Traditionally on Good Friday in the Episcopal Church countrywide the loose plate offering goes to the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem. The members of that diocese are Palestinians. Remembering that has caused me to reflect on what many of us have learned during this past Lent in our study concerning the political and therefore economic and social situation in Israel/Palestine. Alissa Wise a Jewish rabbi and a member of The Jewish Voice for Peace which is an organization of Jews who support Palestinian liberation from the rigid aparteid that now exists in the region, gives an account of a number of Palestinians living in the West Bank (Palestinian territory in theory) who have in the spirit of the so-called ‘occupy’ movement decided to board “Jewish only” buses bound for Jerusalem…shades of the civil rights movement in the U.S….Rosa Parks comes to mind.
Rabbi Wise goes on to speak of the traditional Seder meal Celebrated by Jews at the feast of the Passover which approaches as our high feast of Easter approaches. During this meal it is the responsibility of an elder to tell the story of the Exodus from slavery in Egypt to their children lest they never forget that God is first and foremost a God who values freedom, liberation from that which oppresses….a God who frees us from the indignities of the world. One would think the Israeli government would be at least familiar with such a mandate since it, liberation, is at the heart of Hebrew Scripture.
Over the last several presidential administrations there has been a lot of bluster concerning the establishment of two sovereign states for Israel and Palestine. There have even been documents accepted by both sides by some leaders favoring such a solution. Sadly, however the Israeli government still permits and encourages Jewish settlements on Palestinian land….and the Israeli government is providing military protection for these settlements that are rapidly proliferating. The government has built highways in this occupied territory meant for Jewish travel only. The map of the West Bank, the heart of a potential Palestinian state, now resembles Swiss cheese as pockets of military installations and Jewish settlements pepper the landscape….and the Palestinians in Gaza (which would also be a part of the so-called Palestinian state) are basically being starved by a horrific embargo of goods and services and utilities so that they might just throw up their hands and leave.
And yet we watch and keep silent other than superficial soundbites. The possibility of a two state solution is fading, perhaps beyond the tipping point as the Israeli government continues to ignore international law. If this situation is not resolved justly, there will never be peace in the Middle East, as this situation has far reaching ramifications beyond Israel/Palestine…and that means, since we the U.S. have so many interests in the Middle East…It means that we will in the future be continually at war. Where are the statesmen and women…where are the ones with passion on the wings of imagination who can bring such a seemingly intractable situation to resolution. President Carter some thirty five years ago brokered a peace accord between Egypt and Israel, a peace accord many felt would be impossible. I still remember Carter, Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat shaking hands almost in tears. What is the difference between then and now.
The divided city of Jerusalem is a symbol of the persistent injustice of the region…but Jerusalem in the lore of Islam, and Judaism, and Christianity is also a symbol of hope and new life…This Holy Week let us pray that the Holy Land truly becomes holy…Pray for the peace of Jerusalem…may those who love her prosper in security.
