Reconciliation in Christ المصالحة في المسيح

A blog site dedicated to showing the world the reconciliation that God offers to us and between us through the blood of Christ--the blood He shed in love for us and for all nations, to make us one with Him, and one in Him, for eternity.

Saturday, February 26, 2005

Merhaba

Just a quick update--I'm in Istanbul now, enjoying my time with friends here. I plan on leaving Sunday evening to Kosova, arriving Monday morning and spending about a week there. Jason Stryd will be coming in Tuesday afternoon, I'm excited to see him there!

Istanbul is beautiful, very urban and cosmopolitan; it makes Bethlehem feel very provincial in comparison. But I'm already starting to miss speaking Arabic and Hebrew, and enjoying some of the cool things about living in the Bethlehem/Jerusalem area.

God bless you all.

Tuesday, February 22, 2005

Lehitra'ot

Two days from now, I'll be heading toward the airport to fly to Istanbul. I know it'll be hard to leave, but I'm grateful to God for the time He's given me here.

This last weekend I've experienced some very unique and cool things. On Friday night I enjoyed Erev Shabat with Baruch, my dad's friend and colleague, and his wife Ella. We went to the Great Synagogue in Jerusalem and listened to the prayers, which were led by a Yemeni Jew who had a beautiful voice and a very Arab style of singing. (It made me think, "Of course Jews and Arabs can get along! Why, this guy is getting along fine with himself!") I enjoyed a wonderful dinner afterwards with them and with friends from their community.

Saturday I went with a couple friends from the college to Hebron. It was a little bit depressing for me to see the Old City of Hebron, much of which has been closed down because of a couple hundred settlers that have set up shop right downtown, complete with lots of armed soldiers, razorwire, etc. We walked through part of the settler area downtown and saw all the yeshiva students, teenagers, walking proudly through the streets with M-16's slung across their backs. We visited the Christian Peacemaker Team people downtown, and went through Kiryat Arba (a big settlement just outside the Old City), a little less obtrusive and yet still a world away from the Arab parts of Hebron. It was clear to me why Hebron is always described as more tense than Bethlehem, which really has nothing like this kind of aggressive settler activity. One bumper sticker on a settler car at Abraham's tomb read in Hebrew and English, "No Arabs, No Terrorists." (This was in the same place where Dr. Goldstein opened fire some 15 years ago and massacred dozens of worshipers in the mosque.) I wonder if the car's owner would have the guts to say that to the Yemeni who led prayers on Erev Shabat. Or if he would have the guts to say it without his M-16 and the hundreds of IDF soldiers guarding him.

Sunday was easier, went to church and then met with two friends in Jerusalem. One, named Daniel, I hadn't met yet but had a very good and fruitful time talking with him about his experiences and various things. He's grown up in Israel, and has seen a lot of things that I haven't seen, so it was good to hear his stories. Then I met up with another friend of mine from Hebrew classes later on, whom I'll miss.

Finally, last night I went to visit another friend of my dad's (now a friend of mine) named Alik in Tel Aviv--we walked down the beach, ate an extremely yummy dinner, and talked a lot about Israel, the Middle East, culture and life and religion. I'm very glad I met him, and hope to see him again here or in the US.

Tomorrow I'm giving tests to my students (and then grading all afternoon while doing laundry), and tomorrow afternoon I'll go to the airport. It'll be good to see my friends in Istanbul, and in Kosova next week. But I know that I'll miss being in Palestine and Israel.

I'm really grateful to God for allowing me to be here this time, for keeping me here long enough to get to know and understand things a little better (though one thing I've learned talking to so many people in the last week is that I really know almost nothing). It's good to leave wanting to come back. And inshallah, be'ezrat haShem, I will be back in two or three years. I'll have to find a way to keep my Arabic and Hebrew up in the meantime.

Sad news in Lebanon; may the Lord bring good things from the tragedy. And may the tragedy of the intifada and the occupation here, the fighting and the hatred and the distrust and pride and everything else, be the bitter seed that brings forth the sweet renewal of the Spirit to this land and to the whole region.

Love you all. Pray for the people of Israel and Palestine. God loves 'em, despite all the mess.

Tuesday, February 15, 2005

indeed, power and money

Revelation 3:14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;
Rev 3:15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
Rev 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
Rev 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
Rev 3:18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Rev 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.


We must also be weary of the tempation of equating the Kingdom of God with the Kingdom of Heaven which leads people to unite "church" and "state". Only one Man can and will do this, and that is Jesus the Christened One, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. We know the Catholic establishment tried doing this and witnessed against its divine sanction since Jesus said "My Kingdom is not of this world", but beware of being lured by protestant equivalents. The power of the state will never be that of Christ, save when He returns and triumphantly dashes the gentile world power.

Thursday, February 03, 2005

Early Christians on Wealth

These are quotes taken from the same site as the quotes on violence (now defunct). I believe they're very thought-provoking.

I'm coming more and more to believe that the two biggest idols of the American church are power and money. May the Lord free us from the love of both, and may Jesus be the only treasure that we crave.

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We who formerly treasured money and possessions more than anything else now hand over everything we have to a treasury for all and share it with everyone who needs it.
Justin, First Apology 14

That we for the most part must be considered poor is no disgrace to us but an honor. A life of luxury weakens the spirit. Frugality makes it strong. And yet, how can anyone be considered poor who does not feel any want, who does not covet what belongs to others, who is rich in God’s eyes? Much more should he be considered poor who always craves for more while he already has much.

Let me tell you what I think. No one can be as poor as he was at birth. The birds live without any inheritance, and cattle find their fodder each day. Yet these creatures are on the earth for our sake. We possess all of them if we do not covet them. Just as a man traveling on the road is the better off the lighter his bundle, so too, he who makes himself light by poverty, who does not need to pant under the burden of wealth, is happiest on his journey through life. If we regarded wealth as useful we would ask God for it. He surely could give us a share of it, for everything belongs to him, but we would rather despise wealth than have it in our hands.
Minucius Felix, Octavius 36.3–7

Happiness does not consist in ruling over one’s neighbors or in longing to have more than one’s weaker fellowmen. Nor does it consist in being rich and in oppressing those lowlier than oneself. No one can imitate God by doing such things. They are alien to his sublimity. On the contrary, anyone who takes his neighbor’s burden upon himself, who tries to help the weaker one in points where he has an advantage, who gives what he has received from God to those who need it, takes God’s place, as it were, in the eyes of those who receive. He is an imitator of God. In this way, though living on earth, you will know with awe that there is a God who reigns in heaven, and you will begin to proclaim the mysteries of God.
Letter to Diognetus 10

They do not keep for themselves the goods entrusted to them. They do not covet what belongs to others...They do not neglect widows. Orphans they rescue from those who are cruel to them.

Every one of them who has anything gives ungrudgingly to the one who has nothing. If they see a traveling stranger they bring him under their roof. They rejoice over him as over a real brother, for they do not call one another brothers after the flesh, but they know they are brothers in the Spirit and in God. If one of them sees that one of their poor must leave this world, he provides for his burial as well as he can. And if they hear that one of them is imprisoned or oppressed by their opponents for the sake of their Christ’s name, all of them take care of all his needs. If possible they set him free. If anyone among them is poor or comes into want while they themselves have nothing to spare, they fast two or three days for him. In this way they can supply any poor man with the food he needs...
Yet they do not cry out in the ears of the masses the good deeds they do. Rather, they take care that no one should notice them. They hide their giving like someone who conceals a treasure he has found.
Aristides, Apology 15,16; ca. A.D. 137

They are as poor as beggars, and yet they make many rich. They lack everything, and yet they have everything in abundance.
Letter to Diognetus 5, 6 (end of second century)

They [the elders of the church] have attained this honor only through their good name, never through the use of money, for nothing that is of God can be bought for money. Even though we have a kind of cash box, the money does not come from admission fees, as when one buys membership or position in a society. That would be like “buying religion.” Rather, every man contributes something once a month, or whenever he wishes to, and only if he wishes to, and if he can; for no one is forced, but everyone gives his share freewillingly. These contributions might be called the deposit funds of fellowship with God as they are not spent on banquets or drinking parties or on gluttony. Rather they are used to feed and to bury the poor; for boys and girls without means and without parents to help them…for shipwrecked sailors; and for those doing forced labor in the mines, or banished on islands, or in prison, provided they suffer for the sake of God’s fellowship.
Tertullian, Apology 39, 40, A.D. 198

We have been taught not to hit back at people who harass us, not to go to court against those who expel us and rob us...When they take away our coat, we are to give them our overcoat as well.
Athenagoras, A Plea Regarding Christians I.2

Tuesday, February 01, 2005

Update

Hello everyone,

I just wanted to give some news on my situation here, to those I haven't told, and praise God for what He's been up to here. A week and a half ago I had an appointment with the Ministry of Interior, and they gave me a month extension on my visa. So that's good news; the mixed part is that they gave it to me on the conditon of my booking a flight out after that. So, I'm going to Istanbul on February 24th God willing. At that point I won't really have the finances to be able to come back and stay on another visa, so I'll spend a few days in Turkey, a week or so in Kosova (Prishtina), maybe a day in Sarajevo and then meet up with my parents and my brother in Germany. My brother will be finishing up his mission with the Mormon church in southern Germany, so my parents are coming out and we will all spend a week together in Germany and Austria before coming back to Colorado. I have a flight from Munich coming back late on the 19th of March (Saturday). So for those at Indians Peaks, come on the 20th and I'll see you all there! For everyone else, if you're in or around Boulder I hope to see you not long after that.

It's nice having things "settled" somewhat, though of course "el hombre propone, y Dios dispone" (ie, we have our plans, but God does as He wills). It's funny, but before I had my visa appointment, I wasn't feeling very excited about staying here much longer. But now that I have an actual set departure date, I'm getting a lot more nostalgic, and wishing I could stay just a little longer. =) Also, some things have gotten a lot better here socially and work-wise in recent times, so that also makes me wish I could stay a little more. But, I will also be happy to be in Kosovo and Germany, and then to be back in Boulder, work hard for a few months before hopefully heading to school next fall.

Last week Dr. Bishara put me in charge of revising the content of the Bible College website, which has proved to be very interesting. He said that he'd wished he'd realized before that I would be good at this kind of stuff (writing, proofreading, typing), he feels bad he didn't give me more work like this before I was about to leave. I'm also teaching the 3rd year English class here, which is challenging and fun (at least it's fun for me, I hope it's fun for the students too). =) Meanwhile, there are lots of contacts that I've either made recently or have been sitting on, but now that I'm leaving I have a lot of people to visit. I hope to make it up to Galilee before I leave, amidst other places. Sunday we went to Jericho, which was really nice, and the day before I went with Bishara to Herzliye, a town on the beach just north of Tel Aviv, where he spoke at an international church. That's one nice thing about being the driver--though of course I wish that Palestinians could drive without so many restrictions, it does mean I get to go places I might not otherwise. =)

So, it'll be a busy next three and a half weeks. But I'm really happy that God has brought some good stuff to my life here the last few weeks, so that I feel like I'm leaving on a positive note. I know I'll miss a lot of things here--hearing Arabic pop music, Hebrew country rock, Arab disco, and all the other crazy musical mixtures on the radio here--not to mention eating hummus and falafel, walking through the refugee camps, worshiping God in Arabic and Hebrew, seeing Palestinian and Israeli kids playing around (not usually together, unfortunately). I'll miss my Hebrew classes, the people I met there and the exposure to Israeli language and culture. I'll miss reading or watching international news and realizing they're talking about places I walk by every day (though sometimes I wish the news weren't happening). By the time I leave, I might even decide that I'll miss walking by and saying "Shalom," "Todah, erev tov" to the Israeli soldiers at the checkpoint!

May the Lord bear fruit in the midst of my running around these last few weeks, and may He continue to plant seeds for future involvement in the region as He wills.

God bless you all,

Seth