My friend Bart Campolo recently traveled to Israel, Palestine, and Jordan, being introduced to the “maddeningly intertwined” social, religious, and political conflicts of the region. He visited with left-wing folks, right-wing folks, and everyone in between—businessmen, tourism entrepreneurs, landmine survivors, government officials, local politicians, a wide array NGO leaders, and even a genuine prince and princess.
He has taken a position with an organization called Abraham’s Path, founded by Harvard negotiator William Ury, who says that every conflict takes place within a larger community that either is or can become the positively transformative ‘third side’ of the dispute (a dynamic I see in public high schools every day). So in the midst of a passionate (and often angry) followers of different religious groups, Bart feels the building up of that ‘third side’ seems especially important, especially among “Abraham’s children” (Jews, Muslims, and Christians).
In one effort to build up that third side, Abraham’s Path has begun an initiative called 9/11 walks. I love the idea, because instead of spewing venomous verbal attacks of islamaphobia or other hate-based nonsense, we are encouraged to truly “honor the victims of 9/11 and its aftermath” by doing what we ought to do regularly anyway: “Walk and talk kindly with neighbors and strangers, in celebration of our common humanity and in defiance of fear, misunderstanding and hatred.”
In no way does this suggest that we don’t retain our distinct individuality in all of its richness, including our religious beliefs. But it does mean that we begin to actually try to be a part of God’s will being done here and now, on earth as it is in Heaven.
