Both Sides By Rev. Nina D. Grey May, 2002

There is much devastation of war and threat of war in our world today. The terrible anguish of violence in the Middle East pulls at our hearts and we long for answers. We do not yet know where the "war on terror" is taking us. Our longing for lasting peace matches the passion of Julia Ward Howe who created Mother's Day as a day for mothers to cry out for peace. We do not want to see any more wounding and death anywhere in the world. We do not want our children or anyone's children going to war. And in today's conflicts, war comes to children where they live. It is enough. But we know it is not going to end soon.

There are people and groups devoted to seeking peace with justice, people and groups whom we can support, ways that we can express our longing that can make a difference in some people's lives. One group is Neve Shalom/Wahat al Salam, an intentional village between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, in which Israeli Jewish and Israeli Palestinian people live cooperatively. They run a Primary School, where Jewish and Palestinian children learn together, speaking Hebrew, Arabic and English. They also run a School for Peace, for Jewish and Palestinian high school students, who struggle together about the realities of injustice in their relationships, and try to create a new vision. I have spent time in this village and witnessed their work. Their dream is of a world of coexistence and cooperation, two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace, security and justice.

Now they are inviting us to join them in helping people that have suffered terribly under the recent violent upheavals of the Occupation, the people of the village of Beit Sira, as well has other Palestinian areas and peoples.

On Saturday April 13, NSWAS sent a medical team to Beit Sira, whose residents had been without medical attention for over three months. They treated some 300 persons during several hours of voluntary work. Though they brought medicines (contributed by NSWAS residents), the supply was depleted during the first hour. Besides medicines, NSWAS residents also distributed a ton and a half of food (rice, sugar and flour).

Neve Shalom/Wahat al Salam has been raising an immediate $3,300 in order to purchase medicines for Beit Sira. Beyond this, they wish to raise additional sums in order to accomplish as much humanitarian work as possible in Palestinian towns and villages. NSWAS will use all donations to purchase essential items such as medicines and food, and will make sure that these reach people who are in genuine need.

Neve Shalam/Wahat al Salam writes: "American donors may send donations to: The Middle East Peace Dialogue Network, Inc. (http://www.maxexchange.com/mpdn/), The Ellipse Building - Suite 4, 4201 Church Road, Mt. Laurel, NJ 08054 (856) 235-3111, Ext. 146. Make checks payable to: MEPDN (Please note on check that the donation is designated to HAP - Humanitarian Aid for Palestine)."

The men, women and children living at NSWAS are completely dedicated to the vision of a world in which every human being is treated with respect and dignity. They are part of a larger peace movement in their region, of both Jewish and Palestinian people who are taking great risks every day to change the realities of their region and their lives. As Unitarian Universalists, as members and friends of First Unitarian Church, we share that vision, of a world that honors the relatedness of all beings. This month we will each find ways to express our deep yearnings for peace in our world.

In faith, with love,

Nina