The second video is an interview with Israeli peace activist Maoz Inon, whose parents Bilha and Yakovi Inon were killed on October 7. The pain and suffering in his voice are palpable. Yet he calls for an end to the “cycle of blood.” Among the final words he leaves with us are, “Let’s call for peace. Let’s call for hope. Let’s call for a complete ceasefire. Let’s call for building bridges. We must build the future, and this future must be based on equality, on partnership, on peace.” There is no easy or obvious way to end the current war and the historic hostilities in Israel-Palestine. If the goal is true peace, then the simple yet profound insight shared by Gandhi, Dr. King, and many others still rings true, “The means and ends must be consistent with each other.” Even in their deep pain and suffering, Yonatan Zeigen and Maoz Inon call us to pursue the goal of peace through peaceful means and break the cycle of blood and violence. Because of their lived experience, their voices carry the most authority for me. I hope they will for any of you who desire and work for human dignity and peace for all of God’s children.
This week marked one month since the Hamas terrorist attacks in which around 1400 Israelis were killed and over 200 others were taken hostage. In retaliation, Israeli air strikes have killed around 10,000 Palestinians and a ground offensive in Gaza is in progress. The news media is filled with various “experts” giving their opinions about the situation in Gaza and the conduct of the war. How do we distinguish among these various voices and opinions? For me, those who have suffered great pain and loss yet maintain a focus on ending the violence have the most authority. I want to share two of those voices with you. The photo posted above includes a picture and quote of Vivian Silver. She is a long time peace activist who developed relationships among Israelis and Palestinians in Gaza. She was taken hostage by Hamas on October 7, and her family has not received any information about her condition since then. The first video posted below is an NBC report of an interview with her son Yonatan Zeigen. Even through the pain of his mother’s capture and uncertainty of her condition, he describes her deep commitment and efforts to promote peace and reconciliation in the face of longstanding hostility. At the end of the interview, he calls on his own government to engage in diplomacy to resolve the hostage situation.