It was one of the most memorable meals I’ve ever had. The location was a hilltop west of Bethlehem about a month ago, and my fellow dinner guests were 30 pastors and church leaders from the United States. That night, our bus parked at a cement-and-barbed-wire barricade, and we hiked about half a mile over two such barricades to have dinner at the top of the hill — in a cave!
The prominent sign at the end of our hike proclaimed the slogan: “We refuse to be enemies.”
The parcel of land west of Bethlehem is only about 100 acres. It is owned by the Nassar family, a Palestinian Christian family who have lived on and farmed the land since 1916. It is squarely in the West Bank, and according to international law, belongs to the Nassar family and is not part of Israel. But today, it is surrounded by 50,000 Israeli settlers, living on similar land confiscated from other Palestinian families.
Why did we eat in a cave? Because despite their legal title, the family that owns the land has been forbidden by the Israeli government to build any structures on the land. We hiked over barricades because the government has closed the only access road this family has to their own land. They have also cut off electricity and water to the family, so they must use generators and solar panels for power — and they now occupy the caves on the land as their only recourse.
In 1991, the Israeli government served notice that they planned to annex the Nassar land in order to expand the Israeli Gush Etzion settlement. Under Israeli law, Palestinian land that cannot be legally documented back to the Ottoman Empire (pre-1917), can be taken. Most West Bank families, though their families may have lived on the land for centuries, do not have the official documentation now required to prove ownership of their land, let alone the resources to be able to fight lengthy court battles.
But the Nassars have the rare documents that establish their ownership and the will to fight back, so for the last 20 years, they have struggled to retain their property in Israeli courts.
The stalwart resistance of this one family taking a stand against the confiscation of their land has become symbolic for Palestinian families of their 60-plus-year struggle to keep their ancestral land and be recognized as legitimate inhabitants of the Holy Land. And the Nassars’ slogan, “we refuse to be enemies,” captures their desire to live peacefully and share the land with both their Jewish and Muslim neighbors.
Many in the United States, and especially within the Church, have taken sides in this conflict without ever having been to the Middle East or having met any of the real people at the center of the conflict. Palestinians are stereotyped as Islamic terrorists, when most are just trying to raise families and earn a living in the face of daunting obstacles.
All too often, isolated Bible verses about the Promised Land are quoted, and blanket rationalizations about fighting terror and ensuring security are made as though they somehow justify terrible injustices committed against Palestinian families. When we let the ends justify the means, we open the door for terrible moral consequences.
Many of the Palestinians our group met were Christians, despairing over the dwindling Christian population in the land of the Bible, and wondering why the American Church has turned a blind eye to their persecution.
Whatever your theology or your political views about the conflict in the Middle East, I ask you to put yourself in the shoes of this Christian family, the Nassars, and ask yourself three questions:
How would you feel if someone tried to confiscate your family home, rendering you and your children homeless?
Would the Jesus you worship cut off a family’s electricity and water, barricade their road, and confiscate their land?
Would He use this kind of force to accomplish His political goals — or would Jesus, like the Nassar family, also “refuse to be enemies”?
For more information on the Nassar land dispute, visit www.tentofnations.org.
Note: World Vision’s position on the Middle East conflict is to oppose any and all human- and civil-rights abuses and violence of any kind by either side. We hope for a peaceful solution that recognizes the legitimate rights of both sides to live securely and with human dignity.
I have visited Israel 4 times since the early 1990s. In 2002 my husband and I volunteered with a Christian aid organization in Jerusalem. It so happened that this was in March, the worse terrorist month Israel had ever experienced. There were daily attacks and attempts. One day when I was at my desk I heard a loud boom; a suicide bomb had detonated near the bus stop my husband used to get to his job at the food bank. He missed it by 15 minutes; unfortunately a young Jewish couple and their unborn child were killed. They left two orphaned children. I would urge anyone really interested in the truth to study both sides in the light of the whole Bible and with a view to a literal rather than political interpretation of scripture. Israel is promised to the Jews throughout the Bible, not just in “isolated verses”. I know from personal interactions with both Jews and Muslims how far each is from our Messiah Jesus. But His promises are irrevocable, whether we like it or not. Furthermore, I would urge those open-minded enough to listen to all of Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent speech to Congress and to find out about recent terrorist attacks on Israelis, such as the horrendous murder in March,2011 of the Fogel family, where a mother, father and three children (including an infant girl) were killed. Their killers are two teenaged Palestinians who have said they would do the same deed again, if given the chance.
Thank you Alastair for the link to this site. I had little knowledge and have tried to search more facts and real stories of what is going on. I have been a staunch supporter of Israel and it’s right to protect itself, but this story and other accounts are changing my mind on “how” they are securing their identity and “their land.” And yes, Jesus would never do what is happening to these defenseless families.
Louis, while some of your points about accuracy and fairness are definitely valid (some of the links you posted raise good questions about Nassar’s honesty in speaking about land issues), I think you’re missing the bigger point. Palestinians are, at the end of the day, the weaker party in this conflict. Yes, they are perpetrators as well as victims, like the Israelis, but the Israelis’ power to oppress and mistreat their Palestinian neighbors far outstrips the Palestinian’s ability to harm Israelis. I think this means that Israelis bear a greater moral responsibility for what goes on in that country. I like to think of it like this: compare it to the Indian Wars here in the States. The Native Americans were definitely guilty of hideous, murderous atrocities from time to time. But a). they were sorely provoked, and b). they were in the end overwhelmed by a military power that was greedy for their land and the resources in it, and which thought nothing of mass murder and theft to achieve its ends. While it is true that the Native Americans committed great crimes in defending themselves and their lands, you also have to ask yourself: would those crimes have even happened if we hadn’t invaded their domain? Well, the Native American tribes were fighting amongst themselves before we came, but our invasion of Indian country brought things to a whole new level. Also, why is it that Nassar must speak for all Palestinians and take up the burden of the moral failings of his fellow countrymen? You ask why he doesn’t say anything about Palestinian terrorism, but I say that at least he doesn’t sing the praise of Palestinian terrorists. Is that not worth something? Okay, so Nassar isn’t perfect. At least he’s trying to not be a hater. Isn’t that worth something? There are many other Palestinians like him who are now embracing non-violent protest. Don’t they deserve some credit for forswearing violence as many critics of the Palestinians have demanded for years? Isn’t it important to encourage Palestinians who have made a decision to step out of the loop of the armed conflict, rather than arguing over relatively minor details? Something to consider.
Dear Rich: Thank you for your blog post concerning Daoud Nassar and his living conditions near Gush Etzion. Having been a Christian 40 years, earning several degrees in Old Testament studies and spending a majority of my Christian life studying the Middle East conflict, I have another perspective concerning your post.
1. Mr. Nassar talks about peaceful co-existence with Israelis, but according to reports I have read, he only opens his home to Christians and other anti-occupation groups (http://missingpeace.eu/en/2010/06/demolition-orders-and-co-existence-in-gush-etzion/) I don’t see much Christianity displayed by Nassar if he is not willing to dialogue with his “enemies.”
2nd, Rich, have you taken the opportunity to accept the same offers of hospitality by Israelis and hear their perspective on Palestinian mistreatment, terrorism and deception. I think it would only be fair as the president of World Vision that you spend an equal amount of time on a fact finding mission that includes Israelis.
3rd, Nassar is not telling the entire truth when it comes to his claim to ownership of his land. The Israelis have threatened demolition nine times on several structures on Nassar’s property because they are not in compliance with Israeli law (the same laws and threats of demolition apply to Israelis). All Nassar needs to do is change the roofs on some of his structures to avoid his problem but he would rather use his own laziness as an excuse to delude American Christians into thinking how “evil” the Israelis are in wanting to demolish his home. He also is not telling the truth about the ownership papers to the property he is dwelling on. The papers are dated 1924 and were honored by the Turks, but the Turkish rule ended in 1917. Is he telling the truth? (http://www.camera.org/index.asp?x_context=55&x_article=1417). In addition, the land he is on belongs to the state of Israel but he can live on it as long as he cultivates it; the Israelis are not throwing him off his property.
4th. no where does Nassar, a Christian lover of peace, demonstrate any condemnation of Palestinian terrorism towards the Israelis. Neither do you, Rich. Where is the denouncement of the terrorist ruling body of the Palestinians entity, Hamas and their daily deluge of rockets they send to fall on innocent Israelis; What about Palestinian suicide bombers? Hamas condemned the capture of bin Laden, our avowed enemy? Does Nassar embrace these terrorist monsters and their bloodshed? If not, as a Christian shouldn’t he denounce their evil actions against the Jews.
5th, Rich, I am fearful you are being lured into a Palestinian propagandist trap set by Palestinians (even Christians) to lure evangelicals with false information about Israel, thus causing churches to turn against Israel. Nassar is not alone. Sami Awad is another pro-Palestinian propagandist. Several pro-Palestinian films are making the rounds in churches such as Saddleback Community Church and Bill Hybel’s church. These films Little Town of Bethlehem and With God on our Side show a distorted view of the history of the Middle East conflict making the Palestinians/Arabs to be the oppressed and the Israeli the oppressor. From reading the history of the Middle East nothing could be further from the truth.
Last, the Christians making comments on your page are obviously coming from a place of emotions and not from a place of truth. I suggest Christians start reading books like Paul Johnson’s The History of the Jewish People or Mitchell Bard’s book, The Idiot’s Guide to the Middle East Conflict.
Rich, it does not matter how many Christian visitors come to the Tent of Nations. The volume of visitors to this location does not determine truth anymore than the growing number of Muslims determines Islam as a true faith. The only tent of nations according to Jesus is the Temple in Jerusalem (John 2), not a cave in the West Bank. Yes, the Father’s house includes Palestinian Christians, but in the Messiah’s kingdom all people will go to Jerusalem to be taught the Law and worship the God of Israel and His Son, the Savior of the World and Israel’s Messiah.
Rich, thank you for your story about the experience you had on the Nassar family farm. It is not unlike the other 5,000 visitors and volunteers who have gone to visit the land this year. But what makes it unique is that it is now Your story, and the opportunity, maybe the obligation to share it with others in your network. It’s such grassroots efforts that will ultimately change the facts on the ground. May your tribe increase!
Bill Plitt
Friends of Tent of Nations North America (fotonna.org)