A Day of Sorrow, Hope and Challenge
By Georgina Dietz
On Sunday, January 18th our day was filled with sorrow, hope and challenge.
Two of the most impactful memories and images for me during our delegation’s trip came from that day. We started the morning with a bus trip to the village of Qualandiya, stopping and getting off the bus in a neighborhood filled with the shocking evidence of ongoing devastation. The first heart-wrenching image was the pile of rubble, including a child’s stroller, which once was someone’s beloved home. The Israeli government had ordered its demolition and the owners had no choice but to abandon it. And all that remained was the large pile of debris from the home’s destruction.
The house next to it was also a pile of rubble, and the people in the house across the street had also received notice that their home would soon be demolished.
Can you imagine? Living day to day in an occupied land, and never knowing if or when you would have to uproot your family, leave your community, and lose the home where you and your family had built a life? Only to see it later as a pile of destruction on the street where you had lived.
I felt sick hearing the stories of this community and this was only one example, among many, of people living in uncertainty under the constant threat of an occupying force.
The other image I keep thinking about shows where a road from this neighborhood used to provide access for those in the community to drive to Jerusalem. But now - it’s only a Dead End. Full Stop. And the huge wall of separation - caging people in - prevents free movement.
We also saw checkpoints, fences with barbed wire, and metal gates guarded by IOF (Israel Occupying Force) soldiers. And the ominous continuation of the separation wall as we continued our journey on the bus day after day. I had heard the description of this “open air prison” before I came to the West Bank. And now I have witnessed it with my own eyes. Lord have mercy and help us work for justice in the land.
Our journey continued that day by attending church at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hope in Ramallah. We heard Pastor Munther Isaac speak and were blessed by gathering with other Palestinian Christians in the Communion Service. It was another time of seeing the “sumud” of those who were continuing to stand firm, recommitting themselves to their values, and hoping in God while living under an oppressive Apartheid system.
After the church service we met with Pastor Isaac and he told us how the mother of the new Lutheran bishop had been humiliated by an IOF soldier and prevented from entering Jerusalem for the installation ceremony of her son, even after she had been issued a special permit to do so. She finally was able to attend after people at the ceremony called the government to intervene. This type of thing is common. Permits are hard to come by and even with a permit someone can be denied entry through a checkpoint at the whim of a soldier on duty.
Pastor Munther Isaac preaching at Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hope in Ramallah
Pastor Isaac urged us to “go and tell” others what we have witnessed, to speak about the reality of the Apartheid system, the settler colonial project and increased settler violence, the erasing of Palestinian communities, and how the ideology of Christian Zionism supports and condones this injustice and systemic oppression.
After meeting with Pastor Isaac we heard from Budour Hassan, a researcher for Amnesty International and a human rights advocate. She reiterated, as others we heard, how the Genocide in Gaza and the Apartheid system of Israeli occupation are clear violations of international law. Following our discussion with her we heard from Morgan Cooper, founder of Handmade Palestine, an online fair trade store. She told us her story of struggle and troubles at border crossings and checkpoints and also gave us a chance to support Palestinian artisans by buying some of the handmade creations that she brought to the meeting. Visit her website here.
As I journeyed through this day, I was reminded of one of the first books I read about the Apartheid system in Palestine a few years ago: “The Other Side of the Wall” by Pastor Isaac. It opened my eyes and awakened my heart to learn and do more. Only a few weeks before this delegation I was also challenged by Pastor Isaac in his new “Sermon to the West” video as he spoke about Christian Zionist ideology in Western churches. He explained how this ideology has continually given support to the Israeli Apartheid system and its abuses. And now - I have seen the terrible results with my own eyes. I encourage you to watch his video here and join me in the journey of reflection, transformation, costly solidarity, and following in the way of Jesus.
Georgina Dietz is the former artistic director of Beacon Theatre Productions, a regional touring theatre company in the Philadelphia area. She is an ecumenical follower of Jesus, spiritual director, prayer facilitator, and board member of an urban Mennonite church. She is a lifelong learner and continues to remain committed to the power of the arts to transform minds and hearts.