Newsletter:
Vol. 5. Iss. 1
8 October2003
A Hebrew/Christian View
The Rev. Milt Gould
My reflections on our August 2003 Fact Finding Mission to Jordan, the West Bank and Israel and how I perceived people, experiences, comments and the scene on the ground are viewed through the multifaceted prism of my own identity as a Hebrew Christian/Messianic Jew, United Methodist Pastor, a Zionist, husband, parent and grandparent. In spite of these defects I will seek to be as objective as I can in my reflections.
Our team spent 10 days together in a very emotionally, politically, racially, religiously charged atmosphere. As a result I am left with several impressions which stand out in my mind:
One, the Middle East is drowning in its own paranoia, fear, anger, vengeance and revenge.
Second, as a result fundamentalists on both sides of the green line justify the use of violence, vengeance and revenge as their primary problem solving technique. However, all of such methods are ultimately found to be impotent.
Third, Palestinian Christians seem (to me) to be best equipped to deal with the hate, fear, hostility. Their faith in God has sustained them through the years, helps to keep them from resorting to violence and instills in them an enduring love for their enemy and an abiding hope for the future.
Four, it is extremely difficult to maintain ones objectivity "on the ground". Depending on ones predisposition it becomes very easy to empathize with one side while getting caught up in anger toward the other.
Five, laying aside religious, cultural and other differences there needs to be more people on both sides of the green line who are willing to demonstrate to their neighbors that it is possible to live together in peace. Human rights activists, political and religious leadership is much needed. But there need to be more individuals and groups willing to take the time and energy to demonstrate a variety of ways of living together peacefully.
The Rev. Milt Gould is a United Methodist pastor from Warsaw, IN. The August fact finding mission was his second with S.B.S.
