Dear Middle East Leaders

Blessed are the peacemakers . . .
. . . for they shall be called the children of God.


To the leaders of Israel and Palestine:

Cut the crap.

Thanks!

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Just so everyone is on the same page, a few weeks back some wretched human beings kidnapped and murdered three Israeli Jewish teens. A Palestinian teen was then set on fire in retaliation. Before long, both sides are shooting rockets at one another. The spiral of violence is quick. Behold the power of a few truly wicked people in inciting bloodshed.

If you are truly a person of faith, you might want to pay close attention.  Here are the families of the teens killed at the start of this bloodletting in the Middle East.

The families of murdered Israeli teen Naftali Fraenkel and murdered Palestinian teen Mohammed Abu Khdeir are drawing comfort from an unexpected source: each other.

Parents struggling with grief because of senseless acts of violence reach out in strength and grace to one another. This is what it means to remember that we are all the children of God.

Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat took to Facebook on Sunday to write about an “emotional and special telephone conversation between two families that have lost their sons.” He said that during his visit to the Fraenkel family home, he had a chance to speak to Hussein Abu Khdeir, Mohammed’s father, and express pain at the “barbaric” murder of his son.
Barkat then suggested that Abu Khdeir speak to Yishai Fraenkel, the uncle of Naftali Fraenkel who recently told the press that “the life of an Arab is equally precious to that of a Jew. Blood is blood, and murder is murder, whether that murder is Jewish or Arab.” The two men took Barkat’s advice and comforted one another by telephone. 

In a separate visit organized by Rabbi Rafi Ostroff, chair of the religious council of Gush Etzion, Palestinians from the Hebron area showed up at the door of the Fraenkel family, looking to comfort the bereaved. 

Asked why they had come, one Palestinian said, “Things will only get better when we learn to cope with each other’s pain and stop getting angry at each other. Our task is to give strength to the family and also to take a step toward my nation’s liberation. We believe that the way to our liberation is through the hearts of Jews.”

When I see empathy like this, I believe God smiles proudly. When I see bloodthirsty political leaders, I believe God is nowhere to be found. They are not killing for God. No, they are killing to satisfy their political followers and benefactors. Smells like sulfur and evil to me.


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Today I Give Thanks (TIGT) for crosses in unexpected places.