I’m writing this from the balcony of another hotel in Israel. This time in Jerusalem. It’s early morning and church bells were just echoing nearby. I kind of expect to see Maria from the Sound of Music scurrying by below me – late to morning mass. But here she’d be passing Imams and Rabbis as she ran. A tad different than Salzburg.
My times here in the Middle East are always ones of competing images.
Yesterday morning we spent time in Nazareth, where Jesus grew up. I try to picture him running the hills of pine and cypress trees and working by His father, the carpenter. In the afternoon we were in Galilee, where Jesus fed crowds, and healed and preached on the Mount of Beatitudes. He walked on the water and calmed the same.
And Jesus walks alongside me with the command that often seems impossible, “Be still and know that I am God.”
Alongside these visual reminders of Jesus’ time on earth are the overwhelming images of a land divided, a land in conflict – unable, seemingly, to get along. Israelis and Palestinians. Christians, Muslims, Jews. Some think supporting the state of Israel means hating Arabs. Others think that those who want to talk about the plight of Palestinians must hate Israel. Continue reading
