Visits with Families Bring Comfort and Concern

After a morning of worship in Jerusalem, and meeting with the Bishop of Jerusalem about the status of Christians in the Holy Land, we took a contrasting tour of Tel Aviv and the old city of Jaffa on the Med. Sea. What breath of fresh air, after more than a week of experiencing the occupation. If you only experienced life in these coastal cities, you would think that all is well, for the places are void of walls, checkpoints, and by past roads and settlers. But that is not what is going on behind the walls, and within the hearts and souls of Israelis and Palestinians.

On the way back to Bethlehem, we prepared for two nights with our host families. The anticipation was a little unsettling, but after meeting the families in their homes we knew that these moments would be special. I was assigned alone to a family of three that grew to twenty pretty quickly. Jerius, Rodina and baby Loudra quickly wisked me off my feet with the over the top Arab hospitality. Nothing was too much to make me comfortable. Four month old Loudra, even slept through the night and when awake, charmed all of our hearts.

Rodina and Jerius speak more than adequate English, and far better than the few words I have learned in their language. Rodina teaches English to young children as it is a requirement for them to learn at least two languages. She is deeply frustrated by the level of violence that she sees in her students as they act out the impact of the occupation in the classroom. She finds it impossible to control, and efforts to do so have been fruitless. How can the young people not act out what they see each day?

Jerius works with olive wood and does quite well when he gets orders. He is a loving father and just adores his young daughter. At age 17, he was imprisoned for two years for throwing rocks at an Israeli jeep. Those two years disturbed not only his education, which Palestinians value highly, but left it's mark in many ways. Though he fully understands what he did was wrong, he seems almost oblivious to the grim experience he had those months, and the feelings about the helplessness he and many others feel at their lack of control over lives and destiny. It's almost like, oh, "at is to expected under present occupation". The collective oppression of the Palestinian people, and scaring of the Israeli soul casts a heavy pall on the land.

Still, there are many stories of hope with glimpses of soldiers who understand what they do, and the farmers who express their frustrations through patient, non violence resistance.

A case in point, while we were in the City of Hebron yesterday and passing through the security gates to Harem Abrahami Mosque, our guide was refused entry by the Army soldier, in his early 20'.s The conversation went something like this between them. Soldier withM-16 in his hands, "Count the number of Americans in your group." The Guide: "they're in front of you". Y"You count them said the soldier, I've got the power." Palestinian Guide: "No" What power do you have over me." I've got the gun", says the young soldier. No, said the guide, "'ve have my God".

"Then you can't go in" continued the guard. "Fine", said our Guide, I am a human being not a thing."

The humiliation our guide faced in our presence is what many in the Occupied Lands experience every day. It is no surprise that there both violence, and depression in the land.

Then their is young Loudra, who smiles in her father's arms, and when I hold her she coos, "while the whole world around her weeps". We pray for a better world for Loudra and the Children of both Palestinian and Israeli children.

It' been 18 hours since I rose this morning. Tomorrow we visit some of the sacred spaces around Nazaraeth, and I long for some moments of quite reflection in those places, and oh yes, a few magic moments with my harp within those hallowed walls of ancient churches. It is magical. Love , Bill