No doubt there are some who would read this series of posts and protest that I’m little more than a naïve U.S. citizen who was duped into becoming a mouth-piece for the Palestinian cause. People might claim that I only saw one side of the story, etc. But let me assure you that this was not the case.

This was no site-seeing tour. It was ten days of meetings with both Jewish and Palestinian citizens and government officials. One such group is simply known as ‘the Refuseniks’ – Israeli citizens who refused to serve in the military because of an unwillingness to contribute to the grievances and abuses occurring with regularity within the occupied territories. Their only agenda was peace and justice for all. Continue reading…

Recently I visited with a young soldier who had just finished his tour of duty. When he discovered that I worked in the field of peace and reconciliation he said, “Can you help me understand what the Middle East conflict is really all about?”

Imagine that – he had been trained in weaponry, in tactical strategies for waging war, how to march and carry out orders, how to kill, shipped to a very unfamiliar part of the world and given his marching orders – but, other than vague statements about ‘terrorists’ and ‘enemy combatants,’ he was never taught anything about the source of the conflict he found himself thrust into. Continue reading…

The band U2 has a popular song entitled, “Stuck in A Moment.” It’s about those times when life is so difficult, so demanding of our attention that the present moment seems inescapable. For ten days, as I walked the streets of Israel and Palestine, that song was blaring in my mind: “…stuck in a moment and you can’t get out.”

That’s where the people in that part of our world find themselves. It’s where the Jews who choose to live in the Land find themselves (and it should be noted that the majority of Jewish people do not desire to live in the Land. They willfully and happily choose to live throughout the world). It’s where the Palestinians find themselves. It’s the land where the three Abrahamic faiths (Jews, Christians, Muslims) variously offer the best and worst of their traditions, as some admirably choose to die for their spirituality and a non-negotiable belief that God is a God of peace, and others choose to kill for their religion – a religion that says the ‘other’ is an infidel and – according to God’s law – needs to be driven out or killed. Continue reading…

My life does not lack for things to do. I’m a list kinda guy by nature – and my list is long and complicated and filled with large projects each making its case for top billing. And so when the invitation came to join with a small band of unfamiliar people to invest ten days in a land as problematic as any on earth (That is to say, Israel/Palestine) I had to ask: Do I really want to do this? Can I even afford the time away from all that is calling out to me here at home?

Prior to my first trip to the Middle East a decade ago, I’d been aware of the plight of Jews and Palestinians – both locked in a struggle that all-too-often appears as one without answers and maybe even fewer reasons to hold hope for a peaceful resolution.

In a world of conflict, the Israeli/Palestinian situation seemed as deep, complex and constant as any conflict on earth. Continue reading…

I’m not much for sci-fi movies. Probably because I don’t like being scared. Nope, my ideal movie is a good comedy or perhaps an action type movie with a bit of suspense… “The Bourne Identity” movies work for me or maybe a good western like “Tombstone” or “3:10 to Yuma.”

So it’s surprising that years ago I actually willed myself to go see “Alien” starring Sigourney Weaver. To this day, that film is one of the scariest movies I’ve ever seen. For my money, it’s a classic. It has all the elements of a good sci-fi flick. There’s the deep darkness of outer space. You have powerful combat troops and high technology juxtaposed to vulnerable children including an adorable little girl named Nute who is just too cute to meet her demise at the hands/paws/claws of a slimy alien with what I imagine to be very bad breath. Continue reading…