Last year, I traveled to Israel/Palestine with BelPres members, Overlake Christian Church members, and a Muslim couple. Our primary purpose was to learn about multiple perspectives on the current conflict there. Our good fortune was to have Rev. Dr. Mae Cannon (Churches for Middle East Peace, Washington D.C.) as our sponsor and guide. She arranged for us to meet with people from Israel and Palestine to hear what life is like and to learn how things became so very complicated ‘first-hand.’

Our two guides, an Israeli Jew and a Palestinian Muslim from the West Bank, were wonderfully qualified to provide rare, multidimensional views of two ongoing, diverse perspectives. They were with us throughout the trip explaining their respective histories. Together, Israel and Palestine are about the size of New Jersey, so we covered a lot in 11 days. There are two stories to share.

The first involves two fathers who lost daughters in the conflict and whose stories are heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time. One is Jewish whose teenage daughter was killed by a Palestinian suicide bomber and the other is Palestinian whose young daughter was shot and killed by an Israeli soldier. The pain these two men have experienced is unimaginable. The temptation to react violently must have been overwhelming.  However, neither chose to respond with violence. Instead, they chose peace.

They met after their respective tragedies and became very good friends.  Now, telling their stories together, they’re advocating for reconciliation. The two men, like many we met, are weary of war and in sharing their heartbreak, their strength and determination, they are making a difference.

The Palestinian father said he believes people hate each other because they fear each other and they fear each other because they don’t know each other. For example, he didn’t know about the Holocaust until he was an adult.

The Israeli father said, after his daughter was killed, he asked what had happened to Palestinians to make them so angry they would destroy their own lives and the lives of children. As he uncovered answers to this, his heart was softened to the history and pain of Palestinians. The Israeli man closed by saying that occupation is not a Jewish value and standing against it is not anti-Semitic. Both men agreed the best place for Americans to begin understanding is to become informed.

My second story involves a man who served in the Israeli Army. During a quiet time in our travels, I asked him what he thought about U.S. presidential administrations’ actions related to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. He responded with regret and sadness that it doesn’t matter who the U.S. President is; none of them has had the courage to stand up to the Israeli government.

My heart breaks for the horrors Jewish people have suffered, especially the Holocaust. I have been to Dachau, Germany (a Nazi death camp) where many Jewish people were murdered. I‘ve been to The Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. and to the Holocaust museum near Jerusalem – Yad Vashem. While both memorials show the stark detail of unspeakable crimes committed against the Jews, anti-Semitism still exists in much of the world today. I believe Israel has the right to have a State and to live in peace within the pre-1967 borders. So, I am pro-Israel.

I am also pro-Palestinian. On our trip, we spent a great deal of time on the Palestinian side of the “separation wall.” The contrast between the Israeli side and the West Bank side is startling: limited access for Palestinians for basics such as water, health care, jobs and roads, is all controlled by Israel. From what I saw, both sides continue to suffer and Palestinians seem to bear a greater share of suffering. My heart also breaks for them. I believe for Israel to prosper, Palestine must also prosper.

Our group continues to meet and act with a pro-Israel, pro-Palestine, pro-Jesus narrative at the heart of our work. We pray for peace and we act for peace. We invite you to join us.

Thank you to Rich Morse, member of Bellevue Presbyterian Church, for sharing the story of his trip to the Holy Land with Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP). Read the original post here.

CMEP is very thankful for the writers who contribute Spiritual Resources. However, CMEP does not necessarily agree with all the positions of our writers, and they do not speak on CMEP’s behalf.