Rockets, bullets, and checkpoints are not the final chapter
Image credit: Timon Studler
Justice and lasting peace in the Holy Land may seem a long way off today, but the faith and dedication of our Christian partners is such that they continue to strive to bring reconciliation and healing. Embrace’s Rev Su McClellan reflects on their transformative work, which provides seeds of hope the future.
The day I first set eyes on the separation barrier is one that I will never forget. Back in 2004, the village of Abu Dis near Jerusalem had been sliced in half by 30 feet of vertical concrete, stretching as far as the eye could see. The local grocery store had been cut off from the houses it served. Families and neighbours had been forced apart and looking at its wounding presence broke my heart.
The Separation Barrier.
My next stop was the Church of All Nations in the Garden of Gethsemane. It was such an appropriate place to reflect on what I’d just experienced. In that garden, Jesus faced the consequences of human sin, but it was also the place where he chose to go to the cross and transform it. Jesus took the worst possible human violence and transformed it into a bridge, reconnecting humanity with God. Sitting in the church reminded me that walls, rockets, bullets, and checkpoints are not paragraphs in the final chapter. The resurrection tells the story of healing, forgiveness, new life, and therefore new possibilities and we are all invited to write ourselves into its narrative.
Embrace has been part of the story since 1854, tackling poverty and injustice in the Middle East through the education, community, and healthcare programmes run by our Christian partners. The challenges faced by Embrace’s partners, in what is known to many as the Holy Land, are many and complex. Yet, despite these challenges they continue to show and tell the story of God’s love.
Since Israel occupied the West Bank in 1967 over a million olive trees have been destroyed as a result of settlement expansion, military zoning and settler violence. Embrace’s partners have responded to this destruction by planting thousands of replacement trees, supporting Palestinian farmers and standing up for human and equal rights. Something violent and brutal has been transformed into something beautiful and fruitful.
Embrace CEO Tim Livesey planting olive trees in Palestine.
We have supported partners in Gaza, who when faced with the destruction of last year’s war, responded by providing counselling and therapy, often through the medium of the arts, for children and young adults. In Jericho, our partners are providing leadership training for young people. The programme includes taking them on trips to discover and understand their rich Palestinian heritage - giving them reasons to stay and work for peace with justice. Hopelessness and despondency are transformed into tenacity and the courage to dream.
For many children, growing up in the shadow of the occupation leaves terrible scars both physical and emotional. Embrace’s partner Musalaha reflects the reconciling love of God by training both Palestinian and Israeli young women in the Stages of Reconciliation, Conflict Transformation and Listening. The project won’t change government policy, but it does offer the possibility of the transformation of relationships at a grass-roots level.
Musalaha reconciliation workshop.
After his resurrection, Jesus’ body still carried the scars of the violence inflicted upon him. Transformation does not hide from what has been and the Holy Land and all those who call it home will carry the scars of its history into the future, just as Christ carried his into eternity. But scar tissue is also a sign of healing, and it is for healing and hope that our partners work so diligently.
Of course, we pray for the day when justice will flow like rivers through Israel and Palestine. But until that day comes, please pray for the partners and friends of Embrace the Middle East who, in following Christ, make transformation possible.