Cruising in Israel
Well, I survived going to the Druze village. (I had to wear a dog collar again, with black cassock!!)
The scene and the story from the village is really sad stuff. The Druze are a off-shoot of Islam, who follow Jethro, Moses father in law. They live in Israel, Syria and Lebanon. They only marry within their own people, and their religion is fully known only by their sheikhs, so is a secret.
Anyway, a Christian boy and a Druze boy had a fight it seems, and the Christian boy cursed the Druze. To get him back, the Druze boy made up a story about there being pictures of naked Druze girls on the internet. This incited shocking violence, shops, houses and cars burned, the church attacked, and 3,000 Christians (I think) fleeing to safety. Even though the Druze boy has been caught, the violence continues. So so sad.
Monday night Samuel and Susan invited me to go out with their family and another family to celebrate Valentines day. Midday is the main meal, so at 10pm we went to a very nice place near the Catholic Church of the Annunciation, and I had a great time, even though much of the conversation was in Arabic. I wondered how my own family would cope, and how our kids would cope. They start school at 7.30 here, not
8.30 or 9.00!!!! I got home about midnight.
I spent Tuesday cruising around Nazareth. Read the story of the annunciation in the church, looking at the grotto which is supposed to be Mary's house. Went to the Orthodox church, over a well, (they believe the annunciation happened at the well, not Mary's house) and just cruised really. Then went to Garth Hewitt's concert. He is really strong on Palestinian rights, and his whole concert was about Israel and
Palestine. Good stuff. He is here with a group of 20's and 30's introducing them to life as a Palestinian Christian in Israel.
Today I caught a taxi (Serut style) at about 7.15 to Jerusalem, and today went to the Citadel of David (really built around one of Herod the Great's towers) and then
wondered into Modern Jerusalem. Tomorrow I hope to do the wall walk, visit the City of David, and finish my shopping.
I want to do some serious reflecting soon.
Shalom
The scene and the story from the village is really sad stuff. The Druze are a off-shoot of Islam, who follow Jethro, Moses father in law. They live in Israel, Syria and Lebanon. They only marry within their own people, and their religion is fully known only by their sheikhs, so is a secret.
Anyway, a Christian boy and a Druze boy had a fight it seems, and the Christian boy cursed the Druze. To get him back, the Druze boy made up a story about there being pictures of naked Druze girls on the internet. This incited shocking violence, shops, houses and cars burned, the church attacked, and 3,000 Christians (I think) fleeing to safety. Even though the Druze boy has been caught, the violence continues. So so sad.
Monday night Samuel and Susan invited me to go out with their family and another family to celebrate Valentines day. Midday is the main meal, so at 10pm we went to a very nice place near the Catholic Church of the Annunciation, and I had a great time, even though much of the conversation was in Arabic. I wondered how my own family would cope, and how our kids would cope. They start school at 7.30 here, not
8.30 or 9.00!!!! I got home about midnight.
I spent Tuesday cruising around Nazareth. Read the story of the annunciation in the church, looking at the grotto which is supposed to be Mary's house. Went to the Orthodox church, over a well, (they believe the annunciation happened at the well, not Mary's house) and just cruised really. Then went to Garth Hewitt's concert. He is really strong on Palestinian rights, and his whole concert was about Israel and
Palestine. Good stuff. He is here with a group of 20's and 30's introducing them to life as a Palestinian Christian in Israel.
Today I caught a taxi (Serut style) at about 7.15 to Jerusalem, and today went to the Citadel of David (really built around one of Herod the Great's towers) and then
wondered into Modern Jerusalem. Tomorrow I hope to do the wall walk, visit the City of David, and finish my shopping.
I want to do some serious reflecting soon.
Shalom
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