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Extending the Table
Continued Thoughts From Israel
My trip is now in the wind down phase. I leave in three days time and will be bringing home many wonderful experiences and gifts for my family.
This week I had the opportunity to swim in both the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. For those not familiar with the geography of the area, snow melt from the mountains feeds the Sea Of Galilee which then feeds the Jordan River which runs along the eastern border of Israel and Jordan. The Jordan River then spills into the Dead Sea which has no outlet and no life within its waters.
One of the issues that Israel faces is an ongoing depletion of its water supply. Both seas have been receeding for years due to overuse and drought. In fact the Sea of Galilee is now 13 feet below its historical level and the Dead Sea is even further behind. This is a major problem for the area and so far there seems to be few initiatives to deal with the problem. And the issue is most likely to get worse as more and more Jewish Settlements or Communities are developed in the Judaen Desert.
It is also an issue that is feeding the unrest between the Palestinians and the Israelis. Back home we hear a lot about the violence and often the obstinance of the Palestinians over what Israel is willing to concede to them for land. The underlying problem is water. The West Bank land agreement that Israel is willing to make will continue to keep Palestine dependant on Israel. As one speaker noted, the deal as currently outlined gives Israel control of the water and all the borders, leaving all the Palestinian land surrounded by Israel. This in turn would give Israel 100% control of what goes in and out of Palestine.
As I have been thinking about this very complex reality, I recall a conversation among the Greenblade members about how food is used as a means of control. We never thought about water being hoarded or controlled and as many in Israel keep stating, 'no water, no life.'
As I look at the environmental issues of the debate, I am amazed at the lack of regard for the land this modern country has taken as it continues to grow and encourage urban sprawl. Plus in a country where the tourist trade is a major factor in their economy, the fact that they are watching the destruction of their greatest natural resource is beyond me. So the questions that continue to gnaw at me are, how can a government be so blind to how they are affecting their future? How can they remain so determined to control a people who have lived on this land for hundreds of years?
Then again, is it any different back home with our over use and abuse of natural resources? Our own treatment of indigenous people, etc.
As I write this entry, I realize that I have no answers to my many questions and feel somewhat powerless in the process. This I realize is where God comes in. The answers to the problems are beyond our comprehension and inate desires. The issues tell us that as a people we are in need of divine guidance to protect us from ourselves. And as I reflect on the comment 'no water, no life,' I want to add, no God, no hope, no future.
For anyone who is reading this blog, even if you do not have anything to add to the conversation, please let us know that you are reading this by adding a comment of like this thought or don't like this. Craig+
Comments
Joe and all, this exchange is exciting. And to answer Joe's questions, I am more and more convinced that the root of hatred is fear and that deep down fear fuels much of the violence. When I worked in inner city New Haven much of the gang violence was fear related. Fear of loosing what little they had compiled with the sense of hopelessness in their situation. Many saw their lives as worthless and meaningless and the gang banging gave them a sense of worth. This sense of worth and belonging was worth more than their lives.
Thanks, Craig, for sending your lessons home, both literally and figuratively. What we can so clearly recognize as injustice from a distance can so easily be rationalized as "pre-emptive defense" when threats seem close at hand. Thank you for remindng us that we are just as capable of such responses as the Israelis or Palestinians. Does that mean, do you think, that fear feeds more of the world's injustice than hatred? In a twisted way, that idea is almost reassuring. Running out of water can set people against each other, but can also give them reason to collaborate.
Craig, thank you for your words and your insight. I've been following your blog closely, and frequently find myself, days later, being struck by something you wrote. Thank you so much for sharing your travels and your thoughts with us.
Susan, The comparison is not far off. The basic tenor here among the descriptions of the Palestinians is reversed oppression. The Government in Karen Armstrong's words is not the oppressed becoming the oppressor. At Massada it was noted that Israel views the events of Massada and The Holocaust as major historical points in Jewish History and plays into a fear complex that is articulated as Never Again. In some ways this is "unconsciously" justifying their attitude of pre-emptive defensiveness in their world view.
Power, especially political power, does have a long history of short-sightedness. It would not be politically expedient to take those long term issues into consideration when it is much more popular to use force to maintain the status quo or the desires of a rich minority. Look at hydrofracking in the Fingerlakes, look at the health care debacle in the US Senate. These are just two examples from closer to home, but, sadly, there are sooooo many more out there. And we often don't have the multiple generations/historical perspective/mythology to add fuel to our arguments that the Israelis and Palestinians do.
But what about the glimmers of hope that you were able to witness? To me, that is the miraculous thing about conflict in places like Israel-Palestine. Mothers getting together from both sides to protest state violence, groups working together on common issues. Who are the "positive deviants" that you met? Those people who, despite the odds, have found ways to maintain hope and work productively towards a solution? And then how do we support those voices so that they become as strong as, or stronger, than the voices calling for hate and destruction?