June 24, 2018 -- JERUSALEM INTERNATIONAL YMCA (2017)

Jerusalem International YMCA

It has been over a year, but I want to share a couple experiences that happened to me when I first visited Israel in the summer of 2017.  Each centers on an encounter with a woman.  One was an Israeli, and the other was a Palestinian.  As I was settling into my seat for the flight from JFK to Tel Aviv, I sat next to a man on my right and an empty seat on my left.  Suddenly, a young woman walks toward us in the isle and stops.  She looked at the empty seat and then looked at me and shrugged her shoulders.  As she was settling into the seat next to me, I asked her why she was so distraught.  She said that normally she sits in the back of the plane in an area where she can stretch out and unwind.  I tried to encourage and comfort her.  We talked a little and exchanged pleasantries.  I soon realized that she was Israeli.  A curious thing about her was that she had what looked like a fish tattooed on her hand.

At one point, I thought to myself, “I am sitting next to a literal descendent of Abraham, on my way to the land where Abraham was a sojourner, and the land where the twelve tribes of Israel inhabited.  This was a land of promise, fulfillment, desolation, and destruction.  Yet, after nearly 1950 years, Israelis had made their way back to the land and were making a way at it.  Later when I prayed that the Holy Spirit not pass me by, I felt drawn to the Israelis.

Toward the end of my stay in Jerusalem, I attended a little gathering where I was staying at the Jerusalem International YMCA.  They were all celebrating the work at the YMCA that fosters understanding among Israelis and Arabs in Jerusalem.  The location has become a center for cultural, musical, athletic, social, hospitality, and intellectual life.  One example is the YMCA Jerusalem Youth Chorus, which encourages youth from both East and West Jerusalem (Muslim, Christian, Jewish) to come together in peace to foster dialogue and share in music and performance.     In front of the YMCA is a sign in three languages: Arabic, English, and Hebrew.  This is what it says,

HERE IS A PLACE WHOSE

ATMOSPHERE IS PEACE

WHERE POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS

JEALOUSIES CAN BE FORGOTTEN

AND INTERNATIONAL UNITY BE

FOSTERED AND DEVELOPED.

The saying is attributed to Lord Allenby and his dedication address in April, 1933. 

Sign in front of YMCA

Back to the gathering that I was attending!  I was taking pictures and sat down towards the back.  I noticed a woman sitting alone.  After the gathering had started, she went on stage and shared.  She was Arab, and speaking in Arabic, so I did not understand what she was saying.  However, I did watch and listen.  Suddenly a melody went thr
ough my mind.

SEND FORTH YOUR LIGHT AND TRUTH O GOD

AND LET IT BE OUR GUIDE

BRING US TO THE HOLY

PLACE WHERE YOU ABIDE

GUIDING BY YOUR GLORY

GUIDING ALL AFFAIRS

PROTECTED FROM All EARTHLY

AND ALL WORLDLY CARES.

I felt like my heart was dancing.  She looked at me and I at her.  She just smiled and I smiled back.  I later thanked her for the work they were doing.  I took some final pictures and went on my way.  When I finally departed from Jerusalem that summer, I realized that I had a love for both Israelis and Palestinians.  I also knew that the land of Israel/Palestine was very much a disputed land, but that I had spent time with descendants of Abraham, both Israelis and Arabs.   

Woman who shared during gathering at YMCA