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Partnership
in Conflict
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Circular Letter No 169
21st May 2004
It is hard to know where to begin to share with you some of the events
of the week. However, here we go.
Tuesday 18th May. I had a one-day visit to Galilee with some folk from
overseas. Leaving Jerusalem about 0730 hours, we encountered two
“mobile” checkpoints on the Jordan valley road – no great hold up for
us, but for the Palestinians it would be a different story. On the way
back about 1700 hours, there was not a road block to be seen. It
demonstrates the theory that security checks are only necessary in the
morning as that is the only time when “terrorists” travel. Or perhaps it
demonstrates a different theory - something to do with stopping people
getting work etc.
Wednesday 19th May. Haaretz P1 carried a photograph of a member of the
Bnei Sakhnin football team holding the State Cup which they had won and
which had been presented to the team by the President of Israel. What
made the photograph and the story unusual was that the team is an
Israeli Arab team, and it will now represent Israel in the UEFA cup next
season. The leader article on Friday 21st May writes : “More than
anything, the huge celebrations that erupted after Bnei Sakhnin’s
victory reflected the squad’s status as a team from the Arab
community….Yet each of the squad’s Arab players is regarded by Israel’s
Jewish citizens as a member of a hostile minority – in this perception,
each Arab squad member would bear the burden of proving his loyalty to
the state.” There will be interesting times at security checks at Ben
Gurion Airport when the team leaves for matches outside Israel.
Thursday 20th May. Productivity on the production line was hardly
outstanding. There were 10 operatives, representing different parts of
the work force in their different uniforms (one in no uniform at all)
and they produced less that 20 articles in 45 minutes. The “articles”
were vehicles that had either been allowed through the check point, or
turned back. The production line was the checkpoint at Bethlehem. After
45 minutes, I got through to go and do my work. If I thought that was
slow – then I had a surprise, as on the way out it was 90 minutes of a
wait. When two of us went to speak to the soldiers on duty, they said
they had closed the checkpoint while they carried out an “exercise”.
I had three appointments in Bethlehem.
Those who know Helen Shehadeh will be interested to know that the garden
in front of the school has been removed, to prepare for a building site.
The digger with its pneumatic drill was pounding at the rock just 2
metres away from the wall of the school, and it was virtually impossible
to talk. This has lasted so far for 10 days. Not surprisingly she was
not in the best of form. However, we did speak about the ground that she
has bought on which to build a new school. The plot is in the middle of
other plots on which apartments will be built. Now she is being advised
to purchase the plot in front of hers, to give her direct access to the
road, and to provide a better environment for the school. Given the
difficulty in getting any land, it would be a pity not to be able to
purchase this extra plot – all that is needed is $150,000.
It was this time last year that Helen and her niece Doris were at the
General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in Edinburgh – and Helen
laughed when we remembered being “free”.
Some will have visited the Lutheran Church in Bethlehem. It has,
attached to it, the International Centre of Bethlehem. I was talking
with the minister, Mitri Raheb, of the plans for the future of the
Centre. For those interested, look up
www.annadwa.org. One of the items that I was delighted to hear is
that Elias Salman, formerly working at St Andrew’s for 27 years, and
unable to get into Jerusalem to work since the end of 2001, has been
offered a job in the Centre, working in the kitchens. To help with the
finances for the post, a donation has been received from abroad to
underwrite his salary for the first 3 months, when it is hoped that the
Centre will be fully operational and able to meet the expense of his
being employed. One bit of good news for one family at least.
(A supply of angels made it to Jerusalem with me. I think that someone
ordered some. If you are the one, perhaps you could remind me!)
Some may have heard of Wi’am, and perhaps been there. It is a Conflict
Resolution Centre in Bethlehem, run by Zougbi Zougbi. Each summer, the
Centre organises a Summer Camp for children in the local area, and this
year, they are hoping to do the same. The size and scope of the Camp
will depend on the amount of donations that they receive. In an e-mail,
Zougbi wrote : “we are reaching 1000 children for a period of 3 months,
five days a week. Activities for the Children participating in the Camp
are listed as :
a) providing a safe place for the children to come;
b) organising field-trips for nature/environment awareness;
c) puppet-shows, clown shows, drawings, clay modelling
d) constructive games that help the cognitive and physical development
of children;
e) field trips to community-based centres such as museums, art
galleries, historical sites, and religious sites.”
To enable that size of a programme to be provided, the budget is approx
$15,000. Wi’am’s address is
alaslah@planet.edu
One of the main topics in my meeting with Zougbi was to discuss a
workshop that he had organised on the Theology of Land and Covenant
report, presented this time last year to the General Assembly of the
Church of Scotland.
He had gathered together 20 people from the Christian community in
Bethlehem area – aged between 20 and 45 – and they had worked their way
through the Report. It was very interesting to hear the comments they
had made and to note the questions they had asked. One comment that
reinforced what many people here say was that “we are Christians – but
Christians from a Palestinian and Arab background. We need to be
accepted by the Christians in the West for what we are.”
They accepted that the Report was written from a Scottish, and
Western/European point of view. This meant that they questioned some of
the emphases in the Report – and wanted to have a chance to discuss it
with young Scottish Christians. I have suggested that one of the initial
ways in which this might happen would be for e-mail correspondence to
take place. If anyone out there would like to be part of a “discussion
group” involving these young Christians in Bethlehem, please get in
touch. I can then pass on your name to Wi’am, and see where it goes.
There will be some people out from Scotland in June/July, and it has
been suggested that a meeting with the Wi’am group be included in their
itinerary.
Another topic that was discussed was the question of Land. Zougbi spoke
of the enormous pressures on the whole community in the Bethlehem area
due to the fact that so much of their historic land has been taken by
the State of Israel and the Settlements. Christian is in conflict with
Christian about land: Muslim with Muslim; and Christian with Muslim. He
did not see this as conflict between Christians and Muslims on a
religious basis – rather the need to find somewhere on which to put a
house. If the current policies of Settlement are allowed to continue,
matters will only get worse.
Obviously, the killings in Rafah dominate the news here this week. Our
weekend paper arrives on Friday morning – nothing is published on
Saturday – and it makes sober reading :
Weeks’ End Section P1: Rafah is a nightmare. An Article about the way in
which the Israeli army was, or was not, equipped to deal with the
situation in Rafah. In bold print in the middle of the article is the
following paragraph : “When men obeyed the calls of the loudspeakers to
turn themselves in to the IDF authorities (and to the intelligence
people who wanted to question them), they were confronted by members of
the terror organisations, who opened fire on them and killed two
children. A senior officer in Gaza reported yesterday that the IDF have
in their possession pictures of this incident, of Palestinians killing
their children. He expressed amazement as to why the army has refrained
from publishing them.” Accurate? Or inaccurate?
Weeks’ End Section P1 ; Darkness at noon, written by Amira Hass. It
tells a story of almost total confusion among the Palestinian people in
Tel Sultan part of Rafah – under total curfew, electricity cut off,
water pumps not able to operate and so no water – and then told by loud
speakers that men should congregate at a certain school. Was it for
their neighbourhood? For some other neighbourhood? When they went out of
their houses, the found that “the bulldozer had cracked every square of
asphalt street, turned it over and crushed it. Some of the ambulances
which hurried to Tel Sultan to evacuate patients on Wednesday could not
do so because the road was destroyed, or because sand or a tank blocked
their path.”
Week’s End Section P3 : Gideon Samet writes : “We’re in bad hands”. ‘It
is incredible how the commanders of such an experienced army have walked
straight into their own booby trap…..This combination of a government
that has no path and an army that has lost its way because of it, has
been harming national interests for years. ….The understanding that
exists between the top brass in the army and the government is what
contributes to the lack of clear “civilian” thinking and critical
awareness. How can any creative policy emerge from a line-up that
consist of Sharon, Mofaz, and Ya’alon, with ministers like Benny Elon,
whose latest idea is to send the Palestinians to Australia, screaming on
the sidelines?’
Week’s End Section P3 : An article from the other side of the fence :
“Time is up for the P(alestinian) A(uthority)” by Zuheir Andreus, Editor
in chief of the Israeli-Arab newspaper Kul El-Arab. In an article that
is very critical of the Palestinian Authority in general, and of Mr
Arafat in particular, he writes ‘Your Excellency, Mr President (Arafat),
the “peace of the brave is over”. It is your national duty to admit that
you have failed. It is time to announce your resignation and the
disbanding of the Palestinian Authority.’
Criticism of Israel by Israelis; criticism of Palestine by Arabs, both
Israeli and Palestinian. It has often been said that there will be no
progress until the leadership of both Israel and Palestine is changed.
There is a great sense of despair – especially among the
Arab/Palestinian population. The BBC said this morning that 39 people
have been killed in Rafah this week by the Israeli army. Given that the
population of Gaza is 1.5 million; given that the estimate of the
population of the US in July 2003 by the CIA was 290 million; on a
pro-rata basis, the deaths in Gaza would represent 7,540 people killed
in the US. The final figure (31st October 2003) on a Twin Towers web
site for deaths in the attack on the Twin Towers was 2,752.
Any finishing point of a letter has to be arbitrary, and much has to be
left out. I will finish here for this week.
A story brought back from the US a few days ago. George W Bush and John
Kerry decided to have a 3-day Ice Fishing competition. After day 1, the
score was Kerry – 5 fish: Bush – 0 fish. After the second day the score
was Kerry – 15 fish: Bush 0 fish. Panic in the Bush camp, and Attorney
General Ashcroft is despatched to spy on the Kerry camp. He comes
rushing back to say that the Kerry camp has cheated – they have bored a
hole in the ice.
Stay well. God bless. Joan and Clarence
Remember :
Tours in September and October 2004 Top
Circular Letter No 168
15th May 2004
Monday 10th May. Haaretz P3. “ILA to allow Israeli Arab family build in
Jewish town.”
‘The Israel Lands Administration has informed an Israeli Arab family
that they can purchase a plot of land and build a house in the community
settlement of Katzir in northern Israel, thus ending a nine-year legal
battle.’
At first sight, it may not seem all that important. However, the story
goes back 9 years. The family, Israeli citizens, applied for permission
to buy a plot of land in a community established on state land. Such
communities often have ‘acceptance committees’ that are aimed at
preserving homogeneity in the community. When the Ka’adan family first
applied for land, they were refused. In 2000 the High Court ruled in
their favour, that they should be allowed to purchase a plot in this
housing development. That ruling was that “the state cannot discriminate
on the basis of religion or nationality when allocating state land to
Israeli citizens, even if it allocates the land through a third party
such as the Jewish Agency.” ‘Despite this High Court victory, the state
and the Jewish Agency avoided implementing the verdict and refused to
allocate a plot to the family. Haaretz reported that a Jewish Agency
memo recommended ignoring the High Court ruling and continuing with the
policy in effect before the March 2000 verdict.’ Eventually in September
2003, when no action had been taken to allow them to purchase land, the
family went back to the High Court. In May 2004, the ILA duly obeyed the
ruling.
The good news – the ruling has been accepted.
The not so good news – it has taken 9 years for the family to get a plot
of land in their own country.
The good news – they will be able to purchase the plot of land at the
price prevailing in 1995.
I am not sure what sort of news this is. The Mayor of Jerusalem has
established a Committee to consider how municipal services are to be
provided to East Jerusalem residents who are cut off from the city by
the Wall. ‘The new committee is to be headed by the Municipality’s
Director-General Eitan Meir and its adviser on Arab affairs, Shalom
Goldstein. The panel will consider the possibility of installing special
gates in the separation fence that would be opened in the morning and
evening to allow the passage of schoolchildren.’
Good news? – Consideration to be given as to the Services to be provided
to those who pay taxes for them?
Good news? – Possibility of gates for children to go to school – what
about hospitals? What about when a child is sick at school? Etc
One wonders why this was not considered when deciding on the Wall.
Interesting also to note that the Adviser on Arab affairs for the Mayor
is not a member of the Arab community.
One of the areas where there has been great contention in Israeli
society concerns the rights of conscientious objectors to refuse to
serve in the army. There has been a continuous struggle about this over
the past 3 years, with some young men being imprisoned for refusing to
serve on the grounds that they are conscientious objectors. On Monday,
the new Attorney General shocked folk when he expressed “tentative
support for conscientious objection, saying that he understood what was
potentially a ‘positive phenomenon’.”
I am sometimes asked about the economic effects of the Intifada on
Palestine and Israel. They are pretty catastrophic to both sides, though
more so on the Palestinian side. On the Israeli side, the National
Insurance Institute published figures this week which show that the
number of poor families increased by 18.5% in 2003. At the end of 2003
there were 340,000 families living below the official poverty line. What
the corresponding figure is for the West Bank I shudder to think.
One of the aspects of our work here is to try to enable visitors share
some of the experiences which we have had, and which have helped to
shape our thinking in the past 4 years. To do this, we take them to
different parts of the country, and the beginning of this week saw us
again in Galilee.
As anyone who has read a Guide Book will know, there is always a certain
doubt about the identification of exact places with some stories of the
Gospels. Sometimes there has been a long history of veneration of a
particular place as the site of a particular event – sometimes the
identification of a site has occurred long after the event. One such
place about which there is a certain amount of ambiguity is Mount Tabor
– the Mount of the Transfiguration. “The localisation of the
Transfiguration fluctuated at the beginning of the Byzantine period.
Eusebius (d. 340 ) hesitates between Tabor and Mount Hermon, while the
Pilgrim of Bordeaux (333) places it on the Mount of Olives. In 348 Cyril
of Jerusalem decided on Tabor, and the support of Epiphanius and Jerome
established the tradition firmly. (The Holy Land: Jerome
Murphy-O’Connor, P 366.)
Tuesday afternoon found us sitting beside the church at the top of the
Mount, reading our Bibles. The rest of the country was in mayhem, with
the killing in Gaza earlier that day of 6 Israeli soldiers and 8
Palestinians, as well as the wounding of more than 120 people. And here
we were, reading the Bible!
Yet – there are two stories connected with Mount Tabor.
In the first (Judges Chapter 4) there is the account of a battle between
the Israelite forces and the Canaanites, represented on the one hand by
Deborah and Barak and on the other by Sisera. In the end, Barak won,
Sisera was killed, and the story in the Bible ends with the verses “So
on that day, God subdued King Jabin of Canaan before the Israelites.
Then the hand of the Israelites bore harder and harder on King Jabin of
Canaan, until they destroyed King Jabin of Canaan.” What is new under
the sun? The people of Israel fighting the inhabitants of the country,
and after a battle, ending up victors. Security at last. Until the next
time … and the next time …. Ad infinitum?
In the second, there is the story of the Transfiguration. The
“alternative” King, having been given a divine endorsement in the form
of the presence of Moses and Elijah, came down from the mountain not to
fight, but to reconcile, to suffer, to be rejected, and to be killed. He
gave a different meaning to the word “security” when he spoke of being
the Good Shepherd who both knows and saves his sheep in the unlikely way
of dying for them. If the model of Barak has not worked all that well,
any chance that the model of Jesus could do better, - if as much energy
was put into trying it, as is put into trying the Barak model?
End of sermon!!!
At the beginning of the Letter we had one instance of the power of the
Courts. However, there are other stories.
Many Palestinians are detained by the Israeli Army, and held in
detention. Amira Hass wrote about the iniquities of the Detention regime
on Wednesday May 12th. Towards the end of her article, there is the
following;
‘Not far from where they were beaten [this refers to prisoners being
beaten in court when they tried to speak to their families], in the Ofer
Detention facility, J has been in administrative detention for almost 2
years. For about a year he was not visited by his wife or children, who
live in Ramallah, about 7 kms away. The Israeli Army did not allow
family visits for an extended period. Then, when pressure from petitions
to the High Court of Justice resulted in the reinstating of family
visits, hundreds of parents and wives were informed that they could not
visit their loved one “for security reasons.” J’s wife was among them.
She could not visit him even when we was hospitalised in Jerusalem after
suffering a heart attack; she could not visit him even after he was
returned to his administrative detention tent.”
Thursday morning, 13th May. A phone call from the airport. Israeli Arab
friends were leaving for a short business trip. They had been anxious
about how “security” would treat them, as last time their experience had
not been good. This time they had had no trouble at all – and were in
the departure lounge within 15 or 20 minutes of starting to check in.
What they find so hard to deal with is the unpredictability of the
system – one time unpack everything, another time, unpack nothing.
Thursday lunch. At Sabeel, I had lunch with a group of Episcopal Bishops
from the United States. They had come to visit people, and not places.
So, they had met Christians and Muslims in different parts of the West
Bank and in Jerusalem, and Jewish people in Jerusalem. On return home,
they would be able to share their conversations and experiences with
folk in their dioceses. What chance some Moderators of Presbyteries
might be reading this, and come over to visit us to meet people – and
then go back to share their stories?
Thursday evening. Some friends from the “Peace Camp” side of Israeli
society came in for supper with our Scottish visitors. Said one: “I have
to feel sorry for the loss of life of the young soldiers in Gaza. But I
also have to recognise that Gaza did not come to them – they went to
Gaza.” Having been active in the struggle against the Israeli occupation
of the West Bank for 30 years, she said that she had failed, and a mark
of her failure was that now her daughter was being driven by the same
opposition to the Occupation – and stood beside her in rallies and
demonstrations.
Friday afternoon. We had a visit from the team from Edinburgh Direct
Aid, which is currently in Ramallah. They are distributing in the
villages around Ramallah the clothes, the medical and the educational
supplies which they shipped out from Edinburgh.
Friday evening. Today’s newspapers have been full of reports from Gaza –
casualties include Israeli soldiers, Palestinian fighters and civilians.
The story tonight is of more houses being demolished – Israeli
information says 10, Palestinian information says 20, and “reports” say
that the Government and Army is preparing to demolish hundreds of
houses. And all of this for a place from which the Israeli Prime
Minister says Israel should evacuate. One wonders where is the sense of
it all. Earlier in the week in the paper, there was some discussion
about the effect of the Likud Party vote against the plan of Mr Sharon.
It would strengthen the settlers, said some, and there would be no
pulling out at all. It would strengthen the large mass of “middle
voters” who are in favour of pulling out of Gaza, said others, as they
will now get organised.
I wonder which it will be?
Stay well.
God bless
Joan and Clarence
On an entirely different matter : Study Groups and Tours.
I have put some suggestions on a second Attachment. I hope there would
be some response.
Top
Circular Letter No 167
8th April 2004
Headlines from Haaretz.
Sunday April 25th
P1. 8 Palestinians killed in W. Bank clashes.
Monday April 26th
P1. Border policeman killed near Hebron. Palestinian gunmen killed a
Border Policeman near Hebron last night and lightly wounded three of his
colleagues.
Wednesday April 28th.
P2. Two militants, teen killed in territories. Two Hamas militants and a
14-year old Palestinian boy were killed in separate incidents in the
territories over the Independence Day holiday. A 16-year old girl with a
butcher’s knife was arrested outside the Old City of Jerusalem. …. In
the Gaza strip 14-year old Musa al-Mukayaed died yesterday, apparently
after an incident with IDF troops. He was part of a group watching IDF
troops deployed near the settlement of Nisanit and was killed by sniper
fire. IDF sources said troops had used only rubber bullets in the area.
….. Another 14-year old boy died yesterday of wounds sustained last week
outside his village north of Ramallah. IDF sources said he had been hit
by a rubber bullet while troops dispersed a group of youths throwing
Molotov cocktails and stones at passing vehicles.
Thursday April 29th.
P2. 4 soldiers hurt averting major Gaza terror attack. Four soldiers
were injured yesterday while preventing a major terror attack involving
a jeep laden with 300 kgs of explosives, near the settlement of Kfar
Darom in Gaza.
Friday April 30th
P2. IDF : Arab lecturer killed ‘by mistake’. The IDF yesterday admitted
accidentally killing Dr Yasser Abu Laimun, 32, a resident of the village
of Taluza, north of Nablus on the West Bank, over the weekend. The army
apologised for the death.
Sunday May 2nd.
P3. Palestinians : IDF kills boy, 8, in Gaza. IDF forces shot dead an
8-year old boy in the Gaza Strip yesterday, witness said. …. Seven other
Palestinians, including another child, were also wounded in the clashes,
Palestinian medics said. …. Earlier yesterday, two Palestinian teens
were wounded by IDF fire in Gaza, Palestinian hospitals said, with one
16 – year old boy in critical condition from a shot in the head. The IDF
confirmed that soldiers fired at two Palestinians who approached
settlements in an off-limits area. (Tuesday May 4th .. this teenager
died in hospital) …. In the West Bank, an 18-year old sustained serious
injuries from a rubber bullet to the head during clashes in Tubas, south
of Nablus.
Monday May 3rd
P1. Thousands mourn slain mother, girls. Thousands of mourners gathered
yesterday in Ashkelon’s mew cemetery for the funeral of Tali Hatuel, the
mother killed along with her four daughters in the Kissufim road terror
attack. Hatuel was 7 months pregnant.
P1 IDF kills 4 Palestinian militants in Nablus. Four Al-Aqsa Brigades
militants were killed last night in an IDF strike in the West Bank town
of Nablus. … two missiles were launched at a white vehicle in the centre
of the town, Palestinian sources said.
Tuesday May 4th
P3. IDF Captain jailed for 6 months over Palestinian youth’s death. A
military court yesterday sentenced an army captain to 6 months in jail
and 6 months’ probation after being found guilty last month of causing
the death by negligence of Mohammed Ali Zeid, 16, in October 2002. …..
The conviction is one of the first in the current Intifada of a case in
which a Palestinian was killed. (Last week in Jayyus, we were talking
with a family one of whose sons was arrested in his house, and given 6
months’ Administrative Detention without being charged with any
offence.)
Each week, in Haaretz Magazine, Gideon Levy writes an article under the
heading “Twilight Zone.” He is one of the more outspoken Israeli Jewish
journalists in his criticisms of the policies of the present Government
of Israel. His article on May 7th is entitled: “And then there was one.”
Its opening paragraph is:
“On the way back from Jenin we hard about the killing of the mother and
four daughters of the Hatuel family, from Gush Katif. Athidel and Mazan
Azuka have lost two sons, and their killings are not considered criminal
acts of murder. Mazan, a grocer, and his wife, Athidel, had three sons,
and now only one is left. Osama was killed by soldiers during a
demonstration as he walked with his father and older brother Mohammed.
Mohammed was shot during an assassination operation two week ago. He was
a high-school student, a passer-by, who was on his way from an
examination to sign up for a trip , when soldiers shot him in the head,
about half an hour after liquidating the people they were after. There
are times when anyone walking the streets of Jenin is marke4d for death,
because of the war against terrorism.”
Day after day these same headlines re-appear. The one story makes
headline news all over the world. The others rarely merit a mention.
The Referendum has come and gone. Not surprisingly, Mr Sharon’s proposal
for Disengagement from Gaza was roundly defeated – by the very people
whom he has spent much of his life supporting as they established
settlements in Gaza and the West Bank. What happens next?
It would be nice to think that Israeli society will wake up with a jolt
and realise where it is heading if it follows the lead of the Settlers.
However, it seems ever more clear to me that this will not happen. The
possibility of any meaningful withdrawal from the West Bank grows more
remote by the day.
I am pushed in this direction by a variety of factors.
There are headlines such as “ Four Jewish families set up first outpost
in Arab Abu Dis.” (Haaretz P3, May 4th) Abu Dis is a main Arab suburb of
Jerusalem, which is in the process of being cut in two by the Wall. Not
only does it have to contend with that, but now there is in the middle
of it, complete with armed guards and protection from the Israeli
government security forces, the beginnings of a new Settlement. In early
April, in a similar sort of operation, the same article recounts that 11
Jewish families moved into two buildings in the East Jerusalem Arab
neighbourhood of Silwan – the village that sits opposite St Andrew’s on
the slopes of the Kidron valley.
There was the journey that we made Friday May 7th, up through the West
Bank from Arad back to Jerusalem. The southern part of the journey is
through an area that has a large Bedouin population. Their land is
constantly being claimed by the Israeli army for “military training
areas”, and there are cases in the courts about this. But there are also
Settlements there – the red roofs standing out starkly in comparison
with the more muted colours of Bedouin tents and houses.
As we continued that journey, we passed numerous villages with their
access roads blocked, and new circular “pill-boxes” erected at many
locations along the way.
At the check-point at Gush Etzion, the road works there are progressing
rapidly. This is well inside the Green Line, and the roundabout which is
already partially in use, with its ancillary road works, is at least 100
metres in diameter. The dual-carriageway stretches out from it in the
direction of Jerusalem. From the roundabout, looking north, there is not
a single Arab village or house in sight – all the hill tops are occupied
by Settlements.
On Wednesday, I had to make a trip into Ramallah – by Kalandia
checkpoint, trucks are delivering concrete sections to be assembled into
the Wall.
On Monday, I had to go to Bethlehem – it was almost a straight drive
through, so little traffic is moving between Jerusalem and Bethlehem
nowadays. The Wall has reached the eastern side of the Road, and getting
closer on the western side.
Taking all of these together, it is difficult to see any chance of
Israeli withdrawal – rather the reverse. The building of new houses in
existing settlements continues unabated and the extension of existing
settlements on to new sites shows no sign of stopping.
Saturday 8th. Joan and I were invited to the Bar Mitzvah of one of the
sons of Robert, a colleague working for the Church of Scotland. We
reached the Synagogue about 0845 hrs and the service was already well
under way. It ended about 1130 hrs. During it, the focus for those of us
who had been invited to share the service with Robert and his family,
was the participation of young Gidon. He carried the Torah Scroll round
the congregation, and then had to read and chant part of it later in the
service. A number of thoughts came to us both. We could not recall after
it was over any reading from the Prophets – there was a long reading of
4 chapters from Leviticus; there were the recitations of the Covenant
between God and the Hebrew people. Not surprisingly, the emphasis was
firmly on the Jewish people and their uniqueness. For us, we seemed to
hear clearly that God was the God of the Jewish people, but there did
not appear to be any sense of God as being the God of all people. The
readings appeared to be from the Torah (The Law) and the Psalms. We did
not recall any reading from the Prophets. One phrase that stuck in my
mind was a prayer of thanksgiving for Shabbat – God’s gift to the Jewish
people which he had not given to any other people.
When the religious emphasis of one people being “chosen” is allied with
the political reality of a State based on that faith, it is difficult to
see a way out of the present inexorable march of the State of Israel to
take over all the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean
Sea. It is also difficult to see that such a policy will bring any sort
of security – it may well be more of the nature of a Trojan Horse,
bringing within the State of Israel the very people whom it is trying to
keep out. What effect that will have in the longer run is anyone’s
guess.
Good news : 50 angels made the flight to Scotland and arrived in good
condition. More can be sent if required.
Good news : Some of you may remember me writing about Elias, formerly a
cook at St Andrew’s. He has had no real work since the end of 2001. Now
there is the possibility that he may have a job in Bethlehem.
Confirmation later.
Stay well.
God bless
Joan and Clarence Top
Circular Letter No 166
30th April 2004
Saturday 24th April. With no official work commitments, Joan and I took
a picnic down into the country near Abu Ghosh. It is a place which we
frequently visit, being only about 15 kms from Jerusalem. We often sit
under a tree, which would have been at the edge of a Palestinian village
before 1948, but is now at the edge of a small plaza which records in
stone inscriptions Jewish folk, mostly from the US, who have given money
to plant trees and make a National Park in this area. While we were
there a family of Jewish people came along, and the kids went exploring
down in front of us. They found the remains of a well from the time of
the Village. We have no way of knowing what they thought it was, or what
they knew of its history – but what had been part of a living community
60 years ago is now part of series of “dead” stones in a country park.
They were followed by a larger group, much noisier and more intrusive.
The children of this group also explored before moving on up the road.
Later, Joan and I walked down the road as we have often done. The stones
of the demolished houses are largely covered with grass at this time of
the year, but there was one scene that stood out for me. On the ruins of
a house were a few poppies in bloom – and I recalled the Poppies of
Flanders – growing out of the horrors of the battlefields there. Most
Israeli people who come into St Andrew’s Church ask about the wreath of
Poppies that hangs on the wall at the War Memorial, and have to have its
significance explained to them. I imagine that the families who passed
along this road on Saturday had no idea as to the significance of
Poppies. Maybe in the end, they will have no significance, and it will
have been just a fantasy in my mind that they might be able to teach
Israeli and Palestinian something about Peace.
We recently met a Palestinian man living in a Refugee Camp on the West
Bank. I asked him where he came from. His home was in a village near
Ashkelon – and though it is only a hour’s drive from where he now lives,
it is impossible for him to get a permit even to go back to see where he
was born. As for going back to live there, the diktat of Mr Bush in
support of the policies of Mr Sharon means that he will probably never
have that opportunity.
One wonders where the folk now live, who once called home the ruined
houses we walked over and round that afternoon.
Sunday 25th April. One of the privileges of working in Jerusalem is that
of being able to share in some of the significant events in the lives of
other nations. Such a moment was this Sunday, when I was invited to
share in a Dawn Service to mark ANZAC Day, which commemorates the
landings on Gallipoli on 25th April 1915. I arrived at the Commonwealth
War Graves Cemetery on Mount Scopus about 0530 hours, when the trees at
the top of the hill were just dark silhouettes against a greenish blue
sky that was beginning to lighten. From the gate, the feature that
dominated everything was a large Cross, stark against the sky. In his
remarks the Australian Ambassador recalled the very high casualty rate
among the Australian and New Zealand forces, and also the fact that the
invasion ended some months later in withdrawal. It was not one of the
successes of the First World War. The service recalled not just those
who died in 1915, but also those who are today serving in Iraq. It was
poignant, and I recalled the lines of the song “Where have all the young
men gone? ….. When will they ever learn?”
1000 hours is the time for our morning service, and this week we had an
unusually large congregation, including a former Minister of St
Andrew’s, Colin Morton, and his wife Carol. Following the Sabeel
Conference, they had spent some time visiting friends, and making
contact with some of the groups which provide Handcrafts for both
Sunbula shop in Jerusalem and Hadeel shop in Edinburgh. It was our
monthly Communion Service, and around the Table were people from 4
continents, some of whom would have regarded each other as enemies
within the past 100 years. Here we were, able to share a Peace Greeting
with each other. One of the visual memories that came back to me was
that of the Cross at Mount Scopus earlier in the morning, and a phrase
that not every one in this part of the world thinks has any validity –
“Love your enemies.”
1730 hours (seems to have been a very holy Sunday!) and Joan and I
joined a group of Anglicans from North America to attend part of the
Service of Vespers in the Russian Orthodox Church of St Mary Magdalene.
One of the Sisters, Vera, started life within the Protestant Church in
Ireland, and is now a Sister in the Russian Orthodox Church. We listened
to the singing of the Prayers and the chanting of the Bible for perhaps
an hour, when we had to leave. Outside Sister Vera said that the service
was shorter this evening, and would last only for another 45 minutes. It
was such a contrast in worship from either the service at Mount Scopus
in the dawn light, or the Communion Service at St Andrew’s. It is not
that one is better than the other, but that they all bring something to
the richness of worship.
2000 hours. The siren sounded, and it was the commencement of Memorial
Day, when the State of Israel formally remembers those who have died in
fighting in the Armed Forces of Israel since 1948. The day was ending as
it had begun, with the memories of deaths in war. Last Friday’s paper (Haaretz
P 2 23rd April) had the headline : “IDF raid kills two Gaza girls; 3
gunmen killed in Tulkarm.” ‘Two Palestinian girls, aged 4 and 7, were
killed yesterday during the final day of an Israel Defence forces raid
in the northern Gaza Strip. … According to the Palestinians, the 4-year
old girl died after inhaling tear gas, and the 7-year old girl was
killed by gunfire.’ “Where have all the children gone?”
I try not to use too many of the e-mails that flood in to our machine,
but given what we have done today, I thought that the following one
merited circulation.
Sunday 25th of April 2004 Jerusalem: Israeli Occupation Forces
Prevent the Movement of a PMRS Ambulance
This morning a PMRS Emergency Medical Team was again prevented from
carrying out its essential humanitarian role when an ambulance carrying
a patient with heart disease, was prevented from passing through an
Israeli checkpoint.
At 6:30 AM in Nablus sixty-three year old Mohammad Hussein Abdel Razzaq,
diabetic and suffering from heart disease, was referred from Nablus
Hospital to Al Makassad Hospital in Jerusalem. The patient's condition
had severely deteriorated and he required a serious cardio-vascular
surgical operation.
It took the ambulance two hours to travel from Nablus to Jerusalem,
passing through three Israeli checkpoints. When it finally reached the
checkpoint controlling entry into Jerusalem - Ar Ram, Israeli occupation
forces stopped the ambulance at gunpoint. Despite extensive pleading
with the soldiers by the Medical Team, who explained the serious
condition of the patient, they refused to allow it to pass. The soldiers
explained their behavior by claiming that the ambulance did not have a
special permit, which has to be obtained from Dalia - an Officer at the
Israeli Military Headquarters whose responsibility is to coordinate the
movement of ambulances through checkpoints. However, according to
International Law, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 4th Geneva
Convention, and Red Cross regulations, emergency medical cases should
always have free access to treatment.
Dr Mustafa Barghouthi, President of PMRS, had to intervene and go to the
site where he contacted Israeli Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), a
humanitarian organization that PMRS often works with. PHR immediately
contacted Dalia demanding that the ambulance be allowed to pass.
However, despite being fully aware that the patient was in a serious
condition, it took several discussions before she gave permission. After
two and a half hours waiting time, the ambulance was finally allowed to
continue its journey.
Whilst the soldiers, on this occasion, eventually allowed the ambulance
to pass, the total journey time from hospital to hospital was five
hours. Bearing in mind the seriousness of the patient's condition, this
is totally unacceptable. The Israeli occupation soldiers prevented the
movement of an emergency medical team, which placed the patient in
considerable danger.
Monday 26th April. Independence Day formally started with the sounding
of the Siren in the evening. The Central Bureau of Statistics issued
some figures in the paper today which make interesting reading, and at
the risk of boring you I will put some of them down :
Israel’s population is now 6.78 million, which is 8.4 times the number
on Independence Day in 1948.
81% of the population is Jewish, 19% is Arab. Of the Jewish citizens,
66% were born in Israel, 34% were born abroad.
1.2 million people were born to a father who was born in the former
Soviet Union.
500,000 Israelis have their origins in Morocco; 245,000 are from Iraq;
240,000 from Romania; 220,000 are from Poland.
In the past year, 21,000 immigrants came to Israel: half from the former
Soviet Union, 2,600 from Ethiopia, 1,800 from France, 1,600 from the US,
1,200 from Argentina.
For them, there has been the “Right of Return – the right to make Aliyah”.
For the Palestinians who left, or were forced to leave, there is no such
right.
Wednesday 28th April. This was the first opportunity we had since
returning to Jerusalem to make a visit to Jayyous. [pictures]
One the way up, we passed several “mobile” check points on the south
bound side of the road, with well over 100 vehicles in total stopped at
them. The cost in time, in lost work, in frustration, must be immense.
Of course, it is all security. When we were making our southward journey
in the afternoon, there were only 2 check points, though at one of them
almost 100 vehicles were lined up. However, perhaps it is that people
who are a threat to security only travel in the morning, so there was
less need for check points in the afternoon.
In Jayyous, it was disturbing to hear of the increased rate of
incursions by the Israeli army – 3 or 4 times a week we were told. Often
tear gas is fired, including sometimes straight into a house. One
incident was recounted where soldiers fired two tear gas canisters at an
elderly man, hitting him once on the head and once in the chest.
Incursions nearly always take place at nights – and mean that people,
young and old, are taken out of their houses, children are terrified,
and then property damaged.
In the middle of this, they are planning a Graduation for the
Kindergarten – and have been waiting to fix a date until they could find
out when their friends from Jerusalem can be present. Said one of the
men “When I hear from the Church of Scotland in Jerusalem, it gives me
hope!”
Some will remember Mufidi, the woman whose olive trees were dug up by
the Israeli army – she somehow struggles on. Only recently she broke her
leg, and so is in even more trouble. We stopped to see her and her
family – and were entertained in the new room that they have managed to
build on to the top of their house – what pride they had in it.
Friday 30th April. What changes? Headline on P2 of Haaretz today – “IDF
: Arab lecturer killed ‘by mistake’’. The IDF yesterday admitted
accidentally killing Dr Yasser Abu Laimun, 32, a resident of the village
of Taluza, north of Nablus on the West Bank, over the weekend. The army
apologised for the death.
Headline on P1 of the same paper : “Gaza plan defeated in new Haaretz
poll” – Sunday sees a referendum within the Likud party membership about
Mr Sharon’s plan to disengage from Gaza.
We are well – expecting visitors next week.
May you all stay well. God bless.
Joan and Clarence.
PS Details of suggested tours in September and October in next week’s
letter.
Top
Circular Letter No 165
23rd April 2004
Tuesday 20th May. With two friends we went along to see a film called
“Arna’s Children.” It was in one of the several cinemas in the complex
close to St Andrew’s, which had seats for about 100 people. All were
taken, and a few extra chairs were brought in. We met one friend who had
to go home, as she could not find a seat. I asked one of our companions
why all these people were there – to which she replied that with the
exception of a few Arab people who were there, the rest were likely to
be “Israeli leftists”. The audience was predominantly young, and
secular. A couple of young men were wearing kippas, but none of the
women were wearing the type of clothes that would have marked them out
as “religious”. The film was a documentary, made by the son of Arna, who
was the driving force in the early part of the film. Her children were
children in a theatre project which she had started in Jenin Refugee
Camp, at the time of the First Intifada.
What made the whole film so compelling, and tragic, was the fact that
Arna was a Jewish woman from Haifa. For anyone who has had to sit at
check points, there was one marvellous scene early in the film where she
was standing close to a soldier, and with all the energy she could
muster, was waving a long line of cars past him, telling them to sound
their horns and not to stop! He seemed powerless to stop them, or her.
In the Refugee Camp, she had started a theatre for children, and we saw
the emergence of a play involving lots of youngsters. The circumstances
of the camp at that time were similar to Jenin today – perhaps not quite
so bad. There was one poignant scene of a young boy, called Ala, sitting
motionless and speechless in the ruins of his home. He appeared in later
scenes, still hardly able to talk. However, he did take a part in the
play. Some years Arna developed cancer, and a couple of days before she
died she left her hospital bed and made the journey by car to Jenin. She
met the community, all showing her the sort of affection that they would
have shown to her had she been a Palestinian woman, and then she made
her way to the theatre where her “group” of young Palestinians had
performed plays for her. The place was full – all having come to pay
tribute to her, her work, and in a sense to allow them and her to say
good bye. Two or three days later she was dead.
The film moved on to the second Intifada – which is still going on. You
may remember the attack of the Israeli army on Jenin Refugee Camp, and
the eventual fact that the Israeli Government, with the help of the US
Government, was able to deny a UN team access to Jenin to investigate
what actually happened. This film showed some of the action from the
fighting, as the film-maker, Arna’s son, had got caught in the camp when
there was a period of fighting. The devastation of the housing and
buildings were immense; the noise of tanks coming in to the camp in the
middle of the night, and sitting at a road junction to keep watch,
before finally moving off having fired a round of ammunition just at
random, was overpowering; the hopelessness of the firearms which the
residents of the camp had to confront tanks and soldiers; it was all
almost too much. But the real tragedy of the film was the fact that the
youngsters who had starred in Arna’s play years earlier had grown into
young men, who, deprived of any real hope or dignity, had become
fighters. Two became suicide bombers in an attack on Hadera, others were
killed in shooting in the camp – including the one who had say
speechless and motionless in the ruins of his home. The final scene was
of a group of young boys gathering in front of the camera, as youngsters
do the world over. Smiling, at times laughing, but sadly far from being
innocent, after all that they had seen – one could see them as the next
generation of fighters.
Part of the pathos of the film was the portrayal of the relationships
between the Jewish folk who bothered to go into the Camp and make
friends, listening to the stories of the people, and giving them a
chance to be human. It showed what was – and even today perhaps is –
possible. Sadly, so few people make such an effort.
(The Friday Magazine section of Haaretz on the Internet has an article
“Children of the Homeland” about the film.)
Two other stories, from different sides of the division between the
communities. Rabbi Arik Ascherman is the Executive Secretary of Rabbis
for Human Rights. I invited him along to our apartment on Monday to meet
the folk from the Board of World Mission who had been here for the
Sabeel Conference. He was sporting a cut on his nose, inflicted by
Israeli soldiers when he had been protesting at an Arab village north of
Jerusalem against the building of the Separation Wall. He has also been
charged with obstructing police during the demolition of illegally built
Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem, and his trial for this has been set
for September 21st. When he was asked why he had become involved in
these struggles, he said that one of the most fundamental aspects of
Judaism was recognition of, and respect for, human rights. This has
caused him to be involved in many different actions – assisting
Palestinians with olive harvesting; demonstrating against the Wall;
trying to prevent house demolitions; trying to raise awareness among
Israelis of what is actually being done in their name by their
government and its army. The sheet that he gave us about Rabbis for
Human Rights commences : “Rabbis for Human Rights is the only
organisation today concerned specifically with giving voice to the
Jewish religious tradition of human rights.” An internet address is
www.rhr.israel.net.
Prison Chaplaincy visits were on Thursday this week, when I had time to
go to Bethlehem. 10 minutes in the queue to get in. 40 minutes waiting
to get out.
It was there that we heard the second story, which is about Doris. She
is the niece of Helen Shehadeh, whom some may have met when we
accompanied her to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland last
year. She lives just outside the check point at what is called the DCO
at the top of the hill in Beit Jala. She passes the check point each day
taking her children to school, going to work, and going about the normal
business of everyday life.
On Easter Saturday, she and her three children came into Beit Jala to go
to the services at the Greek Orthodox Church. When all the festivities
were completed, she was making her way home with her three children and
another one she had brought along to take home. They had coloured eggs,
chocolate Easter Eggs, and various things with which they would
celebrate Easter the following day. When they arrived at the check
point, they were confronted by 4 soldiers. She was refused permission to
pass, and was told that she would have to go another way. Not
unnaturally she entered into some discussion with the soldiers, pointing
out that they had let her enter Beit Jala, that she lived 2 minutes’
walk beyond the check point etc. Three of the soldiers seemed as if they
would allow her to pass, but the fourth was adamant – she was not
passing. After some time, when they heard that her husband was waiting
for her, they called him to the barbed wire that was strung across the
road. They allowed him to take the “shopping” from his wife, and then to
escort the children home. Doris was refused permission to cross, and so
in order to get home, she had to take a taxi and go a round-about way.
This was at the time when the Israeli army was giving permits to some
people to allow them to travel in to Jerusalem to share in the Christian
feast. Doris was in fact able to take her son into Jerusalem on another
occasion – and at age 10 he was able to see the Church of the
Resurrection for the first time, despite living only 10 kms from the
city.
You will recall that I wrote of Helen’s failure to get in to Jerusalem
to share in the Easter Services. I heard during the week that one of the
former employees of the Guest House had been given a permit to visit
Jerusalem, but his wife and older daughters had not been given permits –
so of course he did not feel he could visit the city and leave them at
home.
Economic troubles and hardships are everywhere. The headline in Haaretz
on Friday 23rd April reads : “Unemployment hits 11%, a 12-year high.”
This does not come by itself – poverty is a real problem in Israel.
It is also a real problem in Palestine. While in Bethlehem, I heard the
story of a man who has not been able to find employment for the past 3
years. He has 6 children, the eldest of whom requires a hearing aid. He
came along to a charity with which we have connections to ask if he
could be given some form of work so that he could buy batteries for his
daughter’s hearing aid. He needs something like NIS 200 per month for
the special batteries, and fortunately he was able to be helped. We also
were able to assist the charity, so this one girl should have batteries
for her hearing aids until she completes her academic studies later in
the year. What will happen then is anyone’s guess.
Friday 23rd was the first opportunity to visit the Co-operative at Idna
since our return from Scotland. Driving out along the Tunnels Road, one
by-passes Bethlehem. A few kms father on there is the Settlement of
Efrat. Approaching it, the road becomes a divided 4-lane highway, which
continues to a massive roundabout at the turn off for the DCO office at
Etzion. If evidence were needed of the intentions of the Israeli
government as to its future hold on this area of land, this road says it
all. It is being built for possession and control, not as a gift for a
future Palestinian government. Down the road, we had a stop at the
entrance to a village where we picked up some handwork for Sunbula. The
Israeli army observation post (pill-box) had been moved perhaps 100
metres, so that it now dominates the gate which closes off the road into
the village. Just one more illustration of control being increased and
made more threatening.
The women in the village were glad to see us again, and particularly
glad as we had brought along others who spent quite a bit of time
looking at their products, and then purchasing them. After a quick walk
up to the vegetable sellers – who again greeted us very warmly – it was
time to come home. If propaganda were correct, we would have been
terrified in the village in case we would have been attacked – when in
fact all we experienced was friendship and warmth. It is the sort of
experience that money cannot buy.
Mr Vanunu dominated the news earlier in the week. An e-mail came in very
early on 23rd April. It concerned a question put to its readers by the
newspaper Ma’ariv – one of the major Israeli newspapers, in its edition
of 22nd April.
Readers were asked "What should be done with Vanunu?" - and one of the
options listed was that he "be killed".
This can be checked on the following website
www.maariv.co.il in the English
Edition. There was the following contribution to the paper on April 23rd
from Jonathan Ariel, the Editor in Chief of Maariv International::
“It is not every day that editors decide to write a personal piece to
the public at large, or at least that part of it which reads their
publications, written or virtual. I have decided to do this out of
respect to our readers, some of whom were very upset by the poll we
posted yesterday, in which we asked “Should Vanunu be kept in jail,
allowed to leave Israel, killed, don’t know.”
From the reactions we got it transpired that a fair number of readers
felt we were condoning, perhaps even inciting an act of vigilantism
against him. This is a very serious charge, and since one cannot argue
with feelings, it warrants an appropriate reaction on our part. I would
like to make it crystal clear that it was never our intention to incite
or justify extra-legal violence by anyone against Mordechai Vanunu. The
question was asked within the context of what the state should do. Only
the state can either imprison him under emergency regulations
(administrative detention), as the security establishment seriously
considered doing, or issue him a passport and let him go. The question
was not well worded, the term executed would have been far more
appropriate. All I can say is mea culpa.”
Bye for now. Stay well. God bless
Joan and Clarence
Top
Circular Letter No 164
17th April 2004
First of all, thanks to those who so graciously wrote and welcomed us
back to letter writing once again. Your support is very much
appreciated.
It is a busy week.
Monday saw the departure of the group which had been here for Holy Week
and Easter. They all arrived home safely, with relatively little hassle.
There was some amusement at Ben Gurion Airport, when the jars of
marmalade which some of them were carrying were subjected to a fairly
close examination. They obviously posed no security threat, as they were
returned and the pilgrims went on their way.
Tuesday was catch-up time.
Wednesday saw the start of a Conference organised by Sabeel, the
Palestinian Liberation Theology Centre, on the theme, “Challenging
Christian Zionism: Theology, Politics and the Palestine – Israel
Conflict.”
It is attempting to give explanations as to what exactly Christian
Zionism is, and also trying to offer a historical perspective on it. At
the risk of hugely over-simplifying what has taken several speakers many
hours to speak about, I will offer one sentence: “A belief that God is
calling the Jewish people to return to what has become the modern State
of Israel, taking possession of what he gave to them in his Covenant
with Abraham, as a Prelude to the (Second) Coming of the Messiah.” [For
Jewish People the future coming of the Messiah will be the First Coming,
as they have not accepted the coming of Jesus as the First Coming. For
Christians, the future coming of the Messiah will be the Second Coming,
as the Incarnation of Jesus was the First Coming.] If I have got this
all wrong, tear up the letter!
Speakers included Christian, Jewish and Muslim people. The one common
thread through all their presentations was a conviction that what is
happening here now is wrong, and has to be put right.
All sorts of questions have been raised : (in no specific order)
Is it possible to consider the Exodos (Exit) from Egypt without at the
same time linking it with the Eisodos (Entry) into Canaan, and is it
moral to suggest that God would give one people a command to take over
the land of others, and cleanse it of them?
Can the modern State of Israel be identified with the Biblical Israel?
If the Jewish people are indeed only following the command of God to
take the land back again, is there any limit on what they can do, in
order to fulfil the command of God?
In the plans of the Christian Zionists, what is the role of those
Palestinians who have accepted Christ as their Messiah – the Palestinian
Christians?
The whole of Thursday was overshadowed by the Press Conference given on
Wednesday by President Bush, flanked by Prime Minister Sharon. This
produced great anxiety on the part of almost all at the Conference: is
it possible that Mr Bush should give to Mr Sharon the land of the
Palestinians, while at the same time proclaiming that he wants there to
be a viable Palestinian State? Has he any authority to change the UN
Resolutions which have been at the centre of most political thinking
about the Middle East for decades? How is it possible for Mr Bush to say
that he consulted with all sorts of people to justify the decisions he
has taken, while being unable to say that he consulted with those most
personally affected by what he is proposing – the Palestinians
themselves? And so one could go on and on and on. We will just have to
wait to see what is the outcome of it all, but there was a great sense
of depression hanging over the hall on Thursday morning. On Friday
afternoon, Hanan Ashrawi – a leading Palestinian politician who is also
a Christian – said to the members of the Conference in most emphatic
terms : “God did not speak to President George W Bush to tell him to
give away our (Palestinian) land.” There would be few Palestinians who
would argue with that statement, and quite a number of Jewish people who
would also accept it.
Father Elias Chacour was one of the speakers on the opening morning of
the Conference. Two little stories from his talk.
Once, he was welcoming Mr Shimon Peres to the Mar Elias Institutions in
Ibillin and the conversation turned to the vision that Fr Chacour had of
returning to the village from which the Israeli troops forced him and
his family at the time of the setting up of the State of Israel. Mr
Peres asked if it was not time to forget such a longing – was the
passage of 50 years not enough time for Fr Chacour to have got over his
sense of displacement and his desire to return “home”? To which Fr
Chacour replied that it was nearly 2,000 years since the Jewish people
had been forced out of this part of the world by the Romans – was that
not long enough for them to have got over their sense of displacement
and their desire to return “home”?
The second was when Fr Chacour used the expression that “Israel was
pregnant – pregnant with Palestine.” If the pregnancy was not treated
properly, then the “child” might be still-born. Or, the “child” might be
born handicapped, and would never be able to grow up into an independent
“person”. Only if proper care was taken of both the “mother” and the
“child” would it be possible to look forward to the emergence of two
healthy people.
Interestingly, this illustration caused a negative reaction among some
of the people with whom I talked – why should the birth of Palestine be
something which was dependent on the good-will of Israel? Had the
Palestinians no rights, regardless of what the Israeli people thought?
I thought of it in a different light – requiring that the international
community take thought for the care of both Israel and Palestine. It is
not a question of being for one and against the other. If Fr Chacour’s
illustration is to be followed, it requires being for both peoples.
This came out in a different way in the Bible Study on Saturday morning.
The leader of the session, Fr Peter de Brul from the Bethlehem
University, said that only the Palestinians can relieve the Israelis of
the burdens they are carrying, and only the Israelis can relieve the
Palestinians of the burdens they carry. Outsiders may be able to
encourage both sides along the way, but in the end, it will be when the
Israelis and the Palestinians are able to help each other, that the
conflict will be resolved.
For me, three of the most thought-provoking contributions centred on
Biblical material.
Is God moral, asked one speaker? If God is moral, can what the speaker
described as ‘ethnic cleansing’ in the invasion of Canaan by the Hebrew
people be attributed to the will of God? How can the stories in the Old
Testament, in which God appears to give approval to the destruction of
people whom he created, - how can these stories be classified, and what
place do they have in the Christian faith?
“Lord, will you at this time give the Kingdom back to Israel?” asked the
disciples of Jesus in the beginning of the Book of Acts. These were
people who, despite having been so close to Jesus, were still thinking
of a return to what they thought of as a peak in the history of their
people. But it was the Kingdom of Saul, David and Solomon and their
successors which was the object of harsh criticism by the Prophets, who
said that it would be judged and found wanting. What Kingdom is God
offering to us? The one of David, which became corrupt and in the end
was destroyed? Or the one of the “Son of David” which was ushered in by
the servant King who ended up being crucified? Obviously, the question
then arises as to what sort of Kingdom is being constructed here in
modern Israel in the name of God?
Or in London, or in Washington, or wherever we happen to live.
The last major speaker in the conference was a Palestinian Christian
lawyer. He gave us plenty of reasons for feeling depressed, hopeless,
etc. But he ended with a ringing rejection of such attitudes. His faith
was in the Sovereign God – it had not been the Romans whose Empire had
survived. It had not been the British whose Empire had survived. It will
be no human Empire that will survive. It is God who will rule. Of course
he acknowledged that it did not appear as if God was ruling at present,
with his own house under threat of being given to someone else. But what
he said was more than an anti-dote to the feelings of hopelessness
affecting many. It was his way of reminding us of the Good News that we
have been given, and which it is our job to translate into action.
Friday afternoon provided an opportunity for a group of young artistes –
members of a Palestinian Dance Group – to share with us their culture,
and their enthusiasm. One prays that they will be given the same chance
to develop themselves and their art as is given to the teenagers where
you live.
This has been a week of sitting and listening – of alternatively feeling
oppressed by the sheer weight of the negative news, and then being
uplifted by the expression of faith, especially from those who will have
to live out their lives here, while I and others like me will be able to
move away.
Stay well. God bless
Joan and Clarence
Circular Letter No 163
12th April 2004
Here we are again – back in Jerusalem.
We arrived at the airport about 0400 hours on Wednesday morning, 31st
March, and had a very swift passage through all the formalities. Alice
Abusharr met us and we were soon at St Andrew’s where we dropped into
bed – for a few hours.
Most of the next two days was taken up with carrying boxes with various
goods and chattels in them to the Apartment, beginning the process of
unpacking, and trying to get a home together once again. Most things
were working by Friday evening, and we were just about ready for the
arrival of a Study Group for Holy Week. The apartment had been rewired
and painted when we were away, so that all the surface wires were
removed or concealed. It is looking much better than it was before we
went. It was an upheaval for everyone concerned – but thanks to those
who had to do the work.
One of the first items of business was to check the mail, and it
included an invitation from the Ministry of Tourism to a function on
Thursday afternoon, 1st April. It was a Reception to give the Minister
of Tourism and his officials in the Ministry of Tourism a chance to meet
leaders of the Christian community – and to begin the celebration of
Pesach, the Jewish Passover, and the remembrance of Holy Week and
Easter. Also present were representatives of what had been the Ministry
of Religious Affairs. The Department dealing with the Christian
Communities is now part of the Ministry of the Interior.
One of the major problems bedevilling the situation facing all the
Churches at present is that of obtaining Visas. How sensitive an issue
this is could be seen by the fact that the speech from the most senior
person in the Ministry of the Interior was devoted almost entirely to
the question of visas. The speech by the Papal Representative in
Jerusalem contained some very trenchant sections criticising the
Government for its handling of Visa requests. The Church of Scotland has
been affected by this problem, as we have been waiting for a year for
visas for teachers at Tabeetha School. No-one is quite sure how it will
all end – but one Government official said that clergy whose visas had
expired would not be arrested if stopped by the police!
Behind the podium was a large poster encouraging people to visit the
Holy Land at least once in their life-time. Were this to happen on any
large scale among the Christian community, it would transform the
economy of Israel, and to a lesser extent that of Palestine. So, one
wishes it would happen. But then, 50% of the group who came for our Holy
Week Tour had the pleasure of a second questioning at the airport as to
the purpose of their visit etc. The Government here seems to want to
have tourists, but very much on its terms, and to fit in with its
agenda. (A Church member arriving on 12th April reached the Passport
Control at Ben Gurion airport at 0450 hours – he was eventually allowed
to come to Jerusalem at 1020 hours)
2nd April ‘prison chaplaincy’ work began again. I went in to Bethlehem
to visit people there. Talking with people, there was a deeper sense of
despondency, and even of despair, than there had been when we had left
in January. Who cares about what happens to the community in Bethlehem?
There are the much more news-worthy events that are happening in Iraq.
The Wall – all 8 metres high – has now reached one edge of the main road
into Bethlehem, just before one reaches Rachel’s Tomb. On the other
side, it is advancing across the olive groves. Speaking with some
people, they were recounting how their church congregations had made
applications for permits to visit Jerusalem during the Christian feast
of Easter. Permits had been issued through the churches, and so some
were looking forward to being able to share in services in Jerusalem.
Yet there was a feeling of humiliation about this also – having to go
cap in hand to the Israeli Government authorities to be able to share in
what they see as part of their heritage. Easter Sunday service includes
the sharing of coloured hard-boiled eggs. Helen Shehadeh had offered to
bring the eggs. She did not arrive. After the service, a phone call told
her story – she has a “regular” permit to come in to Jerusalem, and it
is this that she shows each week when asked for it. On Easter Sunday,
she showed it, but was told that as she did not have one of the special
“Christian Feast” permits, she could not enter Jerusalem. Despite
arguments, she had to go home – not for her the chance to share in
worship with us, nor the chance to bring us all the Easter eggs she had
prepared. We were all the poorer for her not being there.
Watching the expansion of the Settlements, the building of the Wall and
the Fence, the construction of roads, it is hard to avoid the sense of
the strangulation of Bethlehem, and its conversion into a ghetto several
kilometres in diameter, out of which people will only move at the
discretion of those who occupy that land in contravention of UN
resolutions.
Easter Sunday Haaretz Page 1 carries the headline – US to declare Israel
won’t have to return to 1949 border. “Israel will not be asked in the
future to withdraw to the 1949 cease-fire lines (The Green Line) on the
West Bank, according to a letter US President George Bush is to present
to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in Washington this week. According to the
letter, the determination of borders in a final status accord will take
into consideration ‘demographic realities’ on the ground. …. Israel
officials believe the section of the letter from Bush referring to final
status borders is highly significant. They believe it constitutes US
recognition of Israel’s future annexation of West Bank Settlement blocs
and the negation of a right of Palestinian refugees to return to
Israel.” [One such Settlement Bloc is the Etzion Bloc south of
Bethlehem, and its annexation would mean that Bethlehem would lose farm
land, and potential extension land – plus access to other parts of the
West Bank.]
3rd April saw the arrival of most of the folk on the Holy Week Tour. By
the end of Holy Week there were 10 in the group. We shared in the walk
down the Mount of Olives on Palm Sunday; had a quick visit to Galilee;
visited Bethlehem, when we were surprised that our Arab driver was
allowed to take us all the way into Bethlehem (it was the first time he
had been able to take a group into the city for a month); shared in
Maundy Thursday services and spent some time in the vicinity of the
Garden of Gethsemane on Thursday evening; made a pilgrimage along the
Via Dolorosa on Good Friday morning at 0630 hours; and on Easter Sunday
celebrated the Resurrection of Christ with a sun-rise service outside St
Andrew’s Guest House, followed by a Communion Service in the church
later in the morning. Along the way we had a chance to meet different
folk for whom this city and land is home, and to share their
experiences.
On 12th April, the group left go to back to the UK – hopefully to
encourage some more folk to make the trip and meet the people.
What is it like to be back after a couple of months in Scotland?
The warmth of the welcomes we have received has made us both feel that
we are back home, among people with whom we have a lot in common at this
particular time. It is good to be back.
The anxiety of the Israeli security forces following the assassination
of Sheikh Yassin is palpable - there are more road-blocks round this
part of the city – and there is a feeling that despite the attempts to
keep the Palestinian population under control, sooner or later there
will be a revenge attack. Yet, paradoxically, it is good to be back. and
share with folk some of their fears and anxieties.
It is salutary to read once again the news papers, and see the conflict
as it is presented on the printed page. Three-quarters of Page 2 of
Haaretz on Sunday 11th April is taken up with an advertisement placed by
the One Family Fund, asking people to come to a dinner on April 13th at
$80 per person. “Seven hundred people were murdered in terror attacks
since the beginning of the Intifada…One Family/Israel Emergency
Solidarity Fund is there for every victim of terror.”
Beside this advertisement is a smaller report: IDF fire kills girl, 11,
in Khan Yunis camp (in Gaza). “…Family members said the girl was in
their house in a neighbourhood on the western side of the camp when the
IDF shots were fired. A bullet went through a kitchen window and hit
her, they said….IDF sources said soldiers shot ‘precisely’ at armed
Palestinians who fired an anti-tank missile at their base.” A Palestine
Monitor e-mail marking Palestinian Child Day on April 6th, said that the
number of children killed by Israeli troops during the Intifada had
reached 545. We are back in the middle of a situation where no-one seems
to be able to break the stalemate – yet it is important to be here and
at least be able to hear what is going on, even if we can do nothing
about it. And so, it is good to be back.
On Good Friday afternoon we were able to spend some time sitting in the
garden of the church called St Peter in Gallicantu Jerome
Murphy-O’Connor writes about it : “Some Christians venerate the site as
the house of the High Priest Caiaphas to which Jesus was taken after his
arrest.”
Running down from it into the Kidron Valley are steps that date back to
the Herodian period, and so it is not impossible that this was the way
Christ went from the Last Supper to the Garden of Gethsemane. Dominating
the path and the Valley is the Wall of the Old City. That wall certainly
was not there in the time of Christ – but the path Jesus took would have
been outside the city of his time. We look to cities for power –
government, wealth, domination. Christ’s journey went outside this
particular city. Is it too fanciful to see him calling into question the
self-importance with which cities invest themselves? To see him offering
a different vision of Power – through the paradox of suffering and
death?
Will the sort of power which is all around us, from the cities of
Jerusalem and Ramallah, bring peace to either of them? Or the sort of
power from Washington and London bring peace further east in Iraq and
Afghanistan?
History would seem to suggest not, and so it is all the more important
to share the experience and the vision of the Christ who was outside the
cities and all their structures.
It is good to be back writing – hope that you enjoy reading!
Stay well.
God bless.
Joan and Clarence. top
Circular Letter No 162
24th January 2004
Jerusalem is a rather different place today, with a gale blowing, some
rain, and some sand in the air, from the city which most tourists find
when they come in the spring and autumn. For us, it is no real problem,
as we have a water-tight building and adequate heat – for those who do
not have these amenities, it is quite a different story.
The big news, certainly at the end of the week, has been the indictment
of Mr Appel, an Israeli Jewish businessman, on charges of trying to
bribe Government ministers. In itself, the indictment is serious enough,
but it is the fact that one of those whom he tried to bribe is now the
Prime Minister. What effect this will have on the conduct of government,
on the development of policy, and ultimately on the position of the
Prime Minister himself, is something which will be played out slowly in
the coming months.
The congregation at a Sunday morning service is not all that numerous,
and so if someone is missing, it is remarked on by all. For the past few
Sundays Helen Shehadeh has been missing. It is not that she was unwell –
just that her permit which gives her access to Jerusalem, had expired,
and she had not been able to have it renewed. Some time ago, it might
have been feasible to try to come in to Church, but now the consequences
for a taxi driver of carrying a passenger without the requisite permit
are extremely severe. There is the possibility of a fine of several
thousand shekels, and there is also the possibility that his vehicle
will be impounded. So, Helen has not even tried to get in on Sundays.
Speaking with her on Sunday evening, and knowing that she had hoped to
get a permit on Sunday afternoon, it was quite clear that her mission
had not been successful. Her voice was despondent, her conversation
restrained, and she was most indignant that she, who had been born here,
was not able to come to her home city. Why? What will happen next? What
do the Israeli Jewish people want to do to her?
Next day, there was a very different phone call. She had gone out to the
Army office which deals with permits, and in a very short space of time
she had been given her permit. Her voice was more alive, her manner was
more positive – and even she remarked that she had not been aware of the
effect on her of not having a permit.
And in a sense, she is one of the lucky ones who can cross from
Bethlehem into Jerusalem – but they all wonder how long this will last.
Just past the Checkpoint, inside Palestinian territory, the Israeli
government is hard at work preparing a construction site. It is about
the size of a soccer field, and hundreds of tonnes of earth have been
moved. By the time we get back in a couple of months, there may well be
the new crossing point in place. Who can tell? Certainly, whatever
pressure people outside are trying to exert seems utterly ineffectual.
Not only is there the Fence, or the Wall, - depending on where you
happen to be, but there is now a new threat to the ability to travel on
the West Bank. Earlier this month, Israeli officials began giving some
foreign nationals a form when they arrived at Ben Gurion Airport, and
when the came into the country from Jordan, which declared: "Entry into
the aforementioned territories [the territories under the control of the
Palestinian Authority, in the Gaza Strip, Judea and Samaria] without
prior authorization, may result in legal measures being taken against
you, including deportation and refusal of future re-entry into the State
of Israel." Visitors have been instructed to apply for permission to
enter from the Civil Administration of the Israeli military: "Requests
will be processed with the utmost effort to authorize them within 5
working days." This is what has been put into effect for those wishing
to visit Gaza. Now it would appear that the Government is preparing the
ground for the introduction of these measures to the whole of the West
Bank.
So, there are two measures –
Keep people in the West Bank by building a Wall/Fence.
Keep people out by making it necessary to apply for a permit.
How this will affect tourists who wish to visit Bethlehem is anyone’s
guess. How it will affect the likes of me, with members of the
congregation in Ramallah and Bethlehem, is not at all clear. Will I have
to apply for a permit 5 days in advance of going to make a pastoral
call? How it will affect the work of humanitarian organisations is
something which they are trying to find out.
Looking down the road a bit, to the time when the Wall/Fence is
completed – not only on the western side of the West Bank, between
Israel and Palestine, but also down the Eastern side, cutting the West
Bank off from the Jordan Valley – the Israeli government would then be
operating what would in effect be an enormous prison for 3 million
people, to be added to the prison that already exists which is called
Gaza. Call up the nearest Embassy for details, and then start asking
questions.
On Wednesday morning, Joan and I had an appointment at the Ministry of
the Interior, to apply for an extension of our Visas. The first stage in
the process is to get a recommendation from the Christians Communities
Section of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Armed with this, one can
then go to the Ministry of the Interior and fill out the application
form there. A Photograph is required, as is NIS 145 per person. In the
past it was a rather disorganised process, getting to see an official.
Now it has been changed, and one has to make an appointment. For us, the
new system worked well. We saw an official within a few minutes of the
stipulated time, and within 20 minutes we were on our way. The only fly
in the ointment was that our Passports expire early next year, and so we
could not get a Visa for the full year. However, we can see about that
later in the year.
For others, however, things are not necessarily quite so
straightforward. Matters have not been helped by the fact that there was
a strike in the Ministry of the Interior for several months, and so
no-one could get a Visa renewed. This meant that there were, and still
are, large numbers of people who were technically illegal workers. Among
them are 7 teachers at Tabeetha School. For some of them it is an
anxious time, as there are strong hints that those who have been here
more than 5 years will not be given extensions to their Visas and will
have to leave the country. Should this be the case, then Tabeetha School
would be in a difficult situation – ad the teachers concerned are all
Christian teachers, and essential at present to maintaining the
Christian ethos of the School.
During the week, I was able to attend a Service of Holy Communion at
Sabeel. The Celebrant leading the Service was a Roman Catholic priest,
originally from Ireland. In the congregation were Methodists from the
USA; Quakers; Catholics; Armenians; Anglicans, and a couple of
Presbyterians. What a difference it was from years ago when a Catholic
priest specifically requested non-Catholics not to come and receive
Communion. This time, the Priest gave all the Bread, and the Wine was
available for those who wished to receive it. 50 years ago if one had
suggested that this would happen, there would have been few who would
have agreed. Yet, if change like this can happen, who knows what other
sorts of change there might be in the next 50 years.
Friday afternoon, I had to go into the Old City to make one or two
calls. I never cease to be amazed at the visual impact of walking in the
narrow streets, and seeing the different people. There was the Jewish
father, wearing his kippa, with 3 small children, carrying his shopping
in plastic bags, making his way home. As he went round a corner, he
passed an Arab man wearing his keffiyah. In the Church of the
Resurrection, the Israeli police who normally sit outside were inside
the front door, to shelter from the cold. Walking round the Church was a
young Muslim couple, with the woman wearing her head scarf. They are
infinitesimal episodes – yet so precious in that they show that people
can, and do, respect each other, if given the opportunity.
Earlier in the week, I had been part of a group of ministers and priests
talking abut “the situation” I had shared in a meeting with some of them
in November 2000, when there were a general anxiety about the way
violence was taking over the Intifada. How could non-violent protest be
encouraged, and be made effective? This was the worry then. Now, the
fears of that earlier meeting have been borne out – violence is
everywhere. One of the points raised in the conversation was the need to
try to communicate with the wider Israeli Jewish community – something
which had not been high on the agenda in 2000.
When we arrived in July 2000, this time – January 2004 - seemed a very
long way ahead. Now it is here, and originally we were supposed to go
home and stay there! However, in the present circumstances, we will
spend a couple of months in Scotland, - some holiday, some appointments
and meetings, some speaking tours to churches. Then we will be back here
on March 31st. We do not know the length of our next stay – that will
become clearer while we are in Scotland.
Three words of thanks :
To all who have kept in touch with us, or got in touch with us for the
first time. Thank you for taking the trouble – and if we did not respond
to each one individually, please accept our apologies.
To all who have sent donations for us to pass on to other people and
other organisations. Today, we got another 50 angels in Bethlehem – and
this brings the total that you have bought to over 1,000. Without your
support, this would not have been possible, and the artists in Bethlehem
would have been the poorer.
To all who have read these letters – or at least received them!
Stay well. God be with you all.
Love from Joan and Clarence.
The Jerusalem e-mail address will not be used after Monday morning
– 26th January. If you want to get in touch with us, please use the
following address :
cwm_edinburgh@btopenworld.com
Thought from the Church of the Resurrection :
3 Mysteries :
The Mystery of Sin – why do we choose wrong when we could choose right?
The Mystery of Suffering – why did God choose that way to help us see
wrong from right?
The Mystery of Resurrection – what appears to be God’s way of getting
from wrong to right.
Circular Letter No 161
17th January 2004
This is a short excerpt from a message that was sent to me this week in
an e-mail.
Pseudo-Palestinian-Arab entity: I refer to the occupiers of Gaza,
Judea and Samaria as the "pseudo-Palestinian Arab entity" because there
never was any country called Palestine beyond the one ruled by the
Hebrews. There never was a people called "Palestinian", other than the
Jewish people, for the past 2,000 years, until Yasser Arafat, an
Egyptian, stole the names in the early l960s and gave it to a bunch of
Arab rejects whom their own countries refused to allow in. It is an
"entity" because it has no legal status." Beth Goodtree l2 JAN 04 Arutz
Sheva IsraelNationalNews.com
Also in a letter that I received this week was the following sentence
(speaking about me):
I believe the day will come when your eyes will be opened, and you
will realise that you have championed the forces of evil, injustice and
barbarity.
In 1967, Joan and I passed through South Africa on our way to Zambia. We
have not been back since to see the changes, and so have no new or
recent images in our minds. But one that we do have is of the benches on
the platform on the railway station, clearly labelled for Whites and
Blacks. The system was described as Apartheid.
This came back to mind on three occasions this week.
The first was on last Sunday, we had a visitor at church – a woman who
is currently one of the members of the Christian Peacemaker Team in
Hebron. It was not the best of afternoons, and so we offered to take her
down the road to Hebron, and save her getting soaked in the heavy rain.
It is not all that far – 30 or so kilometres. One of the entrances into
an adjoining town – Halhul – has been opened, and so we were able to
drive right into Hebron. We left our friend to find the last part of her
way home in a taxi, as she was not sure of the way and we did not have a
clue!
She had been talking of life in Hebron – and of the road that had now
been “purified”, and was therefore only available to Jewish people to
use. No Palestinians, though it passed by their houses; no foreigners
who were not Jewish could use it. I wonder how it would have been
defined in the South Africa of 1967.
The second occasion was when we received an e-mail from Bethlehem
University, from which I quote below ;
“Well, you might have heard about the new construction going on - No,
not at the University but down the road a bit ... there is a lot of
heavy work going on at the Bethlehem-Jerusalem military checkpoint. Just
as you pass the checkpoint, from Jerusalem into Bethlehem, on the left
there used to be a field, some trees, etc- just after the little
Millennium Taxi Building. Well, on Christmas Day the Israelis started to
bulldoze the hill and according to the Mayor of Bethlehem, they are
building a NEW checkpoint about 300 meters into Bethlehem from the
current checkpoint (confiscating more of the Palestinian land into the
Israeli state right before our eyes). They are also extending Caritas
Road so that the Caritas Road and this new Checkpoint will now be the
way into and out of Bethlehem (for everyone except the Israelis, who
will have their own second checkpoint!). The Hebron Road and the old
checkpoint will be only for the Israelis going into Rachel's Tomb.
Additionally, the separation fence that has been being constructed in
parts all around and in Palestine is also being worked on as we speak.
Yes, the construction that started on Christmas day also includes a
continuation of the "separation" wall. Up until now, it has come into
Bethlehem right up to the Monastery of Immanuel. Now they are beginning
to add on to it and go straight ahead into Bethlehem, to surround
Rachel’s Tomb and then to go up to Beit Jala. The Mayor of Bethlehem
tells us that 10% of the current land of Bethlehem will end up being
annexed by Israel with this new wall - 177 families will lose their
property! And there seems that there is nothing that can be done to stop
this international law violation that we sometimes hear about on the
news -- but which is also happening right here in Bethlehem to real
people -- some of whom are, of course, our graduates and families of our
students.”
Yet another separate road for Jewish people, and one for all others
going in to Bethlehem. I wonder how this would have been defined in the
South Africa of 1967.
“And there seems to be nothing that can be done…” is precisely the
feeling that so many have here.
Lunch today (Saturday) was cancelled – or rather as our guests could not
come, we had to eat a sandwich on our own. Our friends could not come,
as they were part of a demonstration in Abu Dis, where the 8 metre high
wall is being built, and one of them had been arrested for spray
painting on the wall – one of those Peace Now Jewish protesters. They
all trooped off to the police station, and we heard later that she had
been released, though we do no know if she had been charged, and if so,
with what offence.
This is the Wall which is going to be the subject of a hearing at the
International Court of Justice next month. Having called it a Security
Wall, it is interesting now to hear the Israeli Government spokesman
refer to it as the Anti-Terror Wall.
The third was when we were being told of the experience of a young girl,
American, born of a Palestinian mother and an American father, who had
come to Jerusalem to visit family and was leaving through Ben Gurion
Airport. Let us say that it took her a long time to be processed – and
then she was escorted to the departure lounge. Someone recalled that
this also had happened to one in their party – who had asked why some
people were being examined and others not. The reply given by the
Security officer at the airport was that those who by-passed the
security check were Israeli people – “and you would not expect them to
cause trouble” was the comment from the Israeli security officer. The
visitor replied that it was in fact a Jewish person who had murdered Mr
Rabin – a comment which did not endear him to the people on duty.
However, it is not quite so simple – the experience of Israeli Arab
citizens whom I know is that their luggage is put through the x-ray
machine, and then it may be opened. The experience of Israeli Jewish
people whom I know is that their luggage is not put through the x-ray
machine. Again, I wonder how this would have been defined in the South
Africa of 1967.
During the week, we went up to Jayyus, which is a village of approx 550
families. We had several folk with us who wanted to meet the folk there,
and get a first hand view of the fence, and learn about its impact on
the village. We had a meeting with the administrator of the
Kindergarten, and he told the group of some of its work, and some of its
problems. The Mayor then told us of a project to have an ambulance in
the village. If someone in the village becomes ill, there is no way to
get them to hospital, other than by an ambulance. A private car will be
stopped by the Israeli army and most of the time is not allowed to
proceed. However, ambulances do get permission to take people to
hospital. So, a second-hand vehicle has been offered to the village by a
society in Qalqilya – but it requires repainting to an authorised
colour; it needs signs etc to indicate clearly that it is an ambulance,
and then it needs equipment inside to enable sick people to be
transported and given some form of care. All of which costs money –
which is where we came in. We were able to make a donation to help with
the total cost of $8,000 to get the vehicle ready.
We also spoke with the Mayor at his office, when he showed us the hill
on which his olive trees were planted. He can see it from the window of
his office - but now he keeps the window shutters in place. His trees
are on the other side of the Fence – that is those ones that were not
bulldozed to prepare the line of the fence. “If you take my land, you
take my spirit” he said.
We then went to see one of the gates in the fence – from the side where
we approached the gate, there was a trench, surmounted by triple rolls
of razor wire, and then approx 15 metres of cleared and compacted ground
before you got to the Fence. There was then the Fence itself (between 3
and 4 metres high) – with the capacity to be electrified. We did not
touch it to find out. Then, on the other side, a tarred road along which
Israeli army vehicles patrol – two passed while we were there – and then
a further cleared space. This was the width of the land which had been
cleared in the olive grove of the Mayor, along the route of the Fence.
He was very dispirited.
It was while we were on the way there that we heard of the suicide
bomber at Erez, on the edge of Gaza. Everyone in the car, and those whom
we met in the village, all were deeply saddened at the news. No-one
supported it. No-one thought that it would do any good.
I phoned a young woman in Gaza after it had happened – and reactions
there were mixed. Those who have worked in Israel and have had contact
with Israelis may be a little bit more understanding of the Israeli
situation than those who have never been out of Gaza. Those who have
been bereaved are often more angry than those who have not had to go
through that experience. The population of Gaza is approx 1.2 million.
If half of them are under 20, that will mean that half of the population
have never been out of Gaza – inevitably their view of the world will be
very circumscribed. If someone hits you, you hit back. It is not right –
but it seems to be what many feel in Gaza.
The great sadness is that two peoples are locked into a vicious cycle,
from which there seems to be no exit.
This afternoon we had to make a quick trip to Ramallah. We hoped it
would be quick, but that depended on the checkpoint. Fortunately, it was
indeed quick. On the way in, there were 30 vehicles in the queue to get
out – but by the time we had completed our business, and returned to the
checkpoint, they had all gone. It is an immensely dispiriting drive –
past Settlement after Settlement – land fenced off that is not yet built
on, but is claimed for future expansion; new houses that are being built
just to increase the number of houses, even though many are empty. Add
to that the Wall, the Fence, the Barrier, the Bomber, the killings – and
more killings in Iraq to take the attention of the world, and put the
situation here at the back of people’s minds.
Macro-scale, there seems little hope. Yet, micro-scale, at the level of
individuals, there are many who are very caring, very involved, and very
concerned about the future. That is what keeps people going.
Enough for one day!
Stay well
God bless.
Joan and Clarence.
There will be one more letter, and then silence for a while. We leave
Jan 27th, and hope to be back here March 31st. e-mail address will be
cwm_edinburgh@btopenworld.com
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Circular Letter No 160
9th January 2004
Helping a friend clear out some old magazines from her house, I took
them down to our car in several bundles. Quite unexpectedly, on the top
of one of the bundles, I noticed the Cover Story Headline “The Man who
would be King.” The Magazine in question was ‘The Jerusalem Report’, and
the edition was dated May 9, 1991. The picture behind the headline,
occupying the entire front of the Magazine, was of Mr Sharon.
Intrigued by this find, I kept that particular copy of the magazine, and
read it when we got home. It is interesting and informative to compare
what Mr Sharon said then with what he says and does now.
P 11 May 9, 1991, Jerusalem Report :
Ariel Sharon on the expansion of Jewish settlement in the territories :
“The communities we have in Samaria and Judea have noting to do with the
peace process. We live in a high-crime area. We have a problem – in
order to secure our existence, we must keep in our hands some high
strategic terrain … We are not interested in … farmland. We are
interested only in the high mountains and some road junctions, and that
is our moral obligation to our people. Having those communities is an
integral part of our strategic needs in our small country.”
On freezing settlement as a confidence-building measure : “The Prime
Minister has already made it clear: We built in the past, we are
building now, and we will build in the future.”
On the possibility of withdrawing from parts or all of the territories
in exchange for a guaranteed peace: “We do not trade land for peace. We
already traded land for peace. We traded land for peace in 1922, when
75% of our land was … given to the Hashemite kingdom.”
On Palestinian claims to an independent state in the territories: “ As
far as Israel is concerned, there is a Palestinian state: Jordan is a
Palestinian state, and with this Palestinian state we have to negotiate
many things; how the inhabitants of Samaria, Judea, Gaza are going to
elect and be elected to the Palestinian parliament in Amman …”
An American view of Mr Sharon is given on Page 10 of the same Magazine :
“When Bush Administration officials are asked to comment on Housing
Minister Ariel Sharon’s actions or utterances, the public response never
varies:’The United States deals with the Government of Israel. … But
privately it is no secret that Administration policy makers and even
some of Israel’s strongest supporters view Sharon as a destructive
force.”
This was a view of the Administration headed by the father of the
present President Bush.
This week I had the opportunity to take part in a day-long Conference on
“Politics and Messianism.” It was organised by the Friends of the Hebrew
University, and there were two separate series of talks – the one in
Hebrew and the other in English. It will come as no surprise to learn
that I participated in the English-language talks. As with last year, I
was the only non-Isareli, non-Jewish person invited to participate. It
was a stimulating day.
The first paper was given by Professor Yair Zakovitch, a Professor of
Bible at the Hebrew University, and it was entitled “The Messianic King
: a compromise between Ideal and Reality.” He based his lecture on 19
passages from the Old Testament. One theme running through his
presentation was the fact that the experience of having kings was not
entirely a positive one. I found one of the most challenging quotations
to be from I Samuel 8 : 1 – 7, where there is a sort of conversation
between God which includes the words : ‘And the Lord said to Samuel :
Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they
have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over
them.’ Prof. Zakovitch traced the history of the Monarchy in both Israel
and Judaea, pointing out that it had not really been all that much of a
success. He remarked that when there was a prophesy about a new
beginning (Isaiah 11 : 1), it was going to go back to Jesse, and not to
David, which he understood as a judgement on the reality of the
Monarchs, including David.
Mulling over what I understood him to say, it occurred to me that we do
not now have Kings, but that in many respects their place has been taken
by State and Governments and Prime Ministers and Presidents. If there
was a danger then that the King would supplant God, is there not a
danger now that the State, and its Rulers, may attempt to supplant God?
And may the consequences not be equally disastrous? As there was need
for the Prophet Nathan to confront David, and for the Prophet Amos to
confront Jeroboam the King of Israel, is there still a need for a
Prophet to confront modern-day Presidents and Prime Ministers?
The fifth paper in the series was entitled “The end of the end of the
says, Messianism and Politics in Contemporary Israel” and it was given
by Proifessor Moshe Halbertal. He spoke of two polarities in the history
of the Jewish people. There was Exile on the one hand, and the vision of
Redemption on the other, and in both aspects of their experience, the
Jewish people had developed a belief in a Messiah who would lead them
back from Exile, and effect their Redemption. Now, he said, they had to
cope with a different reality – that of being a State, no longer in
Exile, but not yet Redeemed. This presented a whole series of new
challenges. Several times he spoke of the difficulties of meeting these
challenges ; in the political life of the country, in legal system, in
the religious system – but he also said that, regardless of the tensions
and difficulties, the fundamental difference between pre-1948 and
post-1948 was the existence of the State of Israel, and the fact that
Jewish people felt they were “home” here. I found the use of this word
“home” to be interesting. The country was seen to be the home of the
Jewish people, but no recognition appeared to be given to the fact that
it was also home to Israeli citizens of Arab descent. Nor did there
appear to be any consideration of the fact that what wa
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