Dome on the Rock

Thursday 27th March

The posts from 20-28 March 2014 were originally posts formatted for Tumblr. Click here to see the original blog.

Two speakers at dinner last night: Tala Dawani who works for World Vision as their fund raiser here and is also the Bishop’s daughter, and Aminah Abu Sway who works at al-Quds University and is daughter of Dr Mustafa Abu Sway, our Muslim guide earlier in the week. They both spoke about loving your neighbour as yourself. As Christian and Muslim Palestinians they were united. But both struggled with the idea of loving one’s enemies. I think they wanted to, but it was hard now under the experience of oppression.

Tala told us of her journey to work in the morning. A house was being bulldozed down and the soldiers had surrounded it, clearly pleased it was being demolished. Some of them looked only 17 or 18 years old. And they were rejoicing that someone’s home was being destroyed. And she had to drive by because you couldn’t stop or help or do anything. It was a raw moment shared over beautifully cooked Palestinian food.

This is a place of contradictions.

Published by

Tim Stratford

Very Revd Dr Tim Stratford Dean of Chester

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