Today we met with a group called Sabeel, which is Arabic for "the way or the path" and also "a spring of water". Sabeel is the Center for Palestinian Liberation Theology and it is "ecumenical" or "nothing is done denominationally," but more precisely it seems to be interfaith as they are comprised of and work with other faiths as well. There three areas of ministry include: 1.) Building up the body of Christ, 2.) Interfaith ministry (Christians and Muslims), and 3.) Peace and Justice.
For Sabeel the starting point is justice - that is where they start and what they aim for. And it is their hope that after justice there will be reconciliation.
I feel that they have these two in the reverse order and was also concerned by their hermeneutic which was a little sketchy and unorthodox.
An interesting stat we were given is that less than 2% of Palestinians in Israel and the West Bank are Christian. However, there is a large number of Palestinian Christians outside of this area. Many have left for economic reasons and some have left due to the poor conditions that exist under occupation.
After the presentation we shared communion and had lunch. All of Sabeel's staff was extremely kind and hospitable. The meal was delicious; (cold) peas and rice with chicken, bread with Zatar, and fresh yogurt. For dessert they served us a cake like brownie with bits of caramel in it and some Turkish coffee.
We had the afternoon to explore in Bethlehem and so I took some pictures of a playground that sits in the shadow of the separation wall. It was a sad reminder of how deeply the impact of this conflict strikes. It seems we are most saddened when the innocence of children is stripped away by the unnecessary evils of this world. It is my deepest hope that we can all work together to strive towards the peace and reconciliation that can only be known through Christ's love.
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