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From Middletown to the Middle East

~ Reflections on travel and teaching

From Middletown to the Middle East

Tag Archives: interfaith

What’s so dangerous ‘bout peace, love and understanding?

16 Wednesday Nov 2011

Posted by tgilheany in Fulbright project

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Abu-Nimer, interfaith, intergroup dialogue, interreligious dialogue, prejudice, social justice

“In general, because of the occupation conditions and structural discrimination system in Israel, Palestinians (Christian and Muslim) are more interested in activities that produce change in such structures and less motivated to participate in dialogue activities that can be utilized by the Israeli government as a form or indication of normalization of the occupation. In addition, certain Jewish American and European organizations have often supported dialogue and peace work as a way to project the democratic and pluralist image of Israel. Such organizations tend to fund Jewish Israeli initiatives and organizations as opposed to Palestinian organizations that might focus on social justice or nonviolent resistance” (Mohammad Abu-Nimer, “Religious Leaders in the Israeli- Palestinian Conflict: From Violent Incitement to Nonviolence Resistance.” Peace & Change, Vol. 36, No. 4, October 2011, p. 562).

A sign on the Jerusalem ramparts explaining that the Latin Patriarchate viewed themselves as "Custodians of the Holy Land". Graffiti above says "No way" and claims that God gave the land instead to the Jews. Perhaps not a conversation starter, but dialogue groups should make room for these hot-button theological issues, as well as daily life sufferings.

Interreligious dialogue – who could be opposed to it? Granted, one could take a very identity-based position and fear that one’s children will end up being less believing because they learned about other religions. Generally, however, dialogue sounds like baseball, mom and apple pie (or soccer, mom, and hummus, in this context.) As Professor Abu-Nimer points out, however, from the point of view of the disempowered intergroup dialogue can be dangerous. When one spends one’s time and energy understanding the other, one might be implying that this is where the most important work needs to be done. When someone is bulldozing your olive trees, you don’t sit down with that person and learn about their theological beliefs and sacred texts. You videotape the destruction, you link hands and sit in front of the equipment, you call the press, perhaps you begin a lawsuit. From the point of view of the dominant group, if they feel under attack there is a simpler reason not to talk. Abu-Nimer quotes an Israeli Jewish dialogue participant who says, “The Jews…who are suffering in their own way from the bombings and from the terrorism that is coming from these same towns [as the Palestinian participants] feel like talking with these people is almost traitorous” (Abu-Nimer, p. 567).

Given the above concerns, what if any is an effective role for dialogue groups in moving towards a just peace? To me, one point is clear – dialogue groups avoid the questions of everyday suffering and politically charged theological disagreement at their peril. Perhaps there is room for putting off those discussions until the second or third meeting, but every participant must know that both their most immediate and their deepest concerns will be discussed. Abu-Nimer quotes a participant of a strictly “learn about the others’ religion” dialogue group who reported that the Palestinians were frustrated they could not talk more about roadblocks and military occupation, and that the Jews were frustrated that the Palestinians kept trying to “only focus on what Jews, not Palestinians, should do differently” (Abu-Nimer, p. 571). Such frustration is the fate of groups who do not allow the conversation to move to topics of current serious import.

Putting those difficult issues on the table means that those in the conversation will be uncomfortable, and will have to answer questions for one another about what actions are justified or required by their religious commitments. This is all to the good. One cannot know, or be known, without challenging and being challenged.

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Jewish-Christian relations in the Holy Land

24 Monday Oct 2011

Posted by tgilheany in Fulbright project

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comparative religions, interfaith, Jewish Israelis, Jewish-Christian relations, Palestinian Christians

The road from Hebrew University on Mt. Scopus to the Augusta Victoria complex on the Mount of Olives has no sidewalk. Yet another challenge to Jewish-Christian relations in Jerusalem?

There stands a significant barrier between Israeli Jews and Israeli Palestinian Christians learning about each other’s traditions. Each side sees itself as a minority, indeed a double minority. Today I spoke with Ms. Hana Bendcowsky, the Program Director for the Jerusalem Center for Jewish-Christian Relations. Ms. Bendcowsky noted that Israeli Jews see themselves both as Jews in a majority Christian Western world and as Israelis in an Arab region. Israeli Palestinian Christians see themselves as Palestinians in the Jewish Israeli state and as Christians among the majority Muslim Palestinians. For each, this double minority status can give them permission not to listen to the other.

As I have heard before, many Israeli Jews find it difficult not to associate any information about Christianity with the long history of European Christian anti-Semitism. Along with this association comes a hostility to and fear of missionary activity. So “let your children learn about your Christian neighbors” is heard as “open your children up to missionizing activities by the powerful and anti-Semitic Christian world.”

Many Israeli Palestinian Christians will connect information about Judaism with justifications for the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, especially with the more extremist settlers, and with anti-Arab prejudice in Israel. They will also fear breaking ranks with their fellow Israeli Palestinians who are Muslim.  Thus “allow your children to learn about your Jewish neighbors” is heard as “open your children up to be co-opted by the oppressor and accused of collaboration.”

In addition to fear, righteous anger is another reaction Ms. Bendcowsky has encountered. “You want me to feel empathy for them? I’m the oppressed one. My job is to protect myself and my community. It is not incumbent upon the victim, or even right, for him to empathize with the persecutor.” Again, this feeling can come either from Israeli Jews or from Israeli Palestinian Christians (and, I suspect, from Israeli Palestinian Muslims.)

What to do? For Ms. Bendcowsky, the work moves through personal connections. She needs to get to know Jewish Israeli teachers, principals, tour guides, and army educators individually. They come to understand that she is an Israeli Jew with no agenda to convert them or their charges. She also needs to get to know Israeli Palestinian Christian principals, teachers, and community leaders. They come to realize that she is not seeking to expand Israeli dominance further into their lives or to divide them from their fellow Palestinians.

Excitingly, JCJCR has been able to work with groups that would not otherwise have learned about “the other.” They have set up partnerships between Jewish and Catholic schools were not at the beginning oriented toward diversity. In these schools some teachers and principals, she reports, have become enthusiastic supporters of learning about each other’s communities. In some of their work in teachers’ colleges Ms. Bendcowsky has seen teachers in training go from complete ignorance about other belief systems to excited fascination with the parallels and divergences between their tradition and those of others.

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Does comparative religion matter to the conflict?

03 Monday Oct 2011

Posted by tgilheany in Fulbright project

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Comparative religion, ethno-nationalism, extremism, interfaith

The land through which whats-his-name led the Israelites to the Promised Land.

Why is there no study of comparative religions in the Israeli schools? Rabbi Marc Rosenstein posits a reason. “Given the history of Christian missionizing, many parents are nervous about anything that would involve the New Testament in the schools. As for Islam and the Qur’an, it is different, since there is not that same history. It is perhaps just more of a sense of ‘why do we need to know that? We have our world, and they have theirs.’” Rabbi Rosenstein described this position with a significant amount of fervor, which surprised me since he has been involved in interfaith dialogue for many years as the director of the Galilee Foundation for Value Education. We met at his office at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in Jerusalem, where he is the director of the Israel Rabbinic Program. I asked him if he thought teaching comparative religions could in fact lead to reducing the conflict. He was not dismissive, but he was skeptical. “I’m not sure the conflict is about religion. It is an ethnic and national conflict. Once when I was visiting an Arab neighbor I asked her about her religion. She had an interesting reply: it is not relevant. She was saying that the important thing was that she was Arab, and if I heard she was Christian I might assume she was more westernized, more open.” Still, he did note, “religion is used for ethnic and national purposes.”

If learning about the core tenets and texts of other religions might have limited effects, how about studying different historical narratives? “Well this is a very controversial idea. As you may know, there have been many proposals for parallel textbooks, etc. But when you say the word ‘narratives’ you already raise hackles, because narrative implies there are different truths, and that goes against the official position on both sides.”

If people are not learning about each others’ religions in the schools, are they learning about them in adult settings? Rabbi Rosenstein was evocative about the limits of dialogue even among religious leaders. He has heard them say, “It’s not that I don’t support what you are doing. It’s just that it will take two hours and I will not learn anything.” Why? “Well, if we begin ‘Say your name and one sentence about why you are here,’ two hours later we have heard many platitudinous speeches about peace and have had no discussion.’” Even if there is a discussion, he notes, sometimes it is hard for a reform rabbi coming from a tradition of textual criticism to find much in common with a village imam with little education. Still, he struck a note of hope when he mentioned that once he began a discussion by asking each person to give one example of a difficult question someone from the congregation asked. “Then we had real exchanges.”

I think about Rabbi Rosenstein’s questions, and then I read Akiva Eldar’s opinion piece today in Haaretz. Eldar notes that at the UN Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke about the connection of the Jewish people to Israel but only talked of “the Palestinian population living within it.” He also noted that President Mahmoud Abbas spoke of “the prophets Jesus and Mohammad, but ‘forgot’ Moses.” Such omissions sound absurd to the ears of people who know the religious identities of the peoples involved. Today also Jewish settlers burned a mosque in the Galilee. If those involved had known a little bit more about the beliefs of their neighbors, might they have hesitated to take such an extreme action?

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