This month, Catholic Relief Services has received a series of personal reflections from The Holy Land. These dispatches were written by participants in the Global Fellows program.

Each year, participants in the Global Fellows program are invited to travel to the developing world, to experience the plight of the poor and marginalized overseas. Upon their return, the Global Fellows are empowered to preach in parishes across the United States about social justice and peace around the world.

This year, they traveled to Israel and the Palestinian territories, to observe daily life in this difficult place.

Read these personal reflections from The Holy Land.

The Impact of Settlements

Fr. Paul Esser – Archdiocese of Milwaukee

Tale of Three People: Christians, Palestinians and Israelis

Fr. Don Lapointe – Diocese of Springfield, MA

Human Dignity for Both Palestinians and Israelis

Msgr. Joseph Ciampaglio – Diocese of Paterson

Walls Instead of Bridges?

Fr. Joe Muth – Archdiocese of Baltimore

Fr. Paul Esser – Archdiocese of Milwaukee

Osama Shakanah addressed our CRS delegation to the Palestinian village of Nahaleen, near Bethlehem. Everyone sat on white plastic chairs in the dusty, cold room. Small plastic cups of hot coffee were given to everyone. Amid the cacophony of cell phones and the scraping of chairs being moved; the coming and going of men, women and youth; we were welcomed by Osama. President George W. Bush was in town and nearby, creating a massive traffic mess. In this village of 7,000 persons, there is a 70% unemployment rate. They depend on agriculture but the Israeli settlers have taken their land and cut down their trees.

The people of Nahaleen poured out their hearts to the members of our group. They wanted us to know how the four Israeli settlements that now sat on the hill overlooking Nahaleen have drastically changed their lives. “We want to live here; this is our land,” they said. They have lived in peace for generations. Everything they said added up to a cry for help. CRS’ Food for Work program is a help, but merely sufficient for them as they struggle to survive, though they want to live.

After the 1948 UN resolution creating the State of Israel, Palestinians were advised that they could return to their home shortly. Our visit to the Dehaisheh refugee camp showed us the successive generations still waiting to return home. The youth of this camp are full of the spirit of hope. They are being worked with to develop their leadership abilities. Through a CRS program called Cyber Bridges, they are in contact with a high school in Chicago; they exchange names, learn about each others countries, but they long to meet face to face. Only lack of money keeps them from coming to the United States. Meanwhile they use the computer to visit with each other. They are helped by leadership programs to develop their social skills and they are guided to stay clear of drugs and to avoid giving up hope.

A visit to Hebron showed our group the significance of the Jewish settlement right in the middle of the bustling Palestinian city. Many Palestinians have been displaced from their homes; their shops have been permanently closed and sealed. The Israeli military is a strong presence in the city as they patrol and set up checkpoints. We came upon a Palestinian being questioned at length by a group of Israeli police. A certain area of the city has been turned into a ghost town by vacated Palestinian homes and shops. Our visit several days ago to B’Tselem and the CDs they gave us showed us the violence the situation in Hebron has caused.

Fr. Paul Esser, from the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, is a member of the Global Fellows: Parish Homily Program. The Global Fellows: priests, deacons and seminarians, travel to the developing world to experience the plight of the poor and marginalized overseas. Upon their return, the Global Fellows are empowered to preach in parishes across the United States about social justice and peace around the world. This entry is a personal reflection by one of the participants in this program, and does not necessarily reflect the views of Catholic Relief Services, or its partners.

Fr. Don Lapointe – Diocese of Springfield, MA

We have all heard of the “The Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens. I call my reflection the “Tale of Three People.” I am here in Israel on our fourth day with Catholic Relief Services. We were able to celebrate Mass at the Chapel of St. Peter in Galicantu. It is the place which marks the incident where the Apostle Peter denied knowing Jesus three times. Oh how good it would be if we could just turn our backs and deny the suffering that we see in this part of the world.

It is indeed the struggle of three people. The number of Christians is at record lows in this country, down to less than two percent of the total population. The Israeli people struggle for security from fear and attacks from all sides. The Palestinians suffer from the effects of the Israeli insecurity. They feel the frustration and oppression and they find themselves in desperation.

When fear dictates actions we, are in a poor position to make sound judgments and we make serious mistakes. We are led to do things we would not ordinarily do. This struggle illustrates a case in point. As a result of the Israelis’ need for security we find that the Christians flee the area as soon as they can. The Palestinians face unbelievable restrictions. We find 561 road obstacles in a country the size of New Jersey. We find people are not able to go out in the streets or even to cross the street for fear of being shot. We find people having to travel for hours through several road blocks just to work their land because they are not able to travel the same road as their fellow countrymen.

We find people being taxed or overcharged for water that comes from a well on their own property when the same water is transported long distances to other settlements for less charge. We find people not allowed to build a home on their own land when settlements are readily built on their land without their permission or consent.

There are so many more violations found in the reports of the United Nations and all in the name of “security.” How much more must we witness and for how long. Pain brings more pain and pain brings desperation. Nation blames nation and the beat goes on.

Thanks be to God and for the meeting at Annapolis. There is now a possible Peace proposal. It is a small chance. It is a difficult but workable proposal. But it is a chance which brings a spark of hope. It is a solution which has the potential to bring about a chance at a just and secure peace with dignity for all involved. Is it not worth our prayers? Is it not worth our support? Is it not worth any effort we can bring? The pain and welfare of so many depend on it. The alternative would only bring more pain, more distrust and more hopelessness.

Fr. Don Lapointe, from the Diocese of Springfield, MA, is a member of the Global Fellows: Parish Homily Program. The Global Fellows: priests, deacons and seminarians, travel to the developing world to experience the plight of the poor and marginalized overseas. Upon their return, the Global Fellows are empowered to preach in parishes across the United States about social justice and peace around the world. This entry is a personal reflection by one of the participants in this program, and does not necessarily reflect the views of Catholic Relief Services, or its partners.

Msgr. Joseph Ciampaglio – Diocese of Paterson

We began our day with Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Despite the ornate surroundings, we were caught up in the mystery of what happened 2,000 years ago in this holy place – the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus – the central mysteries of our faith. To some degree that spirit permeated our day – a busy day of meetings with various officials and educators.

Mr. Avraham Lavine, Director of International Organization’ Relations, Ministry of Labor and social affairs and his associate, Eliane Haddad.

One of the major responsibilities of this office is to relate to 96 different humanitarian organizations, such as Catholic Relief Services, which respond mainly to the Palestinian needs. In 1994, when the Palestinian economy completely collapsed, CRS became central in providing food and other humanitarian aid.

Mr. Lavine believes that the vast majority of Israelis and Palestinians wish to live in harmony, yet the actions of the extremists on either side continue to upset the apple cart. Only a deep sense of compromise can solve the current problems.

Risa Zoll of B’Tselem

B’Tselem is the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the occupied territories. B’Tselem – “in the image of” – is a dynamic agency founded by a group of public figures to enhance human dignity for both Palestinians and Israelis.

It employs 26 field researchers. They take testimony from victims of human rights violations, video the respondents and publicize the facts to governmental agencies and the general public. It attempts to “jar Israelis from a state of denial.” They have documented facts that the “wall” and the settlements have caused many human rights violations for Palestinians. It is a credit to the Israeli government that it permits this organization to function so openly.

Most powerful of all were the videos taken by the local Palestinian people of the different abuses at the hand of the settlers. Settlers are seen taunting, throwing stones, at the Palestinians, in the presence of the police, so that the Palestinians are virtually prisoners in their own homes.

After lunch we headed for

Rabbi David Rosen, International Director of Inter-religious affairs.

This man is truly dynamic and extremely articulate as he describes his life experiences of complex issues and situations without taking a breath. He suggested that we could help solve the problem if we enable people to get beyond the mentality of seeing the Israelis as all right and the Palestinians as all wrong or vice versa. See the facts as they are – people can be loved without somebody being hated. Also needed is more active engagement by the United States, without taking sides.

Dr. Mahadi Hadi, Director of PASSA

Mr. Hadi is a brilliant man who has compiled detailed histories of both Israelis and Palestinians from the founding to the present in order to help people, especially youth, to talk, research and educate.

After years of study, discussion, meeting and organization, this man’s heart spilled over as he said, “at sixty I am tired of being nice. I must speak out about the facts as I see them.” The heart needs to be reached if decency, respect and dignity are to be honored. We must grapple with the soul of humanity to bring about peace.

Our visit with the Latin Patriarch was canceled, which was disappointing. By the end of the day, we were overloaded with information and needed a break to process all we had heard.

In summary, today was a powerful, yet overwhelming day!

Msgr. Joseph Ciampaglio, from the Diocese of Paterson, is a member of the Global Fellows: Parish Homily Program. The Global Fellows: priests, deacons and seminarians, travel to the developing world to experience the plight of the poor and marginalized overseas. Upon their return, the Global Fellows are empowered to preach in parishes across the United States about social justice and peace around the world. This entry is a personal reflection by one of the participants in this program, and does not necessarily reflect the views of Catholic Relief Services, or its partners.

We’ve reached the last day of a very intense visit where we have heard voices from all communities here, and had an invaluable taste of contemporary life in the Holy Land and its troubles.

After just a few days we certainly don’t consider ourselves to be experts, and these journals we hope have mirrored our experiences as we have sought to learn about this land. What have we learned?

The Group with children, staff and parents of Terra Santa Girl’s School in Bethlehem.

Yes, this is a troubled part of the world, but overall TV coverage of Israel and the Palestinian territories don’t reflect the everyday struggles of normal people day after day here. Time after time, people told that the conflict is stereotyped, “tell people that we are human, we want peace.” We hope to do just that when we return home.

The separation wall is a very tangible scar on the Holy Land today. Israeli told us that they don’t like it, but what other solution do they have?

For Palestinians the impact on their lives is dramatic and hugely intrusive. Imagine a wall right through your town, cutting you off from family and friends.

As one of the group said: “Everyone recognized the Israelis need to be secure, but this wall is really undermining everyone’s security by the misery it causes and it makes a viable Palestinian state impossible. It is not just.”

Sure, we saw people smiling and laughing here and enjoying life too, but much, much too often the conversation takes a sober turn and you can all too clearly see the sadness in someone’s eyes.

Everyone in the group will return home with an enormous will to do what they can to forward peace for the Holy Land and to tell the stories that we were told. With its history, religions and truly magnificent people, this part of the world could be a paradise on earth. Let’s all do our bit to help Israelis and Palestinians reach peace, they have suffered too long and truly deserve better.

At first impressions, Aboud is a sleepy Palestinian village nestling in the beautiful landscape of the hills that rise gently from the distant Mediterranean. Donkeys, olive groves, grape vines, ancient stone walls and historic churches: the place has charm by the bucketful.

Then your eye catches the line of a metal fence in the distance, and bare land clear of the olive groves and almond trees that dot the rest of the village’s agricultural land. These are none too subtle clues that Aboud’s sleep has been disturbed. The village has been dragged into the conflict that dominates so much of life in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Though some 4 miles to the east of the green line, the nominal border between Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, the seperation wall is to slice right through Aboud’s agricultural land. The current fence marks its future path. Read the rest of this entry »

The two greatest locations in the Christian world stand only a few miles apart. The site of the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem and that of his death and resurrection in Jerusalem. Two churches mark these sites, the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the Jerusalem, and for the first time in 2000 years the road between the two is closed. Read the rest of this entry »

Arriving tired but eager to take in as much as possible, the first day was one of contrasts for our group, from the peaceful spirituality of mass at St. Savior’s Church in Jerusalem’s Old City, to the 8.5 meter-high separation wall that slices through the eastern side of Jerusalem.

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The first installment of the CRS travelogue will feature a trip to the holy land. Keep reading http://crs-blog.org/travelogue/ for more!

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