Today I stepped in at the last minute to help lead a discussion for the United Methodist Women at University Church. The topic they are currently studying is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. With little time to prepare I began with the questions, "Why do we care? Why are we emotionally hooked by this conflict? What natural resources are they really fighting for?"
In terms of wealth, we have no reason to care. It is arid, resource poor, rocky ground. But we get hooked because as Christians we call it "Holy."
Holy.
Holy?
It is the "Holy" Land. We get hooked because we want to defend, hold, touch, have what our faith has called, "holy." But, if we take the "holy" off the table and look at the land itself, it is just a junk piece of property. When will we be able to step back and be rational about the fact that God is holy and the rest is just rocks and dirt and water?
Tell me what you think. Can we be non-emotional about Jerusalem and the "Holy" Land?
1 comment:
I am beginning to wonder if the younger generations will care more about this conflict than others around the world?
I doubt we can be non-emotional about Jerusalem as a human race, but I think the larger issue is not the 'holy' part but the fact that people continue to die.
I have to be honest, I am a bit numb to the conflict there just becuase it has been going on and on for so long and I hear of people dying all the time.
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