OPINION

Palestinian peace

In the conflict between Israel and Hamas, Muslims, Christians and members of the Jewish faith are killed. Even though it is the territory of the Holy Land, probably those who have no religious affiliation also perish, or many who stare at the senselessness of such and such suffering become such.

16427 views 47 reactions 42 comment(s)
Photo: Facebook
Photo: Facebook
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.

Six centuries before the birth of Christ, God's prophet will write: "And you, Bethlehem Ephrath, even if you are the smallest among the thousands of Judah, from you will come forth to me who will be the Lord in Israel, to whom there are goings from the beginning, from eternal times." (Micah 5:2) Based on that prophecy, the Israelites expected that the Savior would be born in the Judean town of Bethlehem, but when the event happened, everything remained hidden from the public, in the secret of a cave. That is why the One, born in Bethlehem, until the Cross and the Resurrection will be called a Nazarene, because he was recognized by the place where he grew up (Nazareth - in the north of today's Israel), and not by the mysterious place from the prophecy, where the Mother of God brought him into the world (Bethlehem - today's Palestinian enclave south of Jerusalem).

The creator of all worlds and the lord of all times, decided to come into the world not through the imperial court, or any other "prestigious place", but in the province of the Roman Empire, that is - in the province of that province, outside Jerusalem. Just as the heart is not located in the geometrical center of the human body, so the birthplace of the God-Man is not located in the center of human expectations and predictions, but somehow at the end. Unobtrusive, and without a show of force. That is, the greatest force, so far unsurpassed by any other, more raucous and noisy than it - is the force of the Christmas song of the angels: "Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, and goodwill among men!" True, such force does not fit into our earthly notions of violence. It does not need armies, tanks or bombs. Angels and shepherds sing about her. She, as a Pannonian poet would say, may not always "win", but it is important for us to know that she is "invincible". The aforementioned poet knew the power of Christmas Eve, January midnights and Epiphany nights, so he decorated them all in turn with his verses.

The unobtrusiveness but also the indestructibility of the power of love was demonstrated by the Lord not only by the fact that "training for humanity" (as Njegoš describes God's condescension to human nature), and not only by choosing a place in the form of a small village next to a large and significant city, but also by choosing a time for that holy act. And that was the time of the earthly truce, the so-called "Roman peace" from the reign of Augustus Octavian. Namely, historians recognize that the period of Octavian's reign was marked by complete peace in his empire, which we can attribute to his absolute power and convincing victory over competitors for the Roman throne. Thus, although he could come among people whenever he wanted, say - in the middle of some war or confrontation (when people most often call him), the Lord chose a time of peace, as the one that is most pleasing to him. And although this particular peace has its own clear earthly and political causes and conditions, it as a frame or decoration completes the icon of Christ's birth and the depth of the message that this event brings to people. Yes, the Roman emperor brought order with his earthly power, but he certainly "would not have had any authority" if it had not been given to him from above. To this day, many people have lost sight of this simple fact, so they wonder how easily they are left without power.

The Son of God came to a peaceful land, among (at least for a moment) reconciled people and rulers. That is why he will later announce that "blessed are the peacemakers, because they will be called the sons of God". Since we understand that peace among people is a prerequisite for the proper celebration and understanding of this incomprehensible coming of God, we inevitably "pray to God" on Christmas morning, make peace with each other, and before that, through fasting, confession and prayer, we try to calm our hearts and soul from all deposits of anger, panic and fear.

That is why, from a Christian perspective, Bethlehem is unimaginable without peace, especially in these pre-Christmas days. Bethlehem, as we said, was once a small settlement in the Roman province of Judea, and today it is a Palestinian enclave surrounded by Israeli territory. And between ancient and modern times, Bethlehem has seen numerous wars, occupations and liberations. Among many, those war campaigns that were called "crusades". There is almost no ruler and epoch that did not violate the metaphysical peace of Bethlehem and Christ's cradle in it with the sound of their physical weapons. For 100 years, that peace has been shaken by bullets and bombs from the Israeli armed forces and Palestinian fighting groups. There is no winner yet, and we are all defeated. Among the first are the parents of killed and wounded children, who are dying in the Gaza Strip these days. And Gaza, by all accounts, shares the fate of Bethlehem.

Folk customs here are known for bringing straw into the houses where people live, so that every home, at least that night, would look like the Bethlehem cave (vertep) and so that the God-born child would also come to our family. Visual identification with the circumstances of the holiday is a way of biblical celebration. Christian Palestinian homes these days bring in blood, tears and sweat instead of straw. And they also remind us of Christmas events. Disappeared children and people join those innocent martyrs of Bethlehem, those children who, because of fear for his throne, were brutally killed by a mindless earthly tyrant, just in the days immediately after Christmas.

In the conflict between Israel and Hamas, Muslims, Christians and members of the Jewish faith are killed. Even though it is the territory of the Holy Land, probably those who have no religious affiliation also perish, or many who stare at the senselessness of such and such suffering become such. Muslims and Jews do not look at the birth of Christ the way Christians understand that event, but all the people of the world today need the peace that the newborn Jesus brought among people. The first consider him only a prophet, others see in him only the son of David, and for the third, Jesus is the Christ. And that means, the long-awaited Savior of the world. Well, from that address of a believing Christian, I invite the readers to pray for peace, for the end of suffering and acts of war. We believe that this prayer represents the universal language of love. Just in these days when God offers people a new hug.

Sincere prayer against evil has a greater range and stronger effect than all the mortars and rockets of this world. Because weapons are filled with gunpowder, explosives and hatred that are consumed, and which are essentially - artificial products, and our prayers are filled with faith and love which have no end, and which are a natural attribute of people - because they are from God.

The other day I met a young Muslim from abroad at the Belgrade airport, who approached me and asked if I knew if there was a place for prayer? I replied that I am not sure if such a place officially exists at that airport, but that I think that because of the suffering in Palestine today the whole world and every inch of it has turned into a place for urgent and indispensable prayer. We agreed.

Bonus video:

(Opinions and views published in the "Columns" section are not necessarily the views of the "Vijesti" editorial office.)