Life in Bethlehem Today
For us, our journey into the issues of Justice and Peace in the Holy Land started with a Holy Land Pilgrimage with Della’s 5th Gospel Retreat in May 2014. Meeting Palestinian Christians and hearing their first-hand accounts of living in the shadow and oppression of the Separation Wall. This was not the cosy Bethlehem of charming cribs, Christmas trees and piped carol music but the harsh reality of a world under military occupation – rather like that of 2000 years ago?
The Amos Trust took us on the second step - https://www.amostrust.org/. The Amos Trust is rooted in the inclusive stream of Christianity that stresses justice and liberation of the oppressed, working for this through non-violence, reconciliation and peace making. The Amos trust introduced us to the Open Bethlehem campaign and through that campaign we encountered Kairos (now Sabeel Kairos).
Sabeel Kairos
In December 2009, leading Palestinian Christians under the name ‘Kairos Palestine’, launched a document called ‘A Moment of Truth: A word of Faith, Hope and Love from the Heart of Palestinian Suffering’. At Pentecost 2012, an Ecumenical gathering on Iona considered this document and issued the following statement:
“Difficult though this journey may be, we seize this moment with conviction and hope. We recognise our responsibility as followers of Jesus Christ to speak the prophetic word with courage… The mission of the Church is prophetic: to speak the Word of God courageously, honestly and lovingly in the local context and in the midst of daily events."
In May 2015, Kairos Britain issued the call to all Christians in these islands based on the Kairos Palestine document. Their document was called ‘TIME FOR ACTION: A British Response to the Kairos Palestine document.’
This really is a MUST READ for anyone wanting to understand the roots of the conflict and who is struggling to work out a truly human and Christian response to what is actually going on.
The Prophetic Voice
Last Christmas the Rev Dr Munther Isaac of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bethlehem made an impassioned plea for solidarity from the Christian Churches of the West – not to remain silent in the face of the genocide of the population of Gaza. Tragically everything he said in his Christmas sermon last year about the situation is still relevant a year later – even more so.
A VOICE THAT SPEAKS OF PEACE
Cardinal Pizzaballa of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem has also spoken out about the situation in a somewhat different way. We must speak the truth in a balanced way that does not add to the conflict. We have to be careful not to ‘dehumanise the other’. So, when we are speaking the truth, we have to respect the humanity of all as our brothers and sisters.
We also have to learn to beware of lumping people all together under a condemnation with an attitude of ‘they all think and behave like that’. Many Jews are deeply aware of the injustices suffered by the Palestinian people and stand in solidarity with them in their suffering.
Many Palestinians are also trying their best to keep loving their Jewish brothers and sisters in spite of the injustices. The Tent of Nations is a Christian Palestinian Community living out their vocation to love near Bethlehem.
Peace to all people of good will this Christmas!
Richard and Christine Watts
2024
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