Thirty Palestinian, Israeli, and international youth came together for a weekend retreat in the hills outside Jerusalem. One difficult aspect of planning a youth retreat is finding a time where schools are out, as Palestinian and Jewish school calendars are different. Our chance to meet came when the Israeli schools were off for the Succot holiday, and the Palestinian schools had Friday off as part of their weekend. The kids were very excited to be together and to stay awake as long as possible.

In the current situation, there is very little contact between Palestinian and Israeli youth. The current atmosphere of hatred and prejudice is reinforced in our neighborhoods and schools. Thus, the retreat focused on a poignant theme from I John 4, "For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen." This is truly a challenge to each of us, in days when circumstances and social attitudes tell us to hate one another. We pray that as the youth return to their homes and schools, they will remember and practice that, "he has given us this command, Whoever loves God must also love his brother."