Wednesday, 17 October  ~ Debby Owen

Today was a very full day and a day full of juxtapositions. We had to go through an Israeli checkpoint to reach the path Jesus took on Palm Sunday.

Women praying at Al Aqsa

We had the incredible privilege of visiting the Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in the Muslim world, which sits meters from the Western or Wailing Wall, where Jews come to offer their special prayers.

Women praying – Western Wall

And we walked the Via Dolorosa, the most mournful walk in the Christian world, while surrounded by the colorful wares and fragrant spices of assertive merchants trying to tempt us to stop and spend. Yet this kaleidoscope of the sacred and holy sites of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity enriches and nourishes us in our own faith and reaffirms our common humanity.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

I was struck by the group of women praying in the mosque together and minutes later seeing the crowd of women praying at the Western Wall, while later in the afternoon watching women light candles in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, knowing they were most likely offering up the same prayers for their loved ones and for peace. Jerusalem, more than any place on earth, diminishes our differences and illuminates our similarities and demonstrates that we are all God’s people.

Tuesday, 16 Oct ~ Bev Henkel

Hebron, walking tour, visit to Ibrahami  Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs.  Then time with Kody, Anna and Alice – please visit Christian Peacemaker Team Palestine, and especially the CPT Hebron page for more information.

CPT roof overlooking Hebron

The afternoon was at Tent of Nations, Nassar family farm near Bethlehem, for lunch and a tour.  Click here – www.tentofnations.org – for the Tent of Nations website, and learn about the farm’s history and the many opportunities for volunteers. The olive harvest starts next week!

A full day with much information, many ways that International presence is important, and relationships deepened and begun.  I invite you to Come and See.

Monday, 15 October ~ Carol Garwood

Angel graffiti, a Christmas gift from Banksy to Bethlehem

Persistence…..Hope…..Faith…..Peace…..
These were all words that came to my mind this evening after experiencing only a “glimpse” of the reality that is every day life for Palestinians living in the Occupied West Bank.

After viewing the graffiti art painted on the Apartheid Wall, learning about the services provided by the Wi’Am Center to the community to help them in dealing with a myriad of stressors in their daily lives, and walking the streets of the Aida Refugee Camp, I can definitely see the love that the Palestinian people have for each other, their traditions, and the land that they have lived on for centuries.

The people that I have met are committed to non-violent resistance as they struggle for both their freedom and their human dignity. I am committed to their cause and will ever raise my voice in support of their non-violent strategies. My prayer is that more people in our world will do the same.

Inshallah – Salaam (God willing – Peace)