Reconciliation and Co-existence in the Context of Israel-Palestine Conflict Revd Dr. Alexander M. Isaac The origins of Israel-Palestine conflict can be traced back to antiquity. But the attempts towards a genuine resolution of the crisis started off over a century ago, yet with great casualties inflicted on both sides. The disputed issues largely remained the same over the long span of the conflict. The time has come to resolve the crisis through reconciliation to unlock the vast human and economic potential of the region, which has also been home for three Abrahamic religions. The future of Israel-Palestine coexistence thus has huge prospects and potential for humankind. What are the moral obligations facing the stakeholders and international community in the wake of unresolved conflicts? The questions raised are that of the right for habitat of a people who are forcefully uprooted from the land of their origins.
We should be happy." This incident is a clear indication of how the people of the land visualize a peaceful future. ii
Resolution of the age-old conflicts is both a theological and ethical question. Reconciliation is the key to resolve the long-standing crises. Robert J. Schreiter deals with reconciliation and healing as a paradigm for mission. Reconciliation is an act of God and oriented towards healing of the victim-rather than the guilt of the perpetrator. It is the victim who first experiences the reconciling grace of God and then, in turn, is enabled to forgive and "become the agent of reconciliation" in relation to the oppressor. Schreiter is of the view that reconciliation is "largely discovered rather than achieved." The process of reconciliation brings transformation to both victim and oppressor in the sphere of conflict. iii
The Quest for a Habitat: The Plight and Fate of Refugees and Settlers The quest of a habitat is the greatest human quest. In the novel Wandering Star, Nobel Laureate J. M. G. Le Clézio tells the tale of two young girls uprooted by the Holocaust and its aftermath. The Palestinian refugee Nejma and the Jewish settler Esther turn out to be unlikely 'sisters.' Their names both mean 'star' in Hebrew and Arabic, their plights are mirrored at each other and interdependent. Esther arrives in the Promised Land just when Nejma is being evicted from her homeland forever. There is a pivotal moment in the narrative when Nejma, displaced by the partition of her homeland, on the way to re-settlement in Iraq, meets Esther by chance. Nejma is a refugee, losing her native land, facing a bleak future. Esther, escaping the memories of the Holocaust, is moving in the opposite direction, to an Israeli safe zone as a new immigrant, to begin a new life. Both are victims. Nejma reaches out to Esther with a notebook that narrates her story, which the latter refuses to take. Nejma is now forced to begin her journey, which duplicates Esther’s hitherto wandering journey. Towards the end of the story, Esther longs to meet her 'lost sister.' This story about the plight and fate of both refugees and settlers is repeated in history. History is replete with such chance encounters. The novelist shares his optimism that future generations will not carry the hatreds of past generations. There are contemporary stories as well that provide a ray of hope that enhance peace and reconciliation. i
Reconciliation: A New ray of Hope Randa Aweis an Arab Christian woman in Jerusalem received a kidney transplant from an unexpected donor: Yigal Yehoshua, a Jewish Israeli man who died in the wave of recent riots between Jews and Arabs in the Israeli town of Lod. Yehushua believed in "coexistence." The recipient of the organ Aweis has a message for the Jews and Arabs of the region: "We should live together. We should have peace.
Reconciliation is Shalom-living: Together in Tough Times
Learning
to
Live
With the historic handshake between Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin in 1993, a bold act of reconciliation, a promising chapter got opened in Palestine-Israel relations. The past 27 years saw intermittent periods of military conflict and terrorist violence that claimed thousands of Israeli and Palestinian lives. The period also observed the consolidation of Hezbollah and Hamas, and Israeli expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, and severe restrictions clamped on the ability of Palestinian residents of the West Bank and Gaza. Today the conflict continues, with bloody flare-up of terrorism and violence, rocket fire and tit for tat aggressions. Yet, the extremists and hardliners on both sides remained the villains sabotaging the peace agreements. Still optimism is in the air with continuing peace initiatives. African American leader Jesse Jackson once met PLO leader Yasser Arafat and embraced him. It created a furor among the Jewish community. But what Jesse told Arafat then was: "Your objective should be a mutual recognition policy [with Israel], because you must learn to live together." While the world is hopefully monitoring how an outstretched hand for peace is extended, sporadic conflicts and bloodshed continue to tarnish such initiatives. Palestine has Hamas and Fatah yet to reconcile their conflict of interests and Israel still is struggling to form a stable coalition government. What the urgent need today is to continue the negotiations between the conflicting nations on the one hand, as well as reconciliation amongst the confliction partners in each nation on the other front. Otherwise, apprehensions are likely to prevail that any genuine drive for resolution of the perennial conflict will only turn out to be a faux reconciliation. iv
Popular understandings of reconciliation imply that all sides must admit guilt, when in reality those powerful,
15 | P a g e F O C U S , O c t o b e r , 2 0 2 1 , V o l . 9 , P a r t 4
