s Worldwide Ministries Division, I relate to local Christians wherever they are. And the local Christian population is Palestinian. Before I came here, I hadn't thought about this and was unaware of the presence of Arab Christians in Palestine/Israel. Less than two percent of the Palestinian population is Christian. Of that group most are Orthodox, followed by Anglicans, Lutherans, then a smattering of other Protestants.

YAV Program

I am a mission worker commissioned by the PC(USA). I came in 1997 to work at Sunbula, a non-profit organization that markets Palestinian handcrafts made by self-help groups. I am also the site coordinator for the Young Adult Volunteer program, which places young adults in various sites around the world for a year's volunteer service. My work includes building and maintaining relationships with Palestinian Christian organizations, churches, and NGOs. Sites for volunteers here have included the YWCA, Sabeel Palestinian Theology Center, St. George's Anglican Church, International Center in Bethlehem, and the Friends School in Ramallah, a town in the West Bank.

I am the administrator, pastor, parent, banker, friend and travel agent for the young adults who come here. Many of the YAVs, as their known, are seminarians. This year all three were seminary students.

You read Wendy Mathewson's article? Wendy is a student at McCormick Seminary. She and Gloria Yi have recently returned to the West Bank: Wendy for a month's work and Gloria for the rest of the school year to teach in Ramallah.

"Joining Hands Against Hunger" Initiative of the Hunger Program

I am also the facilitator for the "Joining Hands Against Hunger" program, which assists local people to form an association, identify a need, then address it. The local network is linked with a presbytery, in our case the Atlanta presbytery. A partnership is formed, meets, and reflects on what it means to be in partnership or in relationship to each other and in the global context. A block grant from the program in Louisville is administered by the association. This is a new way of funding. This is vastly oversimplified, by for the sake of brevity, it describes the nuts and bolts of how the program works. The challenge for both partners is that each must consider the global causes of hunger, or their issue, and the global relationships in the systems that create poverty and hunger. This can get tricky as we contextualize the issues. But it is also going to be rewarding to consider God's work in this new project.

Christian Presence

As I mentioned, the local Christian presence is a Palestinian presence. The local churches are really worried about the conflict on many levels. One of the most pressing problems is out-migration of Palestinian Christian young adults. The Christian population is, on the whole, better off than the rest of the Palestinian population—better educated and more affluent. That means that they study in the West, travel, and in general are more mobile. And they are leaving the area because of the conflict. There are few job opportunities, educational opportunities are limited, and there is really no future for them here now.

Muslim-Christian relations are not strained. Palestinians rarely make public distinctions along religious lines. There are family conflicts, clan conflicts, and Christians and Muslims rarely inter-marry. But on the whole, relations between the two groups is good.

Naturally, there is a large international Christian community here, particularly in Jerusalem. The churches support the tourist economy by running guesthouses, conducting meetings, conventions, etc. And the biblical scholarship/archeological community intermingles with parts of the Christian community. I see people I know from the church in the U.S. frequently.

Protection

As I mentioned above, neither Palestinian nor Israeli combatants wish to harm foreigners. The Israeli troops and Palestinian fighters avoid harming us. There is some anti-American feeling on the Palestinian streets from time to time, exhibited in the burning of flags, but I've never heard of an individual being attacked or harassed because they are American.

The American Consulate is here, not to protect Americans in the country, but to protect their own employees and function in a way that serves U.S. foreign policy. It is common knowledge that we cannot count on our Consulate for assistance, except in the case of extreme emergency. Then, and only then, might they help.

Instead, for me personally, I am in close contact and have formed friends within the British Consulate. That is because I have worshiped at the Scottish church, St. Andrew's. The British consulate has a warden system: wardens are ex-patriots living in the community who are keep informed about the political turmoil. I know personally three wardens and the Consulate’s political officer. We are in touch almost daily. So, my protection comes from a surprising source, the British.

Outlook for my Work

The outlook for my work here is exciting. I in no way want to minimize the degree of conflict, pain, and suffering that people experience here. But I feel that my work here is my calling. I am near the end of the ordination process: I meet with my CPM at Western Reserve Presbytery in Cleveland, Ohio on April 30 to preach and be examined for the presbytery appearance. God willing, I will be ordained to this work.

My relationship with the Church of Scotland has grown. I am now associated with the Clerk Session of St. Andrew's here in Jerusalem. We have all of 25 members and are trying to figure out how to nourish our small group and grow.

This last spring I renewed my contract with the PC(USA), which runs until May 2003. So, contractually, I'm committed for over two more years.

There is continued interest in the YAV program despite the evacuation this fall of volunteers. The local political situation is completely unpredictable, so we need to proceed with caution on placing volunteers.

As far as work here in Israel/Palestine goes, it will be challenging. In Israel, evangelism is illegal. Mission workers in Israel who want to convert Jews to Christianity must work secretly. That is not what my work is about.

I understand my call and my mission work to be witness, accompaniment, and hospitality. I am friend, co-worker, colleague to Palestinian Christians in their journey. And they are friends, colleagues and co-workers with me, supporting me, teaching me, and loving me. Through their courage and faith I am convinced that God is alive and suffering with us here through this troubled time.

Part of my mission work is to extend hospitality where and when I can for visitors here, for the volunteers, and for my friends and colleagues. I am influenced by the stories of Mary and Martha who lived in Bethany, just down the hill from where I am now. Jesus was their friend, their guest, and their Lord. And their hospitality—of food, company, and listening—is a model for me.

Conclusion

On one hand, the outlook is bleak for people here because of the violence and the subsequent economic and emotional hardships for Palestinians and Israelis. But I believe that Jesus Christ is with us, and that we are called to believe in justice and reconciliation. I don't want to leave now when it gets difficult. I still feel called to be here.

The things that you can do for me are the things that you have been doing. You have been faithful correspondents. And your prayers help. How else can I explain the strength and courage I feel? It doesn't come from me alone, but from you as well.

I hope that we can meet one day. This letter has gone on long enough. Again, thank you for your loving support. God bless.

Your sister in Christ,

Layne Hawley

The 2001 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 143