Musalaha News letter September, 2001

From the Director..
Is This a Time for Peacemaking or a Time for War?
Musalaha on tour 2001
Student Conference
Youth Conference
Munayer Family News
Prayer Requests

From the Director..

Following September 11, we sent the following email: "Our hearts are overwhelmed by the magnitude of the disaster that hit the United States. We, along with other Palestinian and Israeli believers, pray for the Lord's mercy and compassion for all who are suffering and have lost loved ones. In times like these, we want to encourage and lift in prayer believers and church leaders, that they will be light and comfort to their communities and God's instruments of healing and recovery. We also pray that political leaders will find wisdom and discernment from above."

We received an unprecedented amount of responses, many indicated appreciation and a new understanding of the tension that we live in. More than anything, we have been encouraged by the increased interest in reconciliation and how it can be applied in other settings.

For this newsletter, we have chosen an article by Ken Sande of Peacemaker ministries. We feel that now more than ever before, the church needs clarity and discernment in these troubled times.

This newsletter also gives reports on some of our activities, our family, and prayer requests in the near future.

Is This a Time for Peacemaking or a Time for War?

By Ken Sande
Ken Sande is the president of Peacemaker® Ministries, an international ministry committed to equipping and assisting Christians to respond to conflict biblically.

The dreadful terrorist attacks on September 11 have left millions of people around the world wrestling with crushing grief and profound questions. Chief among these questions is, "How should we respond to these evil acts?"

This question is especially challenging for those who follow Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. He commanded that we love our enemies and do good to those who hate us. He also said, "Blessed are the peacemakers."

These are hard teachings in the aftermath of an attack that has killed thousands of people. Our President and many others have declared this to be a war, and warned us that more people will die before it is over. So, is this a time for peacemaking or a time for war? The answer can be both. But how can both paths be right, especially when they seem to go in opposite directions? Both can be right, because God himself has assigned different paths to different people.

The Bible teaches that God has delegated some of his authority to civil governments and assigned them the responsibility of promoting justice, protecting their people from aggressors, and punishing those who do wrong (see Isa. 1:17; Rom. 13:1-4; 1 Pet. 2:13-14). This is a heavy responsibility, especially when it involves the exercise of lethal force -- but without this restraint, evil would run rampant and innocent people would suffer. Thus there are times when those who lead and protect a nation can and should walk the path of war. When doing so, they should have our prayers and support.

But even as we support our civil and military leaders in their God-given duties, we are also called by God to walk a different path as individuals. Just a few verses before God describes the government's right to wield the sword in Romans 13, he describes the individual Christian's responsibility to be a peacemaker: Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. On the contrary: "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Rom. 12:14-15, 17-21).

This passage echoes Jesus' earlier teaching on how individuals should respond to those who wrong them: "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful" (Luke 6:27-28, 35-36).

Most Christians think that these are fine and noble concepts . until someone actually hates us, curses us, and mistreats us. Then these words seem na_ve and simplistic. But it is precisely at times when much wrong has been done that these words take on their greatest power and offer their greatest benefit. Here are some practical ways that you can put these commands into practice in this time of terrible conflict.

Mourn with those who mourn. All of us should grieve deeply with those who have lost loved ones, have been personally harmed by these attacks, or are distraught over the trouble we are facing (Rom. 12:15). In doing so, we Christians should share not only our tears and words of comfort, but also our time, energy, and material resources to minister to them and help rebuild their lives. We should also pray that these events would make us more compassionate for people outside our country who suffer such violence.

Pray for our leaders. Our President and a multitude of other civil and military leaders will be making difficult decisions in the days ahead, many of which will either save or end lives. They carry an agonizing burden. Therefore, we should pray for our leaders every day, asking God to give them humility, wisdom, discernment, courage, and strength, so that they will bring the guilty to justice, protect the innocent not only in our land but around the world, and restore peace as quickly as possible (1 Tim. 2:1-2).

Remember God's mercy to you. All true peacemaking springs from what Jesus Christ did on the cross to reconcile a fallen world to a holy God (Rom. 5:1-8). We cannot truly love our enemy or do good to those who hate us until we see that God has done exactly that with us . When we recognize our own sin, acknowledge the eternal judgment we deserve, and stand amazed at his offer of mercy and forgiveness, then and only then can we respond lovingly to acts of violence and do the hard, unnatural work of peacemaking. Fight against anger and vengeance. In the face of such horrific acts of evil, it is natural for us to be filled with anger and a desire for vengeance. If we fail to repent of these feelings, they will eat away at our souls. As the psalmist realized, "When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you" (Ps. 73: 21-22). To counter these feelings, whether in yourself or those around you, read the rest of Psalm 73, which reminds us that God will eventually avenge all wrongs, and remember Jesus' promise that his final judgment is more severe than anything a worldly army can impose (see Luke 12:5). A further antidote to these feelings is to obey Philippians 4:8 by thinking and talking about the many noble, admirable, and praiseworthy actions that have occurred at the disaster sites and around the world as God's grace has been poured out through the loving and sacrificial acts of countless people.

Pray for those who have done wrong. Praying for an enemy is not easy. Even when we get past our feelings of hatred and our desire for revenge, we struggle to know what to pray. Should we follow David's example and pray for justice to come upon them (Ps. 28:4), or should we follow Jesus' example and ask God to forgive them (Luke 23:34)? As we remember our own need for God's mercy, I believe we must do both. We can pray, "Lord, display your love for justice and prevent further acts like this by bringing the people involved in these acts to account in this life for what they have done. At the same time, Father, display your love for mercy and magnify the glory of the gospel by bringing these men to repentance and faith in Christ, so that whatever temporal judgment they face at the hands of men, they might experience the eternal forgiveness that you purchased for us by the infinitely precious blood of Christ." Stand up for the persecuted. Some of the pent-up anger in our country is already being vented toward innocent people of Middle-Eastern descent. Christians should be the first ones to stand up for the oppressed (Ex. 22:21; Isa. 1:17). In addition to preventing individual acts of hatred that would echo the violence of September 11, your loving intervention could open the door to share the gospel with people whose faith has been shaken and whose hearts have been opened.

Make peace with those around you. Although you and I do not murder others with a gun or an airplane, all too often we kill others in our hearts. As Jesus warned, "You have heard it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.. Again, anyone who says, 'You fool,' will be in danger of the fire of hell" (Matt. 5:21-22). The dreadful acts of September 11 could produce a harvest of peace and reconciliation if each of us were now inspired to fight the cancer of sin and estrangement on a personal level, seeking genuine reconciliation with a spouse, child, parent, friend, co-worker, or anyone else we may have offended. (For practical guidance on how to resolve personal, church, business, or legal conflicts, visit our web site at www.HisPeace.org.)

Study and teach peacemaking. Never in our lifetime have so many people been asking questions about how to deal with conflict. The time is ripe to wrestle with practical issues of confession, confrontation, justice, forgiveness, restitution, and reconciliation. Please do not let this incredible "teachable moment" pass you by. Dig into God's Word and see what he has to say about these life-changing matters, and then teach others what you are learning about peacemaking (1 Pet. 3:15-16). Engage your children, talk with your friends, start conversations at work, lead a Sunday school class at church. Now is the time to learn and to teach!

Share the gospel of peace. Above all else, seize every opportunity to be an ambassador of reconciliation by pointing people to the Prince of Peace (2 Cor. 5:16-21). Death is suddenly very real to everyone in the world, and questions about evil and judgment abound. People who would have brushed the gospel aside not long ago are suddenly open and marvelously interested in talking about eternal matters. The fields are truly "white unto harvest," and there can be no greater peacemaking than to help others to be reconciled to their God.

A great evil has come upon us and done unimaginable harm. By God's grace, however, we need not be overcome by this evil. Rather we can overcome evil with good. Now is the time to live out the gospel of Jesus Christ as we never have before. Even as our national leaders carry out their legitimate yet heavy responsibilities of securing justice and protecting innocent people from harm, let's seize every opportunity to share the love of Christ and promote personal peace and reconciliation. In doing so, we can redeem these dreadful times and fulfill one of the most wonderful promises ever given, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God."

Ken Sande is the president of Peacemaker® Ministries, an international ministry committed to equipping and assisting Christians to respond to conflict biblically.

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Copyright © Peacemaker® Ministries 2001

Musalaha on tour 2001

This fall the Danish Israeli Mission invited an Israeli and a Palestinian representative to Denmark to speak about Musalaha and about being believers in this region.
Tamar Powlision and Ranaa Barhoum both accepted the invitation to go to Denmark. Tamar, 23, is a Messianic Jew from Jerusalem. Currently she is finishing her Associate's degree in missionary aviation at Prairie Bible College in Canada. Ranaa, 23, is a Palestinian Christian from ShfarAm. She studied behavioral science and is currently working.

Tamar and Ranaa went on a Desert Encounter to Jordan arranged by Musalaha in 1999, and since then they have been active in the work for reconciliation between Palestinian and Jewish believers.

Now they have taken a step even further to give the Scandinavian people of Denmark a better understanding of what is going on in the Holy Land. This is something the Youth Secretary of the Danish Israel Mission, Henrik Nordborg, has been waiting for: "By meeting with the two girls, the Danes can get a better picture of the conflict. In the same time the girls are an important proof of the fact that there are people who believe in peace in Israel and is willing to work for just that."

Unexpectedly big interest

For over 5 weeks, Tamar and Ranaa spoke in different schools, camps and congregations. Before the girls arrived to Denmark, their schedule was filled up with 58 meetings in just 37 days.

Upon their arrival on a rainy afternoon, a number of journalists were also present and gave the young women their first challenge: Giving interviews and being in front of the camera.

The next day, they were already on the cover of a couple of national and local newspapers. In Denmark, there is great interest in the present situation in the Middle East. Many expressed enthusiasm about hearing good and hopeful news instead of the violence shown so often in the media.

The country is roughly seen divided in two camps. Even among believers, you may find many people who support one side (either Israeli or Palestinian) and neglect the other side.)

Reconciliation in Denmark?

Tamar and Ranaa faced these different parts of Danish society on their tour: From conservative Christian congregations and charismatic churches to schools with children from broken homes and Arab neighborhoods. Karin Juul Jensen, who volunteered at the Musalaha office two years ago, accompanied them on parts of the tour and reported: "One night we had a blessed time with a group of believers. There where around thirty and a couple of Moslem women showed up. They where young (17 and beginning of twenties) and they had many questions. In the beginning I thought they came to be adversaries or against somehow. It turned out their biggest question was - why not bring Moslems and Jews together. I could sense that it was because they really liked the whole program of Musalaha and they wanted to go. Ranaa talked to them in Arabic and they stayed to here more about Jesus. They where so open and thought the whole evening had been really nice. What they especially noticed was that we had 'people in the group from many different countries who smiled and you could tell they really liked each other'."

What can the Danes learn?

However, as Christians the Danes can also learn something else from Tamar Powlison and Ranaa Barhoum besides what is going on in Israel: "Ranaa and Tamar speak about peace and reconciliation from the point of view of what is going on in Israel. However, this is something we Danes are challenged by," Karin says. "Do Christians today live reconciled with one another? Are we more concerned about theological differences or are we searching for unity in Christ?"

Reconciliation is also relevant and needed in Denmark, and Tamar and Ranaa were an encouraging example. We pray that their message and example of reconciliation will be a lasting testimony, as Jesus prayed "that all of them maybe one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me"(Jn 17:21).

Getting to Know your Neighbor

When we told students that the topic of this conference was "understanding each others' history and perspectives on the conflict," some expressed hesitation. "Now?! We can't talk about that now....it's too difficult and painful; this is not the time," was a common sentiment. Indeed it is a difficult subject, one that could potentially lead to heated and harmful arguments. The past year has left everyone with a rather bruised consciousness, and this topic could only salt our wounds and lead to further pain. So why bother?

The inspiration for this conference came from email correspondences between participants from this years' Student Desert Encounter. This group decided that, in spite of the potential for hurt, they wanted to go deeper in their friendships and talk about more difficult issues. As they discussed current and historical events, the need for a more personal forum arose. Thus, we planned the conference invited speakers from Palestinian and Israeli sides to offer their perspectives on the conflict. Forty people participated in the conference, most of them from Palestinian areas, with several internationals and Israelis in attendance. The lectures and dialogue were informative and nearly always respectful of one anothers' opinions and identities.

Some issues that emerged from the conflict were:

- The question of identity is an important aspect of conflict and reconciliation. What is the interaction between our national or spiritual identity?

- Our perceptions: not all of our perceptions about the 'other' are correct; we each misunderstand, misrepresent, and misinterpret.

- What is our responsibility? What can we do to affect change?

The last day the students met in small groups to discuss these issues and to pray for each other. Thank you for your prayers, and we ask that you continue to pray for these young adults, that they will make an impact in their communities.

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."

The Munayers were able to take a holiday this summer to Germany and Holland. It was a great time for the boys, and a chance to get away from the tense political situation. Returning to school, the boys' school is in downtown Jerusalem, an area where terrorist incidents have occurred. Please pray for the family's safety going to and from school.

- Jack had his twelfth birthday last week, and is enjoying the sixth grade. He continues to swim on the YMCA swim team and they are working hard preparing for upcoming meets. Jack is also a member of the nature club, taking trips to different parks all over the country.

- Daniel, 9, recently broke his arm and is spending the next month in a cast. Unfortunately this means he will not be able to swim until fully recovered. He is still enjoying the fourth grade and has a new-found interest in walking Brittany's (Musalaha staff) dog.

- We have found another Munayer family swimmer in John, age 7. He is doing very well in his first year on the YMCA team. As well, he has English class once a week.

- Sam, 3, has resumed pre-school at the YMCA, where his class includes Arab, Israeli and international children. He loves his school and loves to talk. At the moment he thinks he is Batman.

- Kay is able to volunteer three days a week at the shop that buys and sells Palestinian handcrafts. She was able to visit the Bethlehem area to buy needlework for the shop; which was a big help to the workers who have had little business since the political troubles started.

- Salim also continues to serve as the academic dean at the Bethlehem Bible College, where they have 22 new students this year. He is teaching courses on exegesis, Romans and Judaism. Salim will be travelling to the California and Washington state the first two weeks of November, to raise support for Musalaha.

Prayer Requests

- Women's Ministries: Prayer meeting in October and Conference in the winter.

- Leadership trip. As it is difficult to find areas where both Palestinians and Israelis can meet, Musalaha is exploring various avenues for a retreat for leaders, this will take place early next year.

- Trauma conference. An expert in trauma healing will join Musalaha for a conference in January/February 2002.

- Completion and printing of Arabic / Hebrew songbook

- Printing of the 2nd edition of the book: In the Footsteps of Our Father Abraham

Meetings with youth leaders. Our staff, along with Youth for Christ staff, is meeting youth leaders around the land to determine how we can serve and cooperate with them. Please pray that the Lord will open doors for youth programs.