Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and cry to her
that she has served her term,
that her penalty is paid,
that she has received from the Lord's hand
double for all her sins.
Isaiah 40:1-2
In every contest or election, there are winners and losers. Last night as I watched the election returns I thought that more than 50 million Americans are unhappy because their team lost. Listening to the consolation and acceptance speeches, I heard words about coming together, compromise and reconciliation. I wrote phrases that inspired me: "let us summon a new spirit…we rise or fall as one people….immaturity has poisoned our politics for so long….determined to heal the divide that has hampered our progress….we are not enemies but friends." These are easy words to say, but hard ones to live.
Politics and religion have divided people no where as cruelly as in the Holy Land. I have wondered for a long time what it meant when God gave the Promised Land to God's people in Exodus. Why wasn't God thinking about the people who were already there? Tomorrow I leave for a trip to Israel and Palestine. The first place we go is Jerusalem., East Jerusalem. I must confess I am more than a little anxious about while I will discover there. It is my hope to listen deeply to stories of those who have lived on this land for generations. It is my hope to understand the deep conflict of competing injustice between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Jerusalem, the most beautiful city on a hill, a holy city for three religions is my destination. Jerusalem, I seek peace. I hope I can speak tenderly and live the words of Jesus to love all people while I am in Jerusalem, the city of God.
