"On the Ground' Developments. TAKE NOTE!

Dear Friend of Kairos W. MI, On Wednesday, May 15, 2019, y/our Kairos West Michigan community will host Mr. Emil Haloun, a High School instructor (working on his PhD) at the Mar Elias Educational Institutions (MEEI). Remember when we hosted Archbishop Elias Chacour at St. Francis de Sales Roman Catholic Church a few years ago. The (retired) Archbishop is back in the Midwest this week, accompanied by friends and colleagues like Emil Haloun. We will be in conversation with Mr. Haloun about what is happening “on the ground” in Israel/Palestine, especially since our President has come out “full bore” in favor of anything the Israelis wish to do in regards to their Palestinian minority citizens (to say nothing of the West Bank, completely disenfranchised Arab Palestinians). Here is more news from "the ground": On Tuesday, May 7, 2019, there was a joint Memorial Day ceremony in Tel Aviv, sponsored by the Parents Circle and the “Combatants for Peace”. (Do you remember when KWM had Rami Elchana (a Jew) and George and Najwa Sa'adeh (Palestinians) in W. MI, representing The Parents' Circle/ Family Forum?). They gave the same message that was voiced at the May 7 ceremony. At the ceremony, the "Combatants for Peace" the Parents' Circle—Family Forum and many Palestinians (who were finally permitted to attend) urged all parties to join to work for an end to the hostilities between Israelis and Palestinians. Here's how the Times of Israel (TOI) reported what happened: Some 9,000 Israelis and dozens of Palestinians marked Memorial Day at a joint service in Tel Aviv on Tuesday, [May 7, 2019], in an event which was criticized by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier this week. Sitting in long, orderly rows of plastic chairs in a grass field in Hayarkon Park, attendees listened to Israelis and Palestinians commemorate loved ones killed on both sides of the conflict and heard activists speak about their hopes for peace in the region. Israeli Arab actress Samira Saraya opened the ceremony, called “Sharing Sorrow, Bringing Hope,” saying that Israelis and Palestinians needed to take action to put an end to the conflict. “All of us, Israelis and Palestinians, are victims of the conflict, pain and loss, but we are also its perpetrators,” Saraya said. “Therefore, it is in our power and it is our duty to bring it to its conclusion and provide hope and a future for ourselves and our kids.” The joint ceremony has been held since 2006 and is organized by the Israeli nonprofits Combatants for Peace and The Parents Circle – Families Forum (PCFF). The event is pitched as a pro-coexistence alternative to the standard Israeli Memorial Day events. Combatants for Peace is a group of Israelis and Palestinians who, according to its website, “have taken an active part in the cycle of violence; Israelis as soldiers in the Israeli army and Palestinians as part of the violent struggle for Palestinian freedom,” but now advocate joint non-violent activism; the Parents Circle is an organization which brings together bereaved families from both sides of the conflict. The event was criticized by some Israelis AND Palestinians for equating the blood of their brothers with the blood of the enemy, when they do NOT an "equivalency". Each side wants the blood shed against them to be more valuable than the blood of the enemy. The "extremes" (who are driving the hostilities) want to keep the grudges alive, resisting the power of forgiveness to admit wrongs and get on with real living. The whole point of the Parents' Circle is that families who have lost loved ones have had ENOUGH of the killing . They claim it is time to get to the roots of the conflict, address the offenses, address and resolve them, which repeatedly get ignored and unaddressed. KWM is committed to providing space and time for the real issues to be aired and addressed. John R. Kleinheksel, acting Executive Director