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
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