It’s an all too common story, a young 20 something, living in a generally idealistically exclusive community finding every possible way to grind against the culture. I have definitely been there and continue to fight the temptation to oppose certain ideas out of shallow impulse rather than out of a sincere conviction. I have found, however, that no matter how naive or superficial the initial feeling of dissent may be, often times, it can develop into a rational and meaningful conviction.

In this blog post I want to express my discomfort with a popular strand of thought within conservative evangelicalism. Not out of a vain desire to be contradictory but out of sincere concern for the well being of my fellow humans and my christian brothers and sisters in the Palestinian region. The purpose of this post is not to debate the theology of Zionism. I want to be up front that I am writing this blog from the perspective that the modern nation state of Israel is in no way the same Israel with which Jehovah entered into covenant. Perhaps a theological treatment of the ideas of covenant, Israel, and the Church could be given in a future blog. However, the focus of this blog lies in another area.

Attending a school like ORU or even just living in a town like Tulsa it becomes commonplace to see t-shirts, hats, bumper stickers, and every other kind of paraphernalia imaginable declaring support for Israel. For a long time I never questioned this idea. We constantly hear reports of vicious attacks on innocent Israelis made by the malicious Palestinian people, who are generally painted as terrorists or supporters of terrorist organizations like the infamous Hamas group. So if this is the only information I am getting, why would I ever feel the need to question the call to “support Israel?”

For most of my life I had no reason to question this, although there always seemed to be an unsettling prodigality about the idea. Over the past few years I have looked into this and have discovered that it may not be such a black and white issue.

At this point I would like to help relieve anyone who might be thinking that I am anti the Israeli people. You may rest assured that that is not the case, in fact I couldn’t care more about my Israeli brothers and sisters. The point I am making is that I also care about my Palestinian brothers and sisters equally and that there are certain injustices that have been wrought against them in the name of Zionism and defense of the Israeli state that cannot be condoned. (I concede and also do not condone the fact that Palestinians have also committed injustices toward Israeli peoples. However, these are often highlighted and most of those in a western context are aware of them. Therefore, I will focus on the shadowy side of the story that is not often revealed and will leave the one sided propaganda of Israeli despair to the mainstream media.)

Dr. Sara Roy is the senior Middle Eastern studies research scholar at Harvard University, she has lived in and worked in the West Bank and the Gaza strip since 1985. Throughout her research one consistent theme is her belief that the Israeli government’s policies are aimed at keeping the Palestinian region impoverished and dependent. Roy specializes in analyzing the social and economic impact of Israeli occupation and suppression of Palestine. In an provocative lecture on the origin and ideologies of the Hamas group she challenges the idea that it is a terrorist organization. In the lecture she says that Hamas is “a far more pragmatic movement than its typical representation in the West.”(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReH3D1lrB0Y)

While neither I or Roy would condone the excessive use of violence often utilized by Hamas it is important to recognize what kind of environment it would take for a group to feel the need to behave so violently. Roy posits that the continued suppression and mistreatment of the Palestinian people by the Israeli gov. could only go on so long before violent uprisings would ensue and formulate into organized groups like Hamas. The longer the injustices being visited upon the Palestinians continue, the more violent their response to rid themselves of this oppression will become. Images like this express how real this terrible reality is. When there is no end in sight people resort to violence. While this is an unacceptable response, understanding the response can hep us to counter it.

One way Israel has suppressed the Palestinian people is by abusing their control of the Palestinian water supply. There are two underground aquifers that supply the majority of water to the region of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. These Aquifers run directly along the green line and are crucial for the survival of the people in the region. And Israel, despite being the force who actually has all the power, but is painted as the one being abused by Palestinian forces, unfairly distributes the water from these sources with a huge disparity depending on whether or not you are Israeli or Palestinian. 77% of Palestine’s water supply in the West bank comes from these aquifers. Despite this Israel remains the major user of these resources dominating 95% of the western aquifer and 82% of the northeastern aquifer. On average, Israelis get 92.5 gallons of water per person per day, while Palestinians in the West Bank get 18.5 gallons per person per day. Something needs to be done about this.

Dr. Roy makes several other claims regarding Israeli oppression of Palestine, for instance: She claims that Palestinian unemployment has sky rocketed due to Israeli oppression, that Israel has depleted many of Gaza’s natural resources, that Israel has intentionally debilitated Gaza’s economy, and that Israel controls the boarders and corruptly monitor’s them in order to keep the Palestinian economy damaged. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykgPdgGbcUQ)

Others such as Stanley Heller, host of “The Struggle TV News,” claims that the Israeli gov. uses propaganda to cover up for the fact that they are starving the Palestinian people as well as committing other atrocities. He seeks to put Palestinian suffering on the map and expose the injustices of the Israeli gov. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTVchIq5xxc&feature=related)

Efforts like “Free Gaza” (www.freegaza.org) claim that Gaza is essentially the world’s largest prison, run by the Israeli gov, and filled with innocent men women and children. They point out that Israel not only controls the Palestinian water supply but also controls the electricity in the region and unfairly regulates the usage of electricity to the Palestinian people by often cutting it off unnecessarily. They claim, along with Dr. Roy, Jimmy Carter, and Tony Blair that Israel uses their control of the borders to limit access to food and other necessities. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ex0v5BDVFHk&feature=related)

President Jimmy Carter claims that the deprivation of human rights in Palestine by the occupying power of Israel is nothing less then apartheid and that we in the united states are supporting that apartheid.(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDKw0f95k7Q&feature=related) (his book “Palestine: Peace not Apartheid.”)

Bernard Sabella, a professor of Sociology at Bethlehem University reports on the state of Palestinian Christians. According to Sabella there are 175,000 Palestinian Christians in the region, 50,000 of which are in the West Bank. Comparing this to numbers found on Haaretz.com, a Jewish news source, there are only 28,000 Israeli Christians in the region. The oppression these Palestinian Christians face everyday is a major factor in the decline of Christian population in the region. Palestinian Christians cannot understand why their American counter parts are against them and blindly support the same powers that are terrorizing them. (http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2003-06-05-opcom_x.htm) (http://globalministries.org/mee/kairos/)



This revelation was startling to me. Not only do we American Christians look passed the inhumane treatment of the Palestinian people in general. We support the mistreatment of our Christian Brothers in sisters in the region in favor of the often oppressive rule of the Israeli state.

I do not expect this blog to have expressed to you the degree to which the Palestinian people have been violated by the Israeli gov. Nor do I expect those of you who have already pledged support to Israel, especially those of you with theological convictions for doing so, to immediately drop your opinions.

What I am hoping to have done is to at least have provided the knowledge that there is an alternative perspective.

I am not choosing one side of the political issue here and I’m sure I would be schooled in a debate about the cause and effects of Palestine being recognized as a nation.

I am trying to speak out for those who cannot be heard.

I do not support the murder and mistreatment of my Jewish brothers and sisters but at the same time I cannot stand by and watch the injustices being visited upon the weak and poor in Palestine by those in power without saying something.

I would humbly ask that you pause and take time to consider the Palestinian people. By all means if politically or even theologically you find yourself in strong support of the Israeli state and opposition to the Palestinian state do not let me disturb you.

But please be disturbed by the plight of the Palestinians. And if you cannot feel for them, remember at least that there are Christians there who are also being mistreated, suppressed, and persecuted by those with the power.

I do not oppose the Israeli state and support the Palestine state. I support all people. I oppose all forces that would visit injustice upon the weak, both Israeli and Palestinian.

If you wish to look into this issue more closely I will provide some links below ranging from a Christian organization in Palestine begging for the help from their American Brothers and Sisters in Christ to Secular cultural theorists who make claims that the Palestinian people are being oppressed.

My hope is that we can begin to look past our political opinions and decide to find ways as the body of Christ not only to aid our Israeli brothers but to aid our Palestinian brothers as well.

I believe that even those of us who remain in political or theological support of Israel should be able to call out injustice where we see it. Very much like a friend is able to hold those close to him accountable, so we must hold Israel as well as Palestine accountable for their inappropriate actions.

Remember that Jesus calls us to help those who are weak and oppressed, those who have no voice. There is no better example of those who our Lord calls to speak up for than the Palestinian people. So regardless of your political affiliation i commend you to find ways to support those who are oppressed throughout the world, including those in Palestine.

http://www.al-bushra.org/holyland/sabella.htm

http://globalministries.org/mee/kairos/

http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2003-06-05-opcom_x.htm

“Failing Peace: Gaza and the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict.” by Dr. Sara Roy (A book)

“Palestine: Peace not Apartheid.” by President Jimmy Carter (A book)