Recognizing Nakba, Reaching Peace!

Dear Friend of Palestinians and Israelis (FPI), Thank you for your prayers for our second session on Christian Zionism at our Church last Sunday. There were 20 who discussed several papers on the effect this movement has on Palestinian aspirations for their heritage. I'm enclosing a piece from Hanan Ashrawi, a Palestinian Christian, educated in the US, and a powerful spokesperson for the Palestinian narrative, so woefully missing in the US. Today is Nakba Day, May 15, a day that begain the planned dispossession of 700,000 Palestinians, to make way for the newly declared independent State of Israel, an ethnic cleansing that continues to this day. Healing. Truth, facing up to realities on the ground, sharing stories of being disinherited, and working toward making the systemic changes that need to occur. That is the agenda immediately ahead. Thank God that the 2,000 prisoners gained a measure of relief from the authorities, to end their hunger strike. May this signal a new willingness to make the changes necessary to start building trust again between two peoples. JRK Recognizing Nakba, Reaching Peace Hanan Ashrawi Haaretz (Opinion) May 15, 2012 - 12:00am http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/recognizing-nakba-reaching-peace-1.430637 [1] May is the cruelest month despite the promise of spring. It carries the bitter memories of ongoing loss and injustice for a nation, my nation. Every year, Palestinians mark Al-Nakba, or the Catastrophe, of 1948, to remember how our vibrant society was physically and politically crushed by violence and forced expulsion. It was not a natural disaster. Indeed, we have no doubt that itwasa detailed plan of systematic destruction carried out with chilling efficiency. It was the biggest assault and threat Palestinian heritage has ever endured and the beginning of a deliberate effort to suppress the Palestinian narrative. For many Israelis, recognizing what happened back in 1948 is a painful process. The slogan “Your independence is our Nakba”, which is on display in many Palestinian cities is indeed correct. Many Israeli historians have researched and written about this dark era, demonstrating that Palestine was a land with a vibrant society and rich culture. These brave historians ended decades of denial about Palestinian society and suffering. By 1948, Palestine was one of the most developed Arab societies, boasting one of the healthiest economies under the British mandate and a high school enrolment rate, second only to Lebanon. Commerce, the arts, literature, music, and other cultural aspects of life were thriving in Palestine. We remember that between 1911 and 1948, Palestine had no less than 161 newspapers, magazines and other regular publications, including the pioneer “Falastin” newspaper, published in Jaffa by Issa al-Issa. Dozens of bookstores across the country selling hundreds of Palestinian and internationally-authored books could hardly keep up with the demand. Books like “The Arab Woman and the Palestine Problem” by Matiel Moghannam, a feminist leader, and George Antonious’ “The Arab Awakening”, were highly popular in Palestine, England, the US, and beyond. Palestine had a strong women’s movement as early as the 1920’s. Women excelled in many fields, including education, journalism, and political activism. Women activists were among the first to lobby for Palestinian self-determination at the beginning of the British Mandate. Palestinian dedication to education is deeply rooted in our culture. By 1914, there were 379 private schools in Palestine, including the country’s first girls’ school, Al Moscobiye, in Beit Jala, founded in 1858 as the first school for girls in Palestine, and the Friends School, founded by the Quakers in 1869, which continues to be among the most advanced education institutions in Palestine. In the area of arts, music, and drama, Palestinian creativity was boundless, inspiring artists around the region. Composers like Yehya Al-Lababidi collaborated with famous Arab singers of the time, like Farid Al-Atrach. Other singers like the legendary Um Kalthoum and Mohamad Abdel Wahab regularly performed to Palestinian audiences in Haifa, Jaffa, and Jerusalem. Our cinemas, from Gaza to Akka, were showing the latest films of the time. Al-Nakba represents the abrupt and unnatural disruption of these accomplishments and signaled the beginning of a culture of exile and dispossession. In being forcibly expelled from their homes, Palestinians lost their properties, personal history, and cultural assets. This included thousands of books. In West Jerusalem alone, 30,000 books were “collected” from Palestinian houses, as well as around 50,000 other books from homes in Jaffa, Haifa, Tiberias and Nazareth. Khalil Sakakini was one of those people who lost his entire library. A number of his books can be found today in the National Library of Israel, marked ‘AP’, meaning “Abandoned Property.” Al-Nakba is therefore not merely a historical date to be commemorated. It is the collective memory of Palestinians, which shapes their identity as a people. Al-Nakba is not a distant memory but a painful reality that continues to fester, as the rights of refugees continue to be denied and the inalienable rights of our nation remain unfulfilled. It is time to recognize that Al-Nakba is as real for Palestinians as it should be for Israelis. It is an inescapable story of loss, dispossession and a great historic injustice that targeted the most precious characteristic of any people: its identity. But Al-Nakba to Palestinians is not about defeat. Stripping the Palestinian people of their national and cultural symbols, as well as stunting the growth of Palestinian cultural life was a merciless crime, no doubt. But our people have persevered, rebuilding, time and again, their heritage of cultural and educational excellence. There have been many new challenges and setbacks since Al-Nakba, especially the military occupation that began in 1967 and its oppressive policies targeting culture and education. But Palestinians kept marching forward, holding on to the proud memories of excellence and building new ones. For peace to prevail, for two states to live side by side, for a future of security and prosperity to begin in the region, Israel should not be afraid to recognize Al-Nakba and learn the lessons of its history. Israel must come to recognize its historic accountability in creating Al-Nakba for neither denial nor distortion can serve the cause of peace. Genuine recognition is a sine qua non for the process of historical redemption. Peace is a phase of healing that must be established on truth, justice, transparency, and equality. There is no other formula. By recognizing our historical narrative and suffering, Israel will be embarking on a true journey for a just and comprehensive peace. -- John & Sharon jandskleinheksel@gmail.com

Demolishing a Palestinian Cistern

Dear Friend, This coming Sunday, an Adult Class at Christ Memorial will continue to discuss "Christian" Zionism (Rm 169, Adult Ed wing, 10:15-11:15 a.m., corner 24th and Grafschaap Road). When Xn Z'ism holds sway in US policy making, it permits the kind of injustice described below. We need to talk about this and help our US Congress to understand we will no longer "support" this kind of action on the part of our friends. One of my friends went on a CPT (Christian Peacemaker Team) mission to Hebron and is on their mailing list. A few days ago, he sent me this story. This is what we are talking about. JRK AL-KHALIL (HEBRON): Israeli military demolishes cistern in Beqa’a Valley At 8:30 on the morning of 2 May 2012, the team received a call from a friend in the Beqa’a valley to inform the Christian Peacemaker Team in Hebron the Israeli military was destroying his cousin’s reservoir. Two CPTers went to the valley. Upon arriving, they saw two army vehicles, two intelligence service vehicles, and a power shovel digging up the ground on the hill below the friend’s house and filling dump trucks with this material. The friend told them to follow the truck. Israeli soldiers in a vehicle tried to stop them but they continued. Soon they could hear the sound of digging and destruction. Border police stopped them before they could reach the reservoir. They asked the CPTers what they were doing there and told them that they could not go any further because the soldiers were working and did not want their work interrupted. A CPTer replied that they were there to document what the soldiers was doing and the damage they were causing. The border police officer thanked them and told them that if they wanted to take photos they could go onto the roof of the nearest Palestinian home. On the roof, they had a good view of the devastation. A jackhammer was laying waste to two of the concrete walls around the reservoir, built to collect rainwater. Trucks were bringing earth from the friend’s house and depositing it near the reservoir, and an earth-mover was pushing it into the water. Later, over coffee the family reported that the reservoir had been destroyed two years before. Without this water supply the family has no means of irrigating their crops. A journalist informed CPT that a commander of the soldiers had told him that he would be happy when the Beqa’a Valley was a desert. Wednesday, 2 May was the second day in row in which the team documented the demolition of a cistern by the Israeli military. ---------------------------------------------- MISSION: Christian Peacemaker Teams: Building partnerships to transform violence and oppression. VISION: A world of communities that together embrace the diversity of the human family and live justly and peaceably with all creation.

United Methodists Urge Boycott of Certain Israelis Products

Dear Friend, Thank you for your prayers for our congregation's classes on Kairos Palestine. We concluded last Sunday but many have asked for follow up work with "Christian" Zionism, which will begin this Sunday. (Rm 169, viewing WITH GOD ON OUR SIDE, and discussion) Last Sunday's class included a brief statement by retired RCA General Secretary the Rev. Ed Mulder, who gave a brief history of the General Synod (RCA) calling for divesting from companies profiting from the South African Apartheid government. Although the United Methodists voted against divesting from Caterpillar, Hewlett Packard and Motorola, they did go on record calling for a boycott of Israeli products generated on (stolen) land in the West Bank. I'm including the opening paragraphs from James Wall weekly blog, giving us the story. For the complete blog go to: http://wallwritings.me/2012/05/03/methodists-boycott-settlement-products/ Methodists Boycott Settlement Products by James M. Wall A strong majority of lay and clerical delegates to the United Methodist General Conference called this week for a boycott of Israeli companies operating in Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). The resolution denounces the Israeli occupation and the settlements in a sweeping indictment. It calls for “all nations to prohibit the import of products made by companies in Israeli settlements on Palestinian land.” That was not an easy vote. It also was an important victory for anti-occupation forces in Tampa since it calls attention to one of three actions in the growing Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement that Palestinians have adopted as a non-violent way to attack the occupation. The vote on a resolution calling for the UMC to divest its pension funds from three US Corporations, Caterpillar, Hewlett Packard and Motorola Systems, was brought to the floor on Wednesday afternoon. That resolution was a long shot from the outset. It lost after a series of votes that ended in a final 685 to 246 decision that the UMC would continue to finance the occupation. One loss and one victory will prepare the United Methodist Church to take the next step in ending United Methodist support for the occupation. Like the segregated church it was until 1964, the United Methodist church can change. -- John www.friendsofpalestiniansandisraelis.blogspot.com

Bishop Tutu's Letter supporting UMs

Here is the letter from Archbishop Tutu (with thanks to the Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the PCUSA for bringing it to our attention). http://www.rabbisletter.org/endorsement-by-south-african-archbishop-demond-tutu/ Endorsement by South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu 26 April 2012 Dear Friends of the United Methodist Church, The situation in Israel and Palestine pains me greatly since it is the place where God formed a very particular relationship with a particular group of people; Hebrews who were oppressed as slaves in another land. As time moved on, this people disobeyed God and time and time again the prophets had to call them back to their deepest values. The Jewish Holocaust, engineered and implemented primarily by Europeans, gave some ideologues within the Jewish and Christian community an excuse to implement plans that were in the making for at least 50 years, under the rubric of exceptional Jewish security. In this way began the immense oppression of the Palestinian people, who were not at all involved in the Holocaust. Not only is this group of people being oppressed more than the apartheid ideologues could ever dream about in South Africa, their very identity and history are being denied and obfuscated. What is worse, is that Europe and the USA are refusing to take responsibility for their actions with regard to both the Holocaust and the over-empowering of the Israelis, their disregard for the international conventions and regulatory framework of the nuclear industry and their continued oppression of the Palestinian people. But God, who is the same yesterday, today and forever, neither slumbers nor sleeps. Prophetic voices have been calling this empowered people who were once oppressed and killed, to their deepest values of justice and compassion, but they have refused to listen even to the most reasonable voices. The human community cannot be silent in the face of the gross injustice being meted out to the people of Palestine. If international courts and governments refuse to deal with this matter, we in the churches and in the rest of civil society really have no choice but to act in small ways and big ways. God is busy doing a new thing. And God is using all of us to be partners with him. Both the Israelis and the Palestinians have to be liberated, but at this stage the greater onus is on the Israelis since they are the ones who are in power, economically, politically and militarily. We have to think about ways that will allow them to reflect deeply on what it is that they are doing and bring them back from the brink, not out of spite or revenge, but because we love them deeply. I therefore wholeheartedly support your action to disinvest from companies who benefit from the Occupation of Palestine. This is a moral position that I have no choice but to support, especially since I know of the effect that Boycotts, Disinvestment and Sanctions had on the apartheid regime in South Africa. May God bless your conference as you deliberate on this matter, and I pray that your decision will reflect the best values of the human family as we stand in solidarity with the oppressed. God bless you. Archbishop-Emeritus Desmond Tutu Cape Town, South Africa. At this Sunday's class, I've asked the Rev. Ed Mulder, retired General Secretary of the Reformed Church in America, to share with the class how the RCA travelled down the road of divestment and sanctions in the 1980's to bring the South African government to their senses and roll back the Apartheid system that had been disenfranchising the indigenous people of the land. It seems clear that the RCA will not be in the lead in this divestment fight, but you will be on the edge of your seat as you listen to the opposition the RCA faced in getting this through the General Synod of the RCA. Sincerely yours, JRK

Christians Get Their Story Out to the World

Dear Friend of Palestinians and Israelis, Passions are being stirred. I knew about it but failed to urge my class to see CBS run a segment on 60 Minutes last Sunday night on CHRISTIANS IN THE HOLY LAND. (We were running late and I didn't check my "to do" list). Many of you have seen it. Israel's attempts (through her Ambassador Oren) to squelch the story of how Palestinian Christians are faring in Isr/Pal failed. Here is the link for you to listen to and see the story. http://www.cbs.com/primetime/60_minutes/video/?pid=KC_VQD_ijs7ub6AoWFWbBNlnmbM3zkkD&vs=Default&play= (This is the whole 42 minute program. The relevant segment is the second of the three stories). Christians in Isr/Pal have spoken out in the KAIROS PALESTINE document we are studying. Sixty copies were gobbled up by persons coming to the class April 15 and 22. This Sunday we will discuss "WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?" (10:15, the Chapel). As you may know, the Presbyterians and the United Methodists will be considering resolutions urging their Board of Pensions to divest from companies that are profiting from the Occupation. Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) has published a letter sent to the United Methodists by a group of Rabbis, Cantors and Rabbinic students in support of these actions. Here are the last two paragraphs of the letter from the Rabbis: To advocate for an end to an unjust policy is not anti-Semitic. To criticize Israel is not anti-Semitic. To invest your own resources in corporations which pursue your vision of a just and peaceful world, and to withdraw your resources from those which contradict this vision, is not anti-Semitic. There is a terrible history of actual anti-Semitism perpetrated by Christians at different times throughout the millennia and conscientious Christians today do bear a burden of conscience on that account. We can understand that, with your commitment to paths of peace and justice, it must be terribly painful and inhibiting to be accused of anti-Semitism. In fact, many of us in the Jewish community recognize that the continuing occupation of Palestine itself presents a great danger to the safety of the Jewish people, not to mention oppressing our spirits and diminishing our honor in the world community. We appreciate the solidarity of people of conscience in pursuing conscientious nonviolent strategies, such as phased selective divestment, to end the occupation. [signed by 26 rabbis, a cantor and rabbinic students. Read the whole letter at www.rabbisletter.org] Today, I (JRK again) received a copy of a letter to the United Methodists from Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the hopeful Christian who helped turn the tide against the Apartheid government in South Africa. He writes the letter to SUPPORT the Rabbis urging divestment. In clear and compelling words, he urges United Methodists (and other churches) to support the letter written by the Rabbis.

There Can Be No Doubt

Thank you for your prayers for the Isr/Pal Adult class at Christ Memorial, finishing up this coming Sunday (10:15 in The Chapel). Last week, friend Lowey Dickason gave a report on her recent Christian Peacemaker Team stint in Isr/Pal with personal anecdotes. Habeeb Awad spoke about being a Palestinian in the US and the inane questions posed to him as a college student at one of our Reformed Church schools. We are trying to listen to the claims of both sides. This Sunday we will discuss "Where Do We Go From Here?", a variety of actions that will include reflections from Rev. Ed Mulder, head of the RCA when the Gen. Synod went on record supporting divestment from companies doing business in S. Africa at the height of the Apartheid administration of our Reformed church cousin Mr. de Klerk. We are listening to the call for help from Palestinian Christians, contained in KAIROS PALESTINE, inspiring a Kairos USA movement that is taking off later this year. One of the sticking points to further negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians is the insistence by the Netanyahu government on expanding its colonization of Palestinian land in the "West Bank", which demonstrates beyond any doubt that Israel has NO INTENTION of stopping the establishment and expansion of settlements on land that belongs (by international consensus) to the Palestinians. Friends, this is a serious matter and calls for serious nonviolent responses. Martin Luther King Jr called for the dismantling of the system of "segregation" in the US and asked his friends to boycott buses and businesses that engaged in discriminatory practices. There were some in his movement that were "violent" but it did not dissuade him from taking nonviolent action himself and responsible followers. Even though he was assassinated, the Civil Rights Act came into being and blacks became more enfranchised than ever before. This was a good thing. Let's allow for the fact that Prime Minister Netanyahu has to keep his settler wing coalition from falling. But it is the settler mentality that is driving Israeli politics now and outside pressure must be applied for any substantial changes to come about. We cannot expect the US government to initiate this action. Nor the Congress, completely in the thrall of the Israeli lobby. If it is to happen, it must come from Christians and Muslims who let their pocket books do the talking. Truly yours, JRK Israel legalizes West Bank settler outposts Amy Teibel Associated Press April 24, 2012 - 12:00am http://www.statesman.com/news/nation/israel-legalizes-west-bank-settler-outposts... JERUSALEM — Israel legalized three unsanctioned West Bank settler outposts and was trying to save another on Tuesday, infuriating the Palestinians as the chief American Mideast envoy was in the region laboring to revive peace efforts. The decision fueled suspicions that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hardline coalition would try to legalize as many rogue settlement sites as possible to cement Israel's hold on occupied land the Palestinians claim for a state. Netanyahu faces stiff pressure from pro-settler hardliners within his own coalition to fend off legal challenges to the unauthorized construction. Some hardliners have even warned that the coalition, which until now has been remarkably stable, could unravel over the issue. Palestinians claim all of the West Bank and east Jerusalem as the core of their hoped-for state, and see all Israeli settlement as illegal encroachment on those lands. They have refused to restart peace talks until construction halts. "We call upon the Israeli government to immediately stop all unilateral acts," said senior Palestinian official Nabil Abu Rdeneh. "Netanyahu is pushing things into deadlock once again." A string of Israeli governments have pledged not to build any new settlements. But critics say the settler movement, with quiet support from the government, has used the outposts to grab more West Bank land. Dozens of clusters of houses or mobile homes dot the West Bank, in addition to more than 120 authorized settlements. Netanyahu says the issue of settlements should be resolved through peace talks, which broke down more than three years ago over the settlement issue. Israel began settling the West Bank and east Jerusalem immediately after capturing them in the 1967 Mideast war, and 500,000 Jews now live there. The international community widely condemns the construction. The Israeli announcement came as U.S. envoy David Hale was in the region, on a new mission to restart negotiations.

I Shall Not Hate!

Dear Friend,

One ot the last things I did before leaving TX for Holland, MI, USA, was to read Izzeldin Abuelaish's book, I SHALL NOT HATE.

Three of his daughters were killed during the Gaza war (late 2008, early 2009).

Here is a follow up story about his ongoing efforts to build walls instead of bricks between the two peoples. Click on the link to get the complete story.

The class at Christ Memorial Church in Holland (on the Kairos Palestine document) got off to a good start last Sunday. The struggle for mutual respect for each other's narrative has personal and systemic dimensions. We are allowing for both in the class. We are totally perplexed by the tragedies of the conflict and prayerfully seek resolution, mutual vulnerability and a softening of hard-headed and hard-hearted disdain for each "Other". Love for "God" and "Each Other" is being severely tested. John Kleinheksel Sr




'Gaza Doctor' Builds New Life in Toronto

Nathan Guttman
The Jewish Daily Forward
April 17, 2012 - 12:00am
http://forward.com/articles/154730/gaza-doctor-builds-new-life-in-toronto/



Toronto — The photo leaning on Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s office window almost blocks the view of the Toronto skyline. It shows his three daughters, Mayar, Aya and Bessan Abuelaish, sitting on the beach in Gaza, writing their names in the sand.

Closer to his desk, pinned to the wall, is the recent fourth-grade math test of Abuelaish’s youngest son, Abdullah, taken at his school in Toronto. The grade: A+.

Between the memories of the three daughters he lost to an Israeli shelling of his home in Gaza during the 2008-2009 conflict and his commitment to the family’s five remaining children, Abuelaish is trying to rebuild his life far away from Gaza.

He says he seeks to make sense of the tragedy by devoting his life to promoting peace and nonviolence. Guiding the way is a quote by Mahatma Gandhi hanging on the wall in his small office at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health. The quote reads, “An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.”

“I owe it to my daughters,” Abuelaish said in an interview with the Forward. “I believe that one day I will meet them and they’ll ask: ‘What did you do for us? Did you forget us, or did you continue giving hope, sending a humanitarian message?’”

His eyes tearing up, Abuelaish continued: “I want to tell them: ‘Rest in peace. I will do everything I can for your souls. I’ll try harder than before.’”

When Abuelaish vows to “try harder,” he means using his remarkable personal tragedy to advocate for a peaceful relationship between Israelis and Palestinians. His book, “I Shall Not Hate: A Doctor’s Journey on the Road to Peace and Human Dignity,” was published last year. Abuelaish is now active in raising funds for Daughters for Life, the foundation that he set up to help girls and women in the Middle East.

Abuelaish’s story came to symbolize the tragic reality of Palestinians and Israelis locked in a decades-long bloody conflict. On January 16, 2008, in the last days of the monthlong conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, an Israeli shell hit the Abuelaish home. Bessan Abuelaish, 20, and her teenage sisters, Mayar, 15, and Aya, 13, were all killed on the spot.

The Israeli public learned of the horror in real time, as Abuelaish described the attack to an Israeli reporter on live TV.

As the reporter, Shlomi Eldar, held up his cell phone to the microphone, the crying voice of Abuelaish standing by the rubble of his Gaza home came in clear: “My daughters, oh my God, my daughters.”