Presbytery of Susquehanna Valley passes overture to endorse “Amman Call” for Arab-Israeli peace.
[1-21-08]

The Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church (USA) has a new website, offering current news, resources, resources for advocacy, and much more.

On October 27^th, JVP-Boston joined forces with the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee of Massachusetts in a solidarity rally with the Sabeel Conference taking place in that city.

Sabeel is an international peace movement initiated by Palestinian Christians in the Holy Land who seek a just peace based on two states -- Palestine and Israel -- as defined by international law and existing United Nations resolutions. Their conference had come under attack by the local Jewish Community Relations Council, CAMERA (Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America -- a group "devoted to monitoring and challenging perceived anti-Israeli news coverage"), and the David Project.

Thanks be to God for the many, many Jews who know what their divine calling is and who want the Israeli Government to live it out. We believe in a two state solution - of two sovereign, viable states each with contiguous borders guaranteed as secure by the international community. We condemn acts of terrorism by whoever they are committed. The suicide bomber has to be condemned for targeting innocent civilians. But equally must the Israelis be condemned for their acts of indiscriminate reprisal. [...]

The world needs the Jews, Jews who are faithful to their vocation that has meant so much for the world's morality, of its sense of what is right and wrong, what is good and bad, what is just and unjust, what is oppressive and what sets people free. Jews are indispensable for a good compassionate, just and caring world.

And so are Palestinians.

You are invited to participate as a Congressional "Accompanier"

[10-31-07]

Purpose and Goals

Arch B. Taylor, Jr., writing as a sympathetic Gentile, offers personal observations concerning the complex relations among these three entities in light of current events and biblical instruction, expressing sincere hope for a peaceful settlement of the ongoing conflict between the modern state of Israel and its Middle East neighbors.

Arch Taylor is an ordained Presbyterian minister who served for over thirty years in Japan and taught Bible at Shikoku Gakuin University. After retirement he went on short delegations twice to Nicaragua with Witness for Peace and Habitat for Humanity, and once to Israel/Palestine with Presbyterian Peace Fellowship and Christian Peacemaker Teams. He is a member of Mid-Kentucky Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship, Society of Biblical Literature, and author of Pearl Harbor, Hiroshima, & Beyond: Subversion of Values.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for his role in the struggle against apartheid in South Africa, spoke in Boston on October 27, appealing to Jews to challenge what he described as the Israeli government's oppression of Palestinians.

In a lengthy and emotional address to a packed Old South Church, where the faint din of pro-Israel protesters could be heard through the stone walls, Tutu cited passages from the Hebrew Bible to argue that the God worshiped by Jews would champion the cause of Palestinians.

"Remembering what happened to you in Egypt and much more recently in Germany - remember, and act appropriately," he said, alluding to the enslavement of Jews in Egypt described in the book of Exodus, as well as to the Nazi Holocaust. "If you reject your calling, you may survive for a long time, but you will find it is all corrosive inside, and one day you will implode."

His remarks, to a congregation of about 850, created controversy even before they were delivered. A wide array of Jewish community leaders and organizations denounced Sabeel, the Palestinian Christian organization that put together the conference at which Tutu spoke, as anti-Israel, and rued Tutu's support of the group.

An op-ed column by Bishop Tutu, published in the Globe the day before his speech, expressed his hope for Israel/Palestine. He acknowledged there is little reason for "optimism" in today’s realities, but his hope is grounded in the deeper reality of God’s intention for humanity:

God has a dream for all his children. It is about a day when all people enjoy fundamental security and live free of fear. It is about a day when all people have a hospitable land in which to establish a future. More than anything else, God's dream is about a day when all people are accorded equal dignity because they are human beings. In God's beautiful dream, no other reason is required.

God's dream begins when we begin to know each other differently, as bearers of a common humanity, not as statistics to be counted, problems to be solved, enemies to be vanquished or animals to be caged. God's dream begins the moment one adversary looks another in the eye and sees himself reflected there.

Hedges, who graduated from Harvard Divinity School, is the author of American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America."

a note from Shannon O’Donnell, PC(USA) volunteer in mission in Jerusalem    [6-26-07]

Hi Church,

Hope all is well across the globe where you are, and that everyone is having a good summer so far.

You may be aware of the current situation in Gaza. I ask that you would hold these people in your prayers. Personally, I find it helpful to have a specific focus when I pray for something, so below is an article I included for Sabeel's quarterly magazine publication about a hospital in Gaza that we have close connections to. It says so much about the heart and mind of the people of Gaza, that (in my opinion) the news networks fail to portray ...

A Parish Called Gaza
by Metin Mitchell

Gaza is a narrow piece of land along the Mediterranean coast between Israel and Egypt. Just 40 km long and 10 km wide, it is home to more than 1.4 million Palestinians. Land side, the Israeli government has built a "wall" around Gaza. This "wall" is one of the most sophisticated ever built. It is a construction of concrete blocks, barbed wire, electronic fences, and pillboxes with remote controlled 50-caliber machine guns.

Gaza has three main population centers: Gaza City, Khan Younis and Rafah. These are some of the most densely populated agglomerations in the world. The majority of the populations are refugees who fled or who were expelled from their homes in what was Palestine but became, in 1948, the State of Israel.

There are two ways in and out of the Gaza strip: Rafah crossing which leads through Egypt; Erez crossing which leads through to Israel. Imports are not permitted through Rafah. Exports are only permitted through Erez, however this is often closed. Any form of viable economic activity based on trade with the outside world is impossible.

Official unemployment is currently at 40 percent. The unemployment, the economic embargo and the indiscriminate air strikes by Israel's air force have led to an untold story. These are the facts. If you stack up these facts of misery they are just another tally of human injustice, poverty, and misery in a far away place. And you could quite easily walk away from them.

Having been there I can tell you that in amongst all the misery that is Gaza there is much that is beautiful. There is hope, courage, defiance, and surprisingly, forgiveness. I have witnessed the Gospel there on the front line of poverty and misery. I have witnessed solidarity between Muslims and Christians. I have seen with my own eyes, in the midst of anger and fear, what a better world can look like.

I could tell you about the bleakness of Gaza. I could tell you of that drive into Gaza city with its bombed out roads and buildings. I could tell you about the scores of young men hanging around with nothing to do. I could tell you about the young men with guns looking for something to do. I could tell you about the donkeys and carts, about the hammering in the small workshops where men are desperately trying to recycle poverty.

But let me tell you instead about a single hospital there, the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital.

Amongst the narrow scarred streets there is a small oasis of whitewash and green grass. It too carries its scars. The chapel of the hospital has been bombed by an Israeli Apache helicopter but this is dismissed in a good humored way by the hospital director. The wards are spartan. The equipment is old and inadequate. The surgery is dilapidated. The corridor acts as the overflow when the bombing gets really too bad and the casualties too many.

The hospital is open to all, irrespective of their faith. It treats the poor without charge, it treats those hurt in the crossfire of war, and it treats fighters injured in battle, be they Israeli or Palestinian. The hospital is there to heal the sick and suffering – period.

But direct casualties of war are not the only victims in Gaza. War and its filth brings a hidden killer. And this is cancer. The increase in cancer has been dramatic. It is the women who are hardest hit by cancer, particularly breast cancer. The hospital is doing what it can but it desperately needs a mammogram machine so that it can do better detection sooner and thus have a better chance of saving lives.

I was introduced to one of the hospital's cancer outpatients. She lives near the hospital with her family. They live in a graveyard. Her children are full of life. They have the biggest smiles and the most mischievous grins I have ever seen. They jump from one gravestone to another. These make good hiding places since many of the tombs are open, having been bombed at some point in time or another. Their home is a hut in the middle of the graves. The hut has no drainage for sewage.

You don't need to be a doctor to see that the children are malnourished and sickly. But you do need to have a heart of steel not to be moved by the sight of them fighting amongst themselves for a single piece of meat they have found on the floor. The woman's eldest daughters make flat bread in a home made clay oven. They shared with me some of their bread. And in doing so gave me a meal far more generous than the richest of my friends has ever given me.

This woman is just one of the hospital's patients. She is dying. But she is undefeated, she is loud and alive. And with her amongst this rubble and poverty, Palestine lives, bloody, torn, and divided, but it lives on like an eternal flame beyond the power of a foreign army to snuff it out. This is Gaza. This is the 'parish' in which the hospital operates.

But if this hospital works it is because the staff, Muslims and Christians, work unstintingly to take care of those around them. The Chief Surgeon is a Muslim and the Director of the hospital is a Christian, but none of that matters. In that hospital I saw the message of our Christian faith, the compassion and love for people, not segregated, blind to difference. I saw the message of our faith, raw and without hindrance of theology or denomination. I saw the world that I would like for my children to see. A world blind to religious difference, where people stand in dignity shoulder to shoulder with their neighbors, accepting what makes the other special and unique. A world where people give of themselves without counting the cost.

They need help. Specifically, I would ask you to pray for them and if ever you are at a loss for words to say let me share with you their prayer: "Pray not for Arab or Jew, for Palestinian or Israeli; pray rather for ourselves, that we might not divide them in our prayers, but keep them both together in our hearts."

Metin Mitchell is an Anglican who is from the UK, and leads a professional services firm in the Middle East.

The situation in Gaza is dire, and also confusing for many. JVP has assembled this newsletter to help clear some of the fog surrounding current events. Click here for an abridged version of a longer article by JVP's Director of Education and Policy, Mitchell Plitnick, offering an analysis of the events in Gaza.

Click here for the full version of this article

Mitchell Plitnick
 

Back in 2005, Jewish Voice for Peace took to the streets in San Francisco to protest the just-commencing Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. Of course, JVP was never opposed to Israel withdrawing its soldiers and checkpoints and abandoning its settlements in Gaza. But doing the right thing in the wrong way can be just as bad, in some ways perhaps worse, than doing the wrong thing, and this was what we saw happening with the Gaza withdrawal. Sadly, this prediction has come true, now leaving the Palestinians split between two governing bodies, leaving Gaza in ruin and chaos and leaving Israel with an increasingly hostile and dangerous territory on its western border. The first thing one sees when looking at the current split among the Palestinians is that the situation is not one that can last. It's eminently clear that the forces arrayed against Hamas – the US, Israel, Fatah, the moderate Arab states, the EU – are not going to be content with the status quo. Fatah in particular will not just sit idly by and let some 1.5 million Palestinians be governed by someone else. They will have considerable support from outside in pressing Hamas, politically, economically and militarily. For its part, Hamas has already shown they can and will act aggressively in pursuing their own position atop Palestinian society.

Right now, reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas does not seem realistic and there is no third option in the Palestinian polity. This would seem to indicate that, at least for the time being, these two groups will continue to work against one another and that the opportunity to engage the broad spectrum of the Palestinian people by dealing with a broad-based government with Abbas at its head is lost. Still, even though the leaders of Fatah and Hamas have done little more than pay lip service to the value of national unity among the Palestinians, this value remains strong among the Palestinian populace. That might pressure change and force the two groups together at some point. But such a possibility is not on the radar right now.
On the other hand, the view that seems to be dominating both Washington and Jerusalem right now is quite distorted. It seems that the US and Israel believe that they can crush Hamas for good by strengthening Abbas with a peace summit and encouraging aggressive actions against Hamas in the West Bank. The latter is a foolish strategy, and one that has repeatedly bolstered Hamas, rather than weakened it. Indeed, virtually every attempt by Israel, the US and much of the rest of the world to harm Hamas has helped them over the years, and if foreign hands are seen too clearly in Fatah's attacks on Hamas, support for Fatah, even from within, will quickly wither.

Many analysts, including this one, have been urging for some time that Hamas must be dealt with, not shunned. By engaging Hamas and forcing them into politics rather than ideological grandstanding, they will be forced to confront the ineffectiveness of their more extreme positions, which is precisely what happened after the election. This is why they were forced to allow Abbas to represent the Palestinian government in the Arab League vote on their peace proposal, and to allow him to keep his leading position in any negotiations and contacts with Israel.

That Abbas will not come back to Ramallah bearing an acceptable final status resolution is inevitable. The only way he can do that is to offer at least the hope that Israel can be convinced to return to something close to the 1967 borders, to share Jerusalem and to agree to acknowledge the refugees' right of return, allow a token number back to Israel and compensate the rest. Abbas need not actually deliver all of that. But the whole idea of bolstering Abbas with a summit rests on the presumption that a sufficient number of Palestinians can be convinced that Abbas, freed of the burden of Hamas, can deliver the minimal Palestinian demands some time in the near future. Abbas will need to show some concrete indication that he can pull this off, and he will have to do so with a very skeptical audience. The Olmert government is far too weak to even signal the possibility of such concessions, much less actually make them.

It is far from certain that Fatah would win an all-out battle for the West Bank. But it is very likely that Israel would be drawn into a conflict there, either to defend Fatah or because some Palestinians decide to bring them in with an attack on Israelis. The resulting violence would expand very quickly, and would not only quickly bring back, and possibly surpass, the worst days of the last intifada, but is likely to spark off conflicts in other areas of the Middle East. There is very little good that can come of Fatah's aggressive actions against Hamas in the West Bank, and the potential for a great deal of harm.

And there are new concerns, ones which Israel had better take very seriously. For quite some time now, we have heard from Mahmoud Abbas as well as from Hamas leaders of attempts by al-Qaeda and similar groups to gain a foothold within the Palestinian Territories. Thus far, these have been rebuffed, and nothing in the current developments will make either Fatah or Hamas more receptive to such groups. But the general chaos in Gaza may well make it much more difficult for the Palestinians to keep these groups out, and if Hamas is proven to be a failure, the radical elements in Palestinian society are going to turn not to more moderate elements, but to still more radical ones, giving these groups a foothold. This would be exceedingly dangerous for Israelis. Whatever one thinks of Hamas or Fatah, they are not the same at all as al-Qaeda, simplistic Western propaganda notwithstanding. The last thing any Israeli civilian wants is to see al-Qaeda operating on their doorstep.

The simple fact is that there can never be any progress between Israel and the Palestinians if a big chunk of the Palestinian community, the Islamists, are excluded from the process. Not only will many other Palestinians support their right to be heard, but groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad can easily derail any peace process with attacks on Israelis, as they have so often done in the past. They need to be engaged so they will have incentive to refrain from such actions. The alternative is not just failure, it is a brand of radicalism that will be much worse.

Any crisis contains in it the seeds of progress. These opportunities have been routinely missed by all parties. This one has the potential for serious consequences throughout the region, as well as the potential to make any kind of peace unrealistic for years to come. That must not be allowed to happen. Israel, the US, the PA, Hamas, the UN, the Arab League, indeed, the entire world has got to allow good judgment and cooler heads to prevail in this matter. If everyone continues to only pursue their own political ends, disaster is sure to follow. But history has witnessed occasions where people with understanding of prevailing conditions and dynamics and sufficient diplomatic skill overcome politics to bring about significant progress, and it is not unusual for such things to happen just at the brink of disaster. Let's hope that is the course that is chosen. In fact, let's demand it.

Situation report from CWS, June 18, 2007

Amid tentative signs that the situation in Gaza Strip was emerging from a crisis situation after a week of violence and uncertainty, the European Union said it plans to restore humanitarian aid to the beleaguered Palestinian Authority. That follows the Fatah-allied government's move to cut off ties with the radical faction Hamas, which now controls the Gaza Strip.

Runs on markets in Gaza in the wake of fears of food shortages had subsided with assurances from Israel that some humanitarian assistance would go into Gaza, the Associated Press (AP) news agency reported today.

Still, as Action by Churches Together (ACT) International reported, the coming days and weeks could see a deepening instability in economic and social conditions, translating into thousands of families having no access to food, cash, medical care and other needed essentials, particularly as the new school year approaches.

Last week's fighting left more than 100 dead and hundreds more wounded, with extensive damage done to an already weak infrastructure. Hospitals became battlegrounds and medical staff members were unable to report to work.

June 15, 2007     [posted here 6-15-07]

Below is a statement from the heads of churches in Jerusalem calling for an end to the fighting between Fatah and Hamas and urging all sides to work for peace and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Lutheran Bishop Dr. Munib Younan, in a separate statement, emphasized the need for urgent work on the peace process, "If you want to bring an end to the horrific violence in the Middle East and if you are concerned as I am by the rampant growth of religious extremism: please, I urge you from Jerusalem, get serious about implementing the two-state solution…"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Norman Finkelstein, the political scientist whose bid for a permanent position at DePaul University stirred up charges of anti-Semitism, personal vendettas and outside interference in the hiring process, was informed Friday [June 8, 2007] that he had been denied tenure by the university.

The full report in the New York Times >>

The Chicago Sun-Times reported on Friday >>

The Chronicle of Higher Education notes that DePaul University’s president, the Rev. Dennis Holtschneider, affirmed the decision against granting tenure, adding that the intense outside interest in the case "was unwelcome and inappropriate and had no impact on either the process or the outcome of this case."

Anyone who denies the long arm of the powerful Israeli lobby in America need only to note today that distinguished Professor Norman Finkelstein of De Paul University was denied tenure. Without any doubt this was due to his outspoken criticism of Israeli policies. This was a great triumph for leading Zionist scoundrel Alan Dershowitz and his crusade to have Finkelstein denied tenure. Finkelstein's great sin has been his defense of the Palestinian people and his criticism of Israeli policies toward them. Because Finkelstein's family were Holocaust survivors and his Jewish credentials impeccable his courageous stance for justice was intolerable for the likes of Dershowitz and the Israeli lobby.

The greater shame is that of the Catholic university of De Paul for knuckling in to the pressures from the Zionist lobby. I have attended Finkelstein's brilliant lectures and treasure his autographed book.

This is a disgrace and a violation of academic freedom. The excuse given for tenure denial is limp and contrived. Shame on De Paul.

Click here to read Dr. Finkelstein's letter to Commissioners to the 217th General Assembly, discussing the issue of Israel and divestment as they prepared for the Assembly.

For background on the attacks on Finkelstein because of his criticism of Israel >>

June 10 Rally in Washington, DC:

Calling for an End to Israel's 40-Year Occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem
[5-31-07]

[5-1-07]

During this conference, young adults (ages 18-35) will travel together through Jerusalem and the West Bank to learn more about current realities in Palestine, visit biblical sites, and become trained in international advocacy for Peace with Justice in the Holy Land. The conference will include visits to Palestinian towns and villages, events celebrating Palestinian culture, worship, biblical reflections and volunteer experience. There will also be an emphasis on advocacy workshops and opportunities to share experiences and ideas with Palestinian and International young adults from around the world.

Application forms, scholarship application forms, and additional information are available at www.sabeel.org. The registration deadline is June 15^th. Please feel free to contact the young adult conference coordinators at youth@sabeel.org.

Over the years, Norman Finkelstein has spoken out as a Jew, criticizing the State of Israel for its suppression of Palestinian freedom and dignity. He testified at the 2006 General Assembly as the issue of divestment and criticism of Israeli oppression of the Palestinian territories were hotly debated.

A friend writes that "Norman Finkelstein has long been the target of a sustained campaign from the Israel Lobby to discredit him as a person and a scholar, thereby undermining his critiques of the State of Israel and the occupation. The latest effort includes trying to prevent him from getting tenure at DePaul University, a Roman Catholic institution where he has taught for the past six years. He is down to the last phase of this process, having been approved by the faculty committee; the dean will be making a decision by May." Read the Chronicle of Higher Education account of this struggle >>

The World Council of Churches (WCC) says it is will launch in June an international, ecumenical peace initiative for peace in Israel and the Palestinian territories. An initial meeting will occur June 17-21 in Jordan.

"The initiative is a major step toward the WCC’s goal of mobilizing churches around the world for peace with justice in the Middle East," the WCC said in a March 7 statement. "Its launch will take place during this year's observances of 40 years under occupation
for Palestinians."

from Craig Wiesner     [3-9-07]

We recently posted a report by Geoff Browning on a conference held in the San Francisco Bay Area on the topic, "Finding Our Voice: The Conference for Progressives Constructively Addressing Anti-Semitism."  Sponsored by a number of Jewish organizations, it focused largely on what was described as "the New Anti-Semitism."

(It’s not just Jimmy Carter)
[3-5-07]

The UN's Special Rapporteur, John Dugard, describes the regime as being designed to dominate and systematically oppress the occupied population.

Mr Dugard is a South African professor of international law assigned to monitor Israeli human rights abuses. He has extensively studied apartheid in South Africa and has compared it to what he saw under Israeli rule.

40 Years in the Wilderness: 40 Years of Occupation
Sabeel International Young Adult Conference
July 19- July 29, 2007

[2-13-07]

If you answered "yes" to these questions, then we invite you to participate in Sabeel’s 2^nd International Young Adult Conference.

Our vision for this conference is to gather, network, and further educate young leaders from Palestine and around the world, during this

40th year of the Occupation; so that they may be trained, commissioned, and equipped with the tools to act in advocacy to end the Occupation.

The conference will include:

The registration and program fee for the conference is $700.

This includes all of your land costs – food, accommodations, ground transportation, speakers and activities – but it does not include airfare. When scheduling flights, please keep in mind that participants should arrive on July 18th.

SPECIAL OFFER- For those interested in traveling in the Galilee there will be an option for a two-night tour for an additional $150 after the conference.

REGISTER BY JUNE 15th AT WWW.SABEEL.ORG or e-mail youth@sabeel.org for more information

ABOUT SABEEL: Sabeel is an ecumenical grassroots liberation theology movement among Palestinian Christians. Inspired by the life and teaching of Jesus Christ, this liberation theology seeks to deepen the faith of Palestinian Christians, promote unity, justice and love. Sabeel also works to promote a more accurate international awareness regarding the identity, presence, and witness of Palestinian Christians as well as their contemporary concerns. It encourages individuals and groups worldwide to work for a just, comprehensive, and enduring peace informed by truth and empowered by prayer and action.

A new organization of British Jews has been launched recently in response to a perceived pro-Israeli bias in existing Jewish bodies in the UK.

Presbyterian Outlook, in its December 25^th issue, published a short article titled "The real Bethlehem," by Erin Dunigan, an Outlook feature reporter. Dunigan’s article takes a painfully realistic look at the situation in Israel, and specifically in Bethlehem, reminding us as Christmas approached that "the little town of Bethlehem" is no sweet Christmas-card place under Israeli occupation today.

You can read Dunigan’s article in Outlook >>

The Rev. Al Sandalow of Seattle, Washington, objected to this view, since on his brief visit to Jerusalem last March he saw no such problems. He wrote:

I’m not a big fan of the wall Israel has built, but I don’t understand how it has affected tourism.

I was in Jerusalem in March. I jumped in a taxi at the Jaffa Gate and was at the Church of the Nativity in less than 30 minutes. That was less time tan the two previous, pre-wall, visits. I know that Israel can close down all the checkpoints, but that seems to happen seldom these days.

Overall, tourism has been down in Israel, and the Lebanon war six months ago has had an effect on people who six months ago decided not to take that trip to Israel they had been planning. Most of the Christian pilgrims who visit Jerusalem make a trip to Bethlehem.

In response, Matt Middleton, a Presbyterian Mission Volunteer who is living and working in Bethlehem wrote this comment:

A privileged American tourist to the Holy Land will rarely notice the injustices found here.

The problem with checkpoints and Israel's separation barrier is not so much that they are closed down for arbitrary reasons, but that travel permits are not being granted to the vast majority of Palestinians.

"Nobody deserves this treatment. Not Palestinians. Not Israelis. Not even dogs." These words of Dr. Nuha Khoury, Dean of Dar Al-Kalima College in Bethlehem, refer to her and her mother's experience of trying to obtain permission from the Israeli Defense Force to enter Jerusalem for Christmas.

Consequently, job losses, in addition to the narrowing scope of tourism in places like Bethlehem, are squeezing the Palestinian economy to its breaking point.

According to Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb, Pastor of the Lutheran Christmas Church of Bethlehem, $3.5 billion of tourism income is generated annually in Israel/Palestine. Two percent of that enters the Palestinian economy of the West Bank.

A brief visit to the Church of the Nativity will never reveal the reality of daily Palestinian life, nor will the luxury of being able to afford an Israeli taxi disclose the waning quality of life found today in the modern ghetto of Bethlehem.

Matthew Middleton
Mission Volunteer International
Presbyterian Church (USA)
Bethlehem, Palestine

David Grossman, who lives near Jerusalem, is the author of The Yellow Wind, a report on life in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. He gave this speech at the annual memorial ceremony for Yitzhak Rabin, November 4, 2006, in the presence of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. Speaking as an Israeli "whose love for this land is tough and complicated, but nevertheless unequivocal," he calls his people face the reality of their current situation, and to change their stance toward the Palestinian people.

A major
Ghost Ranch event this summer!

July 28 - August 3, 2008

Paths toward Peace and Justice:
Spirituality, Earth-Care, and the Prophetic Word in a time of Violence

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