Not So Little Town of Bethlehem

We arrived in Bethlehem yesterday, to discover that it is no longer a little town. Bethlehem is now a Palestinian community, which is about one percent Christian and 99 percent Muslim. We are learning about the realities of life in the Holy Land today, and there are disappointments and surprises at every turn.

What we have learned in the last two days is that there are two separate classes of people in the West Bank of Palestine: there are Jewish residents and settlers and there are Palestinian Christians and Muslims. They live in two different realities, two different worlds, even though they are side by side.

Yesterday, we visited a Palestinian refugee camp inhabited by families who have been displaced from their homes since 1948. That was the year the Jewish homeland was created, and hundreds of families have been waiting more than 50 years to reclaim their homes and properties. In the meantime, one group has organized a theatre and arts group for families who are stranded in these camps.

Today, we met with a Jewish settler who came here from Chicago in 1982. He and his wife were motivated by the desire to be among their own people, following what they understand to be the religious imperative to live in Palestine/Israel. Since the first and second Intifadas in the 1990s, he no longer has any relationships with Palestinians and feels it is dangerous to travel into Palestinian territories -- fearing terrorist attack.

Later, we visited the town of Hebron, which is where Abraham bought land and where King David located a military camp. It has been an Arab Palestinian city for thousands of years. However, we saw four Jewish settlements in the city of Hebron and there is an active Israeli military force that patrols the souks (street vendors) and intimidates the Palestinian residents. A Christian Peacemaker Team is located here, and one of their primary missions is to escort schoolchildren safely to their classes. The tension between Zionists and Palestinians is very deep. As an example, we visited the mosque in Hebron and had to pass through three different security systems simply to tour this holy place.
Fortunately, some Hebronites are organizing to rehabilitate the city and restore the vitality of the shopping areas.

For a place where there are so many glorious houses of worship and where there is so much religious history, it is painful to see the daily conflict and division that exists here. But it is also important that we bear witness to the these issues, so that we can be advocates for the peace of Christ, the justice of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. As one theology professor said to us, "Do not forget us when you return to your home. We need your support. We need your prayers. We need you to speak for us." A' salaam aleikum, (Arabic for "peace be among you.")