Day 5 (July 6) continued... A glimpse into the conflict

Lemonade with mint at Jerusalem Hotel

After a full morning with the UN, we had lunch at the Jerusalem Hotel – maklube, amazing lemonade with mint, and baklava for dessert. So delicious!

That afternoon, we had our first real introduction to reflecting on the conflict through a Christian lens with Sabeel's “Contemporary Way of the Cross.” You’ll recall, from a few posts ago, that we had walked the Way of the Cross in Jerusalem's Old City – the journey surrounding the events of Good Friday – the day before. Based on that, and as part of their mission to “bring alive the message of Christ in the historic context and daily suffering experienced by our Palestinian community,” Sabeel created this liturgical journey along the Palestinian Via Dolorosa:

“This ‘Contemporary Way of the Cross’ has been developed as an act of worship rooted in the land where Jesus was born, lived and died, linking the original events of Good Friday with the continuing suffering of the occupied people who live in that land today. It seeks to help others to understand something of the events which have shaped this troubled place over the last century and draw attention to the very real and constant suffering of the Palestinian people. It strives to provide an honest account of the situation, and simply asks those who take part in this act of worship to listen, to pray for us and to pray with us as we look towards a just, comprehensive and enduring peace.”

The stations of the Contemporary Way of the Cross reflect those of the traditional Via Dolorosa:

	Traditional Stations	Sabeel's Contemporary Stations
The First Station	Jesus is condemned to die	The Nakba of 1948
The Second Station	Jesus carries his cross	Refugees
The Third Station	Jesus falls the first time	1967 Occupation
The Fourth Station	Jesus meets his mother	Settlements
The Fifth Station	Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus carry his cross	Stress and humiliation
The Sixth Station	Veronica wipes Jesus’ face	Solidarity
The Seventh Station	Jesus falls the second time	Home Demolitions
The Eighth Station	Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem	Women against the Occupation
The Ninth Station	Jesus falls the third time	Checkpoints
The Tenth Station	Jesus is stripped	Bureaucratic Oppression
The Eleventh Station	Jesus is nailed to the cross	Gaza
The Twelfth Station	Jesus dies on the cross	The Wall
The Thirteenth Station	Jesus is taken down from the cross	The Loss of Jerusalem
The Fourteenth Station	Jesus is laid in the tomb and after the third day is raised from the dead	What will the fourteenth station be?

Lifta

We did not do all of the stations, as we didn't have time. Nora Carmi, a former Sabeel staff person (who visited Canada earlier this year and spoke to the PCC's General Assembly) led us in our journey around Jerusalem. We visited a depopulated village to reflect on the Nakba, we saw a refugee camp, settlements and the wall, we reflected on how those who call Jerusalem home are living in Good Friday times, we visited a hospital run by the Lutheran World Federation that stands in solidarity with Palestinians by providing them with health services, and we met a woman who lives in Silwan, a mostly Arab neighbourhood in Jerusalem with increasing numbers of Israeli settlers, developments and archaelogical digs. At each station, we used the resource prepared by Sabeel to share a scripture reading, a reflection or testimony about that particular challenge facing the Palestinians, a prayer, and sometimes a song.

Shafat refugee camp

the wall

Silwan (the black tarp at the bottom is an archeological dig)

Shafat refugee camp

It was a very moving afternoon - the silent ruins of Lifta, the chaos of a refugee camp, the suburb-like uniformity of the settlements, the starkness of the wall. Seeing the challenges in providing health care to the Palestinian population. Hearing about the fear-filled sleepless nights of those who live in homes wanted by Israel, and about the reasons that Israel provides for taking those homes - nature reserves and archaeology. As one person said, "It's Jerusalem! If you start to dig, you will find something." But do we really prioritize historic stones over living people?

With much on our minds and hearts, we left Jerusalem for Bethlehem. This meant crossing a checkpoint at the wall. On being so close to the wall, I wrote in my journal, "It is pretty gross. V big and intimidating." Getting through the checkpoint in our bus took about 30 seconds. Upon entering the West Bank, I got my first glimpse of the graffiti on the Palestinian side of the wall and of many proud Palestinian flags.

Dinner at our hotel in Bethlehem, a quick email home (thank goodness for wifi) and then to bed. There had already been so much to absorb - and I knew that the trip was really just beginning.

God of mercy and compassion, of grace and reconciliation,
Pour out your power upon all your children in the Middle East.
Let hatred be turned to love, fear to trust, despair to hope,
oppression to freedom, occupation to liberation,
that violent encounters may be replaced by loving embraces,
and peace and justice could be experienced by all. Amen.
- Rev. Said Ailabouni