This is an interesting account of the recent "Sulha Way" sent to me by a friend..Jean ----- Original Message ----- From: Larry Fisher <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Sunday, September 19, 2004 11:51 PM Subject: Fw: 'The Sulha Way' Gathering of 2004
> Jean-- > > Here is the email that I told you about. (This was forwarded to me by my > sister, a Quaker in Bloomington, Indiana.) > > Looking at a map, I see that Park Shuni (where this year's gathering was > held) is just a few kilometers from the little town that I usually stayed in > when I used to go to Israel. > > By the way, the website is not www.sulha.org , but www.sulha.com > > --Larry Fisher > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Margaret F. Squires" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: "'Larry Fisher'" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Sent: Saturday, September 04, 2004 8:33 PM > Subject: FW: 'The Sulha Way' Gathering of 2004 > > > I thought you (and possibly the rest of your family) might enjoy this thing > of beauty. > Love, Peggy > > -----Original Message----- > From: Eliyahu McLean [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Saturday, September 04, 2004 12:31 PM > To: Eliyahu McLean > Subject: 'The Sulha Way' Gathering of 2004 > > Hello friends, > > "The Sulha Way" gathering of 2004 was a huge success. This year's gathering > was held over 3 days, from August 17th-19th. This year we reached a new > level, bringing together over 4000 Arabs and Jews, including 600 children > and many international guests. This year¹s Sulha was held in Park Shuni, > just outside of Binyamina near Haifa. It was special that 200 Palestinians > from Jenin, Ramallah, Bethlehem, Hebron and Gaza, as well as 20 Jordanians > were able to join us. > > As an official opening event of the Sulha, Shvil Zahav (the Middle Way) > organized a silent peace walk with over 200 people from the Binyamina train > station to the site of the Sulha. Joining the walk was the Palestinian > delegation from Jenin. As participants from all over Israel, religious and > secular, Arabs and Jews and the buses from Ramallah, Bethlehem, Jenin and > Jordan arrived they were greeted at the Sulha¹s Welcome Center. After Sulha > founder Gaby Meyer welcomed everyone, the crowd broke up into listening > circles, where people had a chance to speak from the heart. Many > Palestinians were moved by the chance to share their stories, eye to eye, > with Israeli Jews and others. Many expressed their frustration at having to > wait for hours at checkpoints that day on their way to the Sulha. > > In the center of the main lawn of the park was the main stage for > ceremonies and concerts. On each of the loud speakers were big signs reading > in Hebrew and Arabic, Two People¹s Want to Live in Peace. Around the main > lawn were the Children¹s Space, the tent of the Bereaved Parents Circle, a > Peace Organizations space, and a Druze family offering traditional pita and > labane. Nearby were the Tent of Hagar and Sarah and further away, the > kitchen. > > Many workshops on Arab and Jewish religion and culture took place at the > Sulha. On the first day a workshop on the topic of "Our Jerusalem" was led > by Rabbi Menachem Froman of Tekoa and the Imam of the Dome of the Rock, > Abdel Karim Zurba. Later the Imam led the Islamic afternoon prayer service, > while Rabbi Froman led mincha, the afternoon Jewish prayer services. > > In the peace organizations space, groups dedicated to peace and human > rights shared their work. These included Bustan L¹Shalom, Rabbis for Human > Rights, Maagal Haderech, Peace Child-Israel, Mosaic Communities, the > Theosophical Society and the Network of Co-existence Organizations in > Israel. > > At the opening ceremony on the first night Rabbi Froman and gave a teaching > about the meaning of Allah-hu Akbar translating it as 'Love will Prevail' as > the crowd repeated that phrase in Hebrew -Ahava T¹Natzeach!- after him. MC > Mahmoud Salame invited Elias Jabbour to speak followed by a Fatah leader > from Ramallah. The keynote speakers spoke powerfully about the need for > peace between our peoples. Rabbi Michael Melchior said that religion is the > heart of peace and that we can¹t wait for the politicians to bring peace. Al > Quds Univ. Professor Sari Nusseibeh encouraged the need for peace between > our peoples. John Quzholini from South Africa offered blessings followed by > Tibetan Geshe Thebten Phelgye, and Greek Catholic Deacon Jiries Mansur. The > ceremony closed with a blessing and Sufi Œzikr¹ led by Sufi Sheikh Abu Ali > from Majd Al-Krum. > > During the music offering of the first night, musicians like Shotei > Hanevua, George Yusuf Samaan and Gaia had everyone, Arabs and Jews, dancing > together. > > During the second day the talking circles gave everyone the opportunity to > get to know each other on a deeper level. Over a thousand people took part > in 45 talking circles over 3 days. In the Bereaved Parents tent, Israelis > and Palestinians who have lost family members in the conflict shared their > stories of transformation. > > In the Tent of Hagar and Sarah, women shared their pain in an intimate > space. One Israeli woman whose son was killed in a suicide bus bombing > shared, followed by a Palestinian woman whose son was killed by the Israeli > army. One woman said "my picture of the Jews changed, before the Sulha I was > filled with hate and now I see the Jews also have pain". Some women said we > want our nations to cry and to dance together. > > In the Children¹s Space, many workshops on art and games were offered. The > children painted a large peace mural in Hebrew, Arabic and English around > their space. There were workshops on eco-building with mud, juggling and > walking on stilts. Many Palestinian children from Jenin and elsewhere bonded > beautifully with the Israeli children. > > The outdoor kitchen fed over a thousand people twice a day. In the kitchen > Israeli and Palestinian volunteers worked with the devoted kitchen staff to > offer meals. Many people of different cultures had a chance to connect > sitting and sharing a meal together. The kitchen was also kosher and > vegetarian in order for as wide an audience as possible to feel welcome. > > In the afternoon there was a panel with our foreign guests and religious > leaders about solutions to ethnic conflicts. Zulu tribal leader John > Quzholini from South Africa spoke, followed by Senegalese Sufi sheikh Fara > Gaye, Fatima Shwartz, a Muslim woman reconciliation activist from South > Africa and Geshe Thebten Phelgye, a representative of the Dalai Lama and > member of the Tibetan Parliament in exile. Sheikh Ibrahim Sarsur, head of > the southern branch of the Islamic Movement spoke about Islam and peace. > > The evening ceremony was led by the women, honoring the new Hebrew month- > Rosh Hodesh Elul and the Islamic month of Rajab, one of the holy months > leading up to Ramadan. In this ritual led by Rabbi Ruth Kagan and Ibtisam > Mahamid, the women called out the names of their foremothers. Maighread > Kennedy from Northern Ireland spoke about her Corrymeela Community in > Belfast, which promotes reconciliation between Catholics and Protestants. > The women finished with a song chanting "Elohim Echad, Allah Hu Allah" that > that got everyone up and dancing. > > The evening ceremony was followed with a blessing by video for the Sulha > gathering offered by Reb Zalman Schachter Shalomi. > > Late in the evening a spontaneous music and jam session formed in a > circle‹with dancing and call and response with Gil Ron from Sheva and > traditional Palestinian singers. A large group of Palestinian youth broke > out in debka, the traditional Arab dance. Arabs and Jews sang and danced > together into the night. This was all broadcast live on the internet. > > The most moving highlight of the gathering was the farewell ceremony, held > early on the 3rd day, for the Palestinian and Jordanian delegations. Firas > Yaghi, coordinator for the Palestinian Legislative Council and head of the > Palestinian delegation spoke, followed by Muhammad Shawahin from Jordan and > Gaby Meyer and Yael Meyora from the Sulha staff. > > A wave of emotion began to wash over the crowd, our departing friends > formed a long line and we lined up to give each one a gift and a farewell > blessing. Many of the Palestinians burst into tears and everyone hugged > each other and some danced together. Azriel Cohen took a fig branch with > three branches. One fig branch had three branches broken off to be planted, > one in Palestine, one in Jordan, and one in Israel, and the main branch to > be planted in Jerusalem. A circle of Israelis and Palestinian joined hands > together forming a big circle around the field. > > On the last afternoon there was a workshop on Our Father Abraham with Rabbi > Yehoshua Engleman and Sufi Sheikh Hilmi from Nazareth and other scholars. > Sheikh Hilmi and Palestinian Sheikh Abu¹l Qasim, also known as the Green > Sheikh led a Sufi zikr ceremony. At sunset the children led a procession > around the park. A Jewish Yemenite Hazan (traditional singer) and Hilmi led > Jewish and Muslim chants on the stage as Arab and Jewish children sang the > words of the prophet Isaiah- my house will be a house of prayer for all > peoples- in Hebrew in Arabic. That evening more Arab and Jewish musicians > played into the night. > > First the first time ever, Al-Jazeera Television, the most widely-watched > network in the Arab world covered live and devoted a positive ten-minute > report of a peace event in Israel. Other coverage included the major > Israeli TV networks‹ channels 2, 3 and 10, all 3 Arabic newspapers in > Israel, local Arabic cable TV, Israeli newspapers Maariv and Yediot, the > Jerusalem Post, Haaretz English, and HaTsofe, the ultra-Orthodox newspaper. > International coverage included French and Canadian TV, Radio Colombia, NPR > radio, Radio Sawa and reporters from Spain and Germany. > > After this event a delegation of Jews and Muslims from the Sulha made a > pilgrimage to Hebron. On the way we were received by the mayor of Halhul and > visited the people of Beit Omar and Hebron. We offered a shared prayer at > the entrance to the Tomb of Abraham where Palestinian women and children and > an Israeli soldier were so moved that they joined us. > > On the Way to Sulha is planning a mini Sulha training gathering for 70 > Palestinian and Israeli teenagers in January 2005. We are already scouting > for the site of annual 2005 "To The Sulha" gathering. > > We are in need of financial and other support to continue this project. > Please offer of a tax-deductible donation, information on our website: > www.sulha.org > > Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Shalom, Salaam, > Eliyahu McLean, > > Rodef Shalom- Pursuer of Peace, > from the Sulha Staff > > > > > > ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar. Now with Pop-Up Blocker. Get it for free! http://us.click.yahoo.com/L5YrjA/eSIIAA/yQLSAA/MknplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/VTJP/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
