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By Wayne Bremner
AS I write this article, on January 18, both the
government of Israel and the leaders of Hamas have declared their own
unilateral ceasefires, putting a tentative hold on the violence in Gaza
that has taken 13 Israeli lives and more than 1,300 Palestinian lives.
A few years ago, I visited Israel and Palestine, which
took me on a journey of getting to know more about the personal stories and
history of the Palestinian people.
It has also taken me deeper into the scriptures that
describe the covenant between God and the people of Israel.
Persecution of Jews
The more I learn about this conflict, the more I
appreciate that the persecution of Jews throughout history has created deep
fears and legitimate aspirations for security.
Most of that persecution took place in Europe, such as
the Spanish Inquisition and the pogroms which introduced harsh
discrimination, property confiscation and sometimes massacres. The most
horrific was the Holocaust, in which some six million Jewish people lost
their lives.
In the aftermath of the Holocaust, a 1947 United
Nations commission recommended partition of the land of Palestine to create
a state for the Jewish people. Understandably, this proposal was resisted
by the Arab people living in Palestine at the time.
In 1948, Israeli forces asserted control over the
majority of what had been Palestine – more than what had been
proposed by the UN – and forcefully expelled approximately 750,000
Arab people from their homes, into refugee camps.
Today, many of those refugees, along with their
children and grandchildren, live in the remains of the Palestinian
territory – now called the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Palestinian suffering
Some of the Palestinians who lost their homes, and
loved ones still vividly recall the events of that time. Bishara Awad is a
Palestinian Christian I met in Palestine.
He was a nine year old boy living in Jerusalem in 1948,
when he witnessed his father being shot at the front door of their home
during the conflict. That evening, he helped his mother bury his father in
the family garden; and eventually, his family lost their home.
As I heard more Palestinians’ stories, I began to
understand their fears and frustrations.
In the West Bank, Palestinians live under the
occupation of Israeli forces, and can barely move from one town to another
due to the road blocks, checkpoints and travel restrictions. Farmers often
cannot get their produce to market, and people cannot find jobs.
In some regions, unemployment is over 70 percent and
child malnutrition is 35 percent.
While in Palestine, I also saw the eight metre high
separation wall Israel has constructed over the past several years.
Much of the wall is being built on Palestinian
territory, separating Palestinian farmers from their land, and from each
other.
This prompts a key question: If the wall is just for
security, why not build it on the internationally recognized border between
Israel and the West Bank?
Many Palestinians fear the ultimate goal of the Israeli
government is to take their remaining land and drive them out of the West
Bank and Gaza completely.
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God’s covenant
As Christians, how do we respond to the needs of both
Israeli and Palestinian people?
For me, the starting place was to reflect more deeply
on the scriptures that speak to the covenant between God and his people.
I believe the covenant given to Abraham in Genesis 12:
2-3, which promised that Abraham and his descendants would be a great
nation and a blessing to all people, was ultimately fulfilled in Christ
– who is a descendent of Abraham.
Christ offers the new covenant for all believers, who
are “fellow citizens with God’s people” (Eph 2:14-22),
“a people belonging to God” (1 Peter 2:9) and “heirs
according to the promise” (Gal 3:26).
It appears to me that the new covenant puts faith in
Christ and the spiritual kingdom of God at the centre – instead of
the temple, or the pursuit of a promised land.
The Jewish people continue to play an important role in
God’s plan, but it does not depend on the exclusive occupation of the
land of Palestine.
Even if we are to assume, as some Christians do, that
the current state of Israel is the nation God was referring to in his
promise to Abraham, and if Israel is now to occupy the land that is
Palestine, it still needs to follow the conditions of the covenant.
Isaiah and other prophets declare that the fair and
compassionate treatment of others, including foreigners, is a condition to
the fulfillment of the covenant. Therefore the state of Israel, if it is to
represent the people of God, needs to treat the people of Palestine with
justice and compassion.
My prayer is for peace, justice and security for all
the people of Israel and Palestine. These are the aims of the organization
I serve with, Mennonite Central Committee, which has worked with Israelis
and Palestinians for six decades.
This includes practical projects such as water, food
production, schools and emergency relief in the Gaza strip. MCC also
supports Palestinian and Israeli groups who are working for a just and
nonviolent resolution to the conflict.
Many Christian leaders in Palestine are working at
peaceful ways of addressing the conflict. The aforementioned Bishara Awad
is one example.
In 1972, he joined MCC to lead a boys’ school
near Bethlehem – and then, with MCC’s support, he went on to
found Bethlehem Bible College, the only Arabic speaking Bible college in
the country. Their goal is to build up the church for ministry, including
the ministry of reconciliation.
Despite the violence and fear, there are signs of hope
and reconciliation that we need to uphold. Please join us in working and
praying toward these goals.
Wayne Bremner is executive director of Mennonite
Central Committee B.C.
February 2009
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