Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Listen to the voices of an American Jewish woman, and a Palestinian Muslim man as they call for equal rights, and nonviolent resolution to the conflict. Really well expressed. 

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-october-28-2009/anna-baltzer---mustafa-barghouti

Blindness

"Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’ So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way."    Mark 10:49-52

Blindness is an almost constant presence in my life here in Palestine/Israel, most obviously and physically apparent in my volunteer placement site at the Helen Keller School for the Visually Impaired in East Jerusalem. Serving around sixty Palestinian students with visual impairment, grades KG-7th grade, it is here at Helen Keller where I have begun to find community-- to truly feel that I have a place here in Palestine. Two months ago I was introduced to these wonderful and beautiful children, and as many of our totally blind children do when crossing an open space, I set out into open and uncertain territory, feeling my way along, grabbing on to what I could, and trying to orient myself in this new world. 

I split my time at the school between English classes, Drama/Music classes, working in the Kindergarten, and working one-on-one with students in Occupational Therapy. The occupational therapy work involves different programs for different kids--tactile activities to help prepare some children for learning Braille, visual stimulation activities, some mobility work, and occasionally daily living skills. Most of the students at the school have partial sight, but a good number of them also have other mental or physical disabilities. I am quite fortunate to get to work with every grade level in some capacity (except 2nd grade) at some point during my week. While it is always tricky to begin a new job, the language barrier, and the fact that I had limited experience working with special ed kids made this a new and complex sort of challenge for me. When I first started at the school, I spoke practically no Arabic, and joked to the kindergarten teachers that I needed to be in their class instead of helping with the class! I am happy to report now that I am building an entire collection of phrases appropriate to working at a primary school, such as "Stop that! Sit down! Read! Come on!" and the endlessly useful "Schway e schway," which translated, means "little by little" or "slowly, slowly." While I say this dozens of times everyday at school to the kids, I also say it to myself-- about the Arabic language, about life here, and about relationships. 

 Of all the fruits of the Spirit, I feel that patience is the one that is being tended the most within me right now. In my search to build relationships and trust with the kids and teachers, I am seeking to adopt a "schway e schway" attitude, and learning more and more to appreciate the small breakthroughs and positive changes with the children. While many of the kids are very open and eager to interact with me (I would be lying if I said that it didn't fill my heart with joy to hear a little excited chorus of "Miss Maa-ree" when I entered a class) most of the kids that I work with one-on-one have specialized health and emotional/mental challenges, and have been much slower in accepting me.  One of the totally blind kindergartners that I work with on tactile activities refused at first to even come with me to work; and when he would come, he grabbed at things haphazardly, and threw things on the floor. Amazingly, though, in the past two weeks, we've had three good sessions; not only has he been more focused, he has also laughed and smiled, and been proud of his own accomplishments and victories. Also, for two days in a row, another child in KG who has extremely fragile health combined with serious challenges trusting new people, has smiled at me. I know it seems small, and simple, but from this child who usually sits sullenly and silently, too tired to hold up his own head, it felt huge- a breakthrough, a gift, a blessing. I must give credit here to the wonderful teachers at Helen Keller for their work with the kids, and who are helping bridge the gap between the kids and this strange American lady who doesn't speak enough Arabic. 

Biblically speaking, blindness not only refers to a physical condition, but also to kinds of spiritual blindness and lack of wisdom. The movement from darkness to light, blindness to sight, is not only a literal miracle of Jesus here in the Holy Lands- it is one of the metaphors through which we as humans describe spiritual awakening, as well as transformational experiences of dawning knowledge. Vision as a metaphor for our mental and spiritual lives runs deep in western culture, to the extent that we have phrases like, "Do you see what I mean?" We are talking about meaning here, ideas, and we use a language of "sight" to express this.  My own desire to come and serve in Palestine had a lot to do with the fact that I had my "eyes opened" to the fact that, to be perfectly honest, my own understanding of the situation in the Middle East was dim, at best. I began to feel pulled to move out of this darkness, and try to adapt a multi-sided, multi-sighted, way of looking at the region.  

So when I say I encounter blindness in my daily life, I am not even primarily referring to my work at a school for the blind. I am talking about the blindness of prejudice and hatred that refuses to practice empathy for the other side, or people willingly remaining in a state of blindness and ignorance to the ugly realities of life here. And before you remind me to remove the beam from my eye before passing judgment on the speck in my brother's, understand that I also implicate myself here. I, like every human, have my own personal blindnesses that cloud my ability to see and comprehend. The beautiful thing about the story of Jesus and the blind man, though, is that it is the faith of the blind man that helps him see. His blindness does not prevent him from calling on the name of the Lord, nor does it prevent him from receiving the call of Jesus, which tells me that I can approach the Lord in spite of my own weaknesses, and lack of ability to "see." From a place of limited vision, I am able to pray for the Lord's help in expanding my perspective, and discerning truth and wisdom when I encounter it. The healing of the faithful man is a story that not only chronicles a miracle, I believe it also echoes of a wider promise God makes to us about moving from blindness into sight, darkness into light: it is enough that we call out to Him, that we ask, that we believe in His faithfulness to awaken us to new truths within our world and within ourselves. 

My teacher, let me see! Help me discern truth, and let me not be afraid to stare directly at it, even when it is unpleasant, or when I am forced to look at things from a different perspective, with a new set of eyes. Let all of us working for peace in this region and in the world search for truth and justice with our whole hearts, guided by you into awareness and light, lest we work fruitlessly in the dark. Amen. 

"And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them." Isaiah 42:16 

The Much Too Promised Land

"Even if America did not have critically important interests in this region, there is a compelling argument to be made for our continued involvement. Unlike many other nations or organizations, what we do or don't do counts. Others may have the luxury or right to sit on the sidelines. We don't. America doesn't have the right or authority to abandon commitments we've made or to mortgage the future to unending violence and confrontation by giving up on the present or living as if we were some kind of helpless prisoner of the past."

-Aaron David Miller

American Jew, US Public policy advisor, who has been involved in the Arab-Israeli peace process for over two decades

Taybeh and Sukkot

"But be happy and rejoice forevermore over what I am about to create! For look, I am ready to create Jerusalem  to be a source of joy, and her people to be a source of happiness."

Isaiah 65:18

"So I am coming  to gather all the nations and ethnic groups;  they will come and witness my splendor."

Isaiah 66:18

While I often write about the more difficult aspects of life here in Israel/Palestine, it is time to tell all of you about some of the joy that I've experienced here. The time has come to write about celebration and about the gathering of people! Last weekend was one full of activity and festivity for me and the other YAGM. On Saturday we had the opportunity to celebrate with Palestinians in the West Bank town of Taybeh at the 5th annual Taybeh Oktoberfest, and on Sunday, we celebrated a Sukkot dinner with a wonderful Jewish family in the Israeli settlement of Ma'ale Adumim. 

I think most people will be surprised to learn that there is a Palestinian beer company, making "The Best in the Middle East" right here in the West Bank. Appropriately the name of the town (Taybeh) means "delicious," and as good Lutherans we were excited to learn that there is an annual Oktoberfest in the town, complete with music, dancing, food, and of, course, tasty Taybeh beer. We were fortunate enough to be there for the opening festivities and hear a series of speeches from the mayor, the Palestinian finance minister, and a representative of the Palestinian Authority. While I was thinking more simply of the festival as a time to have fun, it became increasingly clear that Taybeh Oktoberfest was a symbol of nation-building for the people involved. They saw the festival as a step towards building up the Palestinian economy, with local products like Taybeh beer, olive oil, honey, soap, and tourism; they saw a growing independent Palestinian economy as a peaceful and constructive step towards having a Palestinian nation. They were rightfully proud of their town, their beer, and their festival, and I had a great time just relaxing and enjoying the lighthearted atmosphere. We toured the brewery, and saw many great performances, both local and international, like the local Latin school Dubkeh group (Palestinian folk dance) as well as an awesome band from Brazil called Clube de Choro. Great music, great Palestinian food (I had shwarema, which is shaved meat in a wrap or pita), and of course, great beer. 

The next day we headed to a place that I had mixed feelings about. After all, Ma'ale Adumim is one of the largest settlements in the West Bank, and is consequently viewed as one of the most critical obstacles in the search for peace and the creation of an independent Palestinian state. Our country coordinator, Martin, met Leah, the woman who invited us to her home, at a MEPEACE (Middle East Peace) dinner for Israelis, Palestinians, and internationals that we attended several weeks ago. I was quite interested in learning how she reconciled the idea of being pro-peace with the reality of living in a settlement in the occupied territory of the West Bank. Though these questions weighed heavily on my mind, I was also very excited to have the privilege to participate in some of the traditions of the Jewish festival of Sukkot. Sukkot, also known as the Feast of the Tabernacles, or the Feast of the Booths, is a weeklong holiday that follows on the heels of the Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah) and the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). The period between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is one of reflection and self-examination, and Yom Kippur is a day of fasting and prayers for forgiveness of sins. Similar to the transition from Ramadan to Eid al Fitr in the Muslim faith, or the transition from Lent to Easter in the Christian calendar, the period of fasting and introspection in the Jewish calendar is followed by a time of celebration in the festival of Sukkot. Observant Jews build a sukkah, or hut, decorate it on the inside, and eat all of their meals in it during the week; some orthodox Jews even sleep in the sukkah during this time. The sukkah relates to the time of harvest and is also meant to be reminiscent of the structures the ancient Israelites lived in during their 40 years of wandering in the desert after the Exodus from Egypt. 

Leah explained to us about some of the beautiful symbolism and significance of Sukkot while we sat in the family sukkah, located quite creatively on the balcony of their apartment. Her husband Aaron blessed the space of the sukkah with a lulav- a bundle of a palm frond, myrtle bough, willow branch, and a citron fruit- collectively these things are referred to as the "Four Species," and derive from the book of Leviticus. He explained how the four items represent four different kinds of Jews, and how the practice of bringing them together symbolized unity and the ingathering of all these people. Another aspect of Sukkot for many people is the invitation of the Ushpizin, or exalted guests, into the sacred space of the sukkah. Each night one of these Biblical patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Joseph, and David) is invited, and Leah laughingly told us that in this day and age people like her believe these guests bring their wives with them, of course. Besides extending invitations to these guests from the past, it is customary to invite literal guests, and we were quite happy to be those flesh and blood guests at Leah's house. 

As we shared a wonderful meal together, my roommate Anna and I had the opportunity to hear from two extremely kind and intelligent Israeli women (Leah and her friend Esther) about their lives, ideas, and viewpoints. The experience was so valuable partly because we got to hear Leah's story of transformation; she went from being extremely right wing, believing that Palestinians hated Jews and were out to harm them, to being someone who attends peace meetings and has even started her own interfaith group. Her transformation came when she actually met Palestinian people for the first time at an interfaith weekend encounter. She told us that she was so nervous that she was shaking, but when she actually began to talk to the Palestinians, she could not stop crying, because she realized that they were nice, open, welcoming-- in effect, she saw their humanity for the first time. Believing fervently that a great deal of the problem is that ignorance of the Other creates fear of the Other, she has made it her mission to facilitate encounters between Israelis and Palestinians- Jews, Muslims, and Christians- in the hopes that people will begin working with one another instead of against one another. 

I have to say that I was really inspired by Leah and her passionate desire to gather people together in positive and respectful ways. I gained a new appreciation for the difficult position of courageous Israelis like her who are not afraid to face rejection and ridicule within their own society because of what they believe. In spite of resistance from her neighbors and hesitance from her own children, she is not afraid to stand up and say that the Palestinians are her neighbors as well, and she wants to work with them and treat them as such. I really enjoyed meeting her, Aaron, and Esther, and I hope to have the chance to talk to many more Israelis during my time here. More gatherings, more joy. 

As-Salaam Alaykum 

The Right to Refuse

I really enjoyed reading this Al Jazeera article about a recent batch of "refuseniks," young Israelis who refuse to do their obligatory service in the military because they have moral objections to the illegal Israeli occupation of the West Bank, and the handling of the Gaza conflict. For these teens, it was about opening their eyes, educating themselves about the true situation here, and then having the courage to hold on to the strength of their convictions. I have a great deal of respect for these recent high school graduates; they risk going to jail for their beliefs, and will likely find it difficult to find a job because they have not done their army service. 

Conscience is the root of all true courage; if a man would be brave let him obey his conscience.

-James Freeman Clarke

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/10/2009101373851115553.html

Home Demolition in Beit Hanina

A BBC news article about the demolition of a home in my neighborhood of Beit Hanina. I thought it was strange when I saw a police vehicle full of soldiers, and a trailer with two police horses pulling over to the side of the road as I walked to school this morning. I looked at one of the soldiers as he climbed out of the vehicle; he looked back at me. And now I know that he was probably off to support the demolition and eviction of a Palestinian family right in the neighborhood. 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8303355.stm