Some days, peace in the Middle East seems like a fantasy. We tell ourselves it’s possible, hope for it, pray for it, and yet we look around and don’t see anything that resembles coexistence in harmony.
Living in Israel for a year, I was excited to learn more about the complications of this region, and to learn more about what kinds of peace are possible. Unfortunately, I’m learning more and more about how easy it is for animosity and hatred to fester, and how hard it is to have anything that resembles lasting calm within the walls of the city.
This week, Jewish Israelis continued to enjoy the season of celebration that is this time of year. As Sukkot was wrapping up and preparations for Simchat Torah were coming to an end, horror struck. Two separate stabbings occurred in or near the Old City of Jerusalem, leaving two dead. In both cases, Israelis were killed at the hands of Palestinian extremists, adding to a mountain of tension that has come boiling up in recent weeks, seemingly culminating at a time that is supposed to be reserved for joy and celebration.
To make matters worse, a few days ago, a Jewish couple was killed in front of their four young children by Palestinians. A few hours after the incident, Hamas spokesman Husam Badran tweeted “Congratulations heroic operation carried out by elements in the West Bank, killing two settlers and wounding others…” The anger burns inside me as I read this. A man and woman were murdered in front of their own children, and leaders are praising the action? That is the lowest form of humanity. The fact that Palestinians choose to allow Hamas to represent them in any way is indicative of the willingness to find peace.
I know that Israel is not blameless. I know that there are injustices and oppression going on all over the country, and that hatred is flowing in overwhelming quantities in both directions. But we can’t keep track of the score anymore. We can’t keep trying to figure out who started it, who’s turn it is to be angry, who is the one responsible for breaking the stalemate. Peace is only possible if two different parties are willing to come together and invest just a little bit of trust in one another in the hopes of bringing one another toward a better future together. That trust simply doesn’t exist right now, as much as we may want it to, and any hopes for peace in the future is contingent not on one side but BOTH sides being willing to come to the table.
The saddest part of all this is that the Jews and Palestinians are both faith-based communities. These are people who identify so strongly with their beliefs, who have foundations in God and scripture, who create communities and cultures based on a love and respect for what is in someone’s heart. How can we live in a world where faith brings some together but drives us to hate others? How can our faith be genuine when we use it as an excuse for why we persecute, the way we justify killing one another?
I live in Jerusalem. I learn about my people and my faith in Jerusalem only a few miles away from the Old City. I can feel the tension going on around me, and can see the way the entire city walks around with heavy hearts and heavy minds. How can we allow this to continue? How can we have such little faith in one another, and continuously allow the country we all work so hard to create be consumed by it’s own hatred?
I don’t have answers to these questions. I don’t know what the future holds for these two peoples, struggling so hard to share this space. All I know is that what currently exists is not acceptable. I know that something has to change. I continue to search for the day that we find a way to change it without continuing to kill one another.
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