Two Walks

Flag Day. The authorities prepared for it by drafting in 3000 extra Police and troops. Palestinians dread it as the route of the walk is through the Muslim Quarter of the Old City and even more provocative, on previous Flag Days Zionist extremists have ‘walked’ the Al Aksa compound, the disputed Temple Mount. This year people like Ben Gvir, the right wing government minister, who makes no secret of his intention to have complete domination, proclaimed ‘Israel is in charge’ as he entered the Compound with tight security.[1] But the day passed more peacefully than feared and there were no rockets fired from Gaza and therefore no retaliatory Israeli bombardment. And Ben Gvir made his photo op and speech the Sunday after Flag Day, dialling back the confrontation.

We were thankful the day passed, but another crisis point will be along soon and the rhetoric is confrontational and vindictive.

The week before Flag Day I got a call from one of the organisers of an interfaith walk for peace and justice being led by Rabbis for Human Rights. https://www.rhr.org.il/eng Basing their mandate on the call to justice throughout their Scriptures RHR stand alongside Palestinian farmers in the West Bank who are being driven off their land by militant settlers and help harvest olives in contested olive groves. They seek to raise awareness and create a coalition among Israeli Jews of all sorts committed to human rights: peace with justice.

I went along to Zion Square in Jerusalem as one of their speakers, not sure what I was attending. I found about 200 people of all ages: Jews, Christians and Muslims singing psalms and holding hands and walking hopefully in the face of heckling from one or two and curiosity from many who had never seen such a mixed and gentle demonstration.

As I walked with them I remembered the words of American Civil Rights activist Cornell West, ‘Never forget that justice is what love looks like in public.’ West’s words in turn echo the words of MLK, ‘Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice, and justice at its best is power correcting everything that stands against love.’

As we gathered at  Jaffa Gate against the setting sun over the Jerusalem skyline I felt the love as each speaker was listened to respectfully and each spoke from their tradition of the power of love. And I was glad to speak from my tradition – the Jesus tradition – the companion who promised another companion so his followers would continue to be shaped into a community of love.

Here is part of what I said:

Shalom, salaam. The Hebrew and Arabic words for ‘peace’ are so much richer than the English; for ‘peace’ is not just the absence of struggle and strife but the presence of well being and flourishing and harmony.

Like a full belly at the end of a good meal

Like a weaned child resting on a parent’s breast.

Like laughter and tears shared

Like people of different faith and traditions coming together not to erase the difference but to celebrate diversity, while recognizing the deep human connection to one another and our even deeper connection to the earth and all its creatures and the breath of life that holds all in being.

‘In God we live and move and have our being.’

And I finished with a prayer:

Encircling God, cover us with grace, breathe into us your love, that we may breathe out justice and mercy, and all for Love’s sake. Amen.

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[1] https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/far-right-minister-says-israel-in-charge-during-visit-jerusalem-holy-site-2023-05-21/#:~:text=%22I’m%20happy%20to%20ascend,the%20site%20of%20repeated%20confrontations.