THE PRECIOUS PEOPLE OF ST PHILLIP'S

 What can I say about the precious congregation at St Phillip's Episcopal and Good Shepherd in Rafedia.  Both are Anglican churches pastored by Father Ibrahim Nairouz.  In a city of thousands, there are only 700 Christians left.  They are divided up among four churches.  The Catholic church, the Greek Orthodox church, one other and the St Phillip's congregation. This is about as close to a perfect Christian community you could ever find.  They look out for one another, care for one another and provide protected family time and adventures for their congregations. 

There are hundreds of children, both Muslim and Christian in the area.  St Phillip's provides a school for all of them.  Each morning we awoke at 4am to the Muslim citywide call for prayer and then to the children in school below us later.  The church has a "gate keeper" so the children and their families are protected.  There is NO strife between Muslim and Christian.  In fact, Father Ibrahim's office assistant is Muslim and also the family that "keeps the gate" is a Muslim family. 

Fun singing songs before dividing into their Sunday School Classes

Some of our  workcamp girls....LOVE these sweeties!
 

I was a little confused at first when we were told that Sunday School would be on Friday morning.  Weekends for this group are different than ours.  The city is predominantly Muslim, so their "Sabbath" is on Fridays.  Public schools are off  Fridays and Saturdays....they have school on Sundays.  So, consequently, Sunday School is actually Friday School for all the children and teens. Regular worship service is held each Sunday morn at 11am like ours. 

Here is a link to a video of the older teens getting ready for a Christmas presentation:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10101464212483496&set=vb.25516352&type=2&theater

While we were there on Sunday, two special things happened.  The first was that the service was being broadcast throughout the Arab countries to other Christians.  This is done about once every few months so that other Christians can enjoy having services in their homes.  Allie was asked to take part in the service by reading the scripture in English after it was read in Arabic.

Secondly, a new team from EAPPI (a branch of the World Council of Churches) was visiting St Phillip's for the service.  Every three months a team of about 12 -15 young people from around the world (mostly Scandinavian countries) comes to Nablus.  They are there as observers and recorders.  They literally put themselves between the "settlers" and the city.  An international presence deters the settlers from attacking the city's people, buildings and olive trees.  They also do things like walk children to school in the local villages where they are sometimes harassed by Israeli soldiers and their dogs.  God bless these people.  It is a dangerous task....and a selfless one. 

The older teens help mentor the younger children.  The church gives the families a connection to each other and helps to provide a sense of normalcy for the people in this crazy oppressed situation they live in. 

Celebrating birthdays in the month of November out on the playground

 

Part of the youth group from St Phillips



Fun with pretty girls on the church steps

Some of the boys in the church school kindergarten class

Ameed swinging the children & helping them get almonds out of the trees

 

Here is a video of the children singing during Sunday School.  Much is the same everywhere....the teens are sitting on the back pews.....Sami is separating a couple rambunctious boys :)

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10101464205746996&set=vb.25516352&type=2&theater

 

Father Ibrahim Nairouz delivering the homily

 

THE BAPTISM

Allie and I were exhausted. She was on the tail end of some sort of flu she had gotten on the plane from ATL to home.  I was starting to feel the beginnings of it in my nose and head.  The Nairouz family was planning to attend the Greek Orthodox baptism of a little cousin and we were invited to tag along. 

We all headed for Ramallah to the Nairouz home.  Where they live in Nablus is actually "the rectory" for the family.  They have their own family home in Ramallah.  Khalil attends school in Ramallah, so he actually lives there during the week and comes home on weekends. 

Allie and I bravely went into the kitchen to ask to stay at home and rest while their family went to the service and celebration.  I must thank Vera for insisting that we go....she wouldn't go without us!  Looking back, staying and resting at the house would have been a mistake that we would have regretted. 

Above, is a photo of the actual baptismal service.  The baby is quickly immersed three times representing the Trinity.  Then the little one is dressed in angelic clothes and everyone moves to the front of the church for the confirmation. 



Father Ibrahim's mother with their little cousin



Once the service was over, we made our way to the local Catholic church hall for the celebration.  There was a live band, lots of food & drink, and LOTS OF DANCING.  The father of the baby didn't stop dancing the whole evening as you can see by the pictures below!  It was again, a rare opportunity to be with the people of Palestine and celebrate with them.  It was an evening neither of us will ever forget!

CLICK ON THIS LINK TO SEE DAD DANCING THROUGH THE EVENING!
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10101464276674856&set=vb.25516352&type=2&theater



 

 

 

 

 

 

CLICK ON THIS LINK TO SEE ONE OF THE LITTLE COUSINS DANCING!!

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10101464270262706&set=vb.25516352&type=2&theater

THE WALL

 
"The Wall" is one of the most gut wrenching structures I have ever seen.  Most of these pictures are from an area just before Bethlehem.  The Israelis say they need it for security.  They have been cruelly creative in separating families, friends and neighbors.  The wall is a reminder of a people occupied and oppressed. 

You must have permission to go past the wall.  You must explain to your children why they live inside a wall.  There are pleas of freedom written all over the walls.  There are tall towers in strategic places in the wall with armed soldiers watching every move of the people below. 

Deemed too imposing for tourists and visitors in some areas, it has been replaced by neatly lined wire fences with small little white boxes about every 20 meters.  I asked what they were.  The fences flow with enough electricity to kill of touched. The little white boxes are sensors that fire bullets automatically should anyone venture too close.  There are sections of protective walls that have shards of glass embedded in the top so that should anyone try to crawl over, they would be severely cut.

The wall is rarely in a straight line.  It weaves in and out of cities and neighborhoods.  We met a shop owner in old Jerusalem that had done business in his shop for 90 years.  He and his father would walk from their home to their place of business each day.  The Israelis constructed the massive wall only meters from the back door of his home....dividing him from neighbors he had grown up with.  Now he must get up 3 hours earlier each day and walk to a checkpoint to finally get to his shop. 

 

The red line in the above photo is of the separation wall as it will look upon completion.  They have been constructing it since 2005 and continue to build and build. 

You may click on the link below to see Allie's video as we drove along a narrow street that ran along the wall. It is hundreds of miles of concrete.  There are really no words to describe it.  I will write about the "checkpoints" on a later blog. 

ALLIE'S VIDEO OF "THE WALL"

 

VIDEOS of PALESTINE :)

Here are links to two videos.  Just click on the underlined area to get to them:


We were at the Quafiti home one evening with the whole gang of workcampers and Merna's family.  Apparently there is a popular song by our equivalent to Celene Dion about a girl named ALIA.  They put the CD on and began singing to her!

The Gang Singing to Allie

 

We visited a classroom of kindergartners at St Philip's.....
Kindergartners At St Philip's Episcopal School

STORIES OVER THE DINNER TABLES

 

 
Above are pictures of Workcamper Fadi and his family.  Mom is the director of community relations for the local hospital and Fadi's dad is a chemistry teacher in the public school system.  The food we had there was scrumptious!  Always there is discussion over the meals of past and present.  In this blog I will tell you a few of the stories we heard.

In 1948 in the coastal city of Jaffa, a young Palestinian man worked in the shipyard.  When the Israelis invaded they warned the workers to leave or they would throw nets over them.  Calling their bluff, the workers did not leave and nets were thrown.  All were killed but a handful.  The young man was one of the workers killed.  His small son fled inward toward Nablus with his grandparents.  Both grandparents died along the walk, leaving the 10 year old grandson to fend for himself.  That young boy's name was IBRAHIM NAIROUZ.....Father Ibrahim's grandfather and namesake. 

In the 1970s, Sami was throwing stones at the Israeli army.  They started chasing him.  Sami was faster because he had no weapons or gear, so he fled to the house of someone in  town.  They lady of the house pulled the refrigerator out from the wall, pushed Sami into the corner and them pushed the refrigerator back.  The soldiers came to the door adamant that they saw Sami run into the house.  They searched and didn't find him.....so Sami escaped a trip to prison. 

Also in 1948, we heard a story from Workcamp Majd's grandfather.  He was a young teenage boy at the time.  When the Israeli army was headed toward Nablus, he was given a whistle and a yardstick and told to guard the border.  He was instructed to blow the whistle to let those in town know they were coming.  He laughs now at the idea of rebuffing the Israeli army with a whistle and a stick.

Sami was taken from his home for a 3 day stint in an Israeli prison once.  They were made to sit on a "block" for three days....no standing, no moving, no laying down.  The first two days they were given no food.  The last day, they were given the scraps from the plates of the Israeli soldiers guarding them.  At the end of three days, he was told to go home and given no reason for his imprisonment.  When he applied for a visa to come to Workcamp, he was asked why he was imprisoned for those three days.  His reply, "I was hoping you would be able to give me the reason!"

In 2002, Father Ibrahim was sitting on the family's small balcony  having tea in Ramallah, when an Israeli sniper fired at him from a distance. The bullet bounced off the metal door frame and grazed his leg.  Apparently they gunmen were just trying to pick off any Palestinians outside their homes that they could single out.  The dent in the doorway still exists....I ran my hand across it. 

The same happened to a young Muslim woman.  We were told the story by her sister.  The woman was working in her kitchen in 2002 and taking care of her young children.  A sniper shot through the window and killed her in her own home. 

Visiting Workcamp Alaa with his family in their home in Nablus

A quick visit with Ibrahim Jeries in his home built underneath Alaa's

Lunch With the Kawwa Family & Old Nablus

 
When we arrived at Workcamp Lilian's apartment, her dad, Samer, was hanging out the window to greet us!  Most families have extended family living with them.  No land is available, so the buildings grow taller with the next generation building above.
I knew Lilian was quite a spitfire and was told she took after her father. (Lilian is in pink....her dad standing in front of the door)  Her parents met when they were in university together.  He has been politically active all his life.  He and Sami have been friends for almost a lifetime.  Several stories were rolling around the lunch table.

In the 70s Sami and Samer were arrested together after the six days war.  They along with 46 others were held in a room the size of my kitchen for 17 days.  They were fed the scraps from the plates of the Israeli soldiers.  They slept like sardines on the floor with no gaps between them.  Each morning the soldiers would count them to make sure no one had escaped.  They did this by marching on the chests of the men lying on the floor and counting with each marching step.  When new men would arrive, they had them strip so they could spray them with a de-licing spray....and after the soldiers finished a cigarette, they would put out the hot end on the skin of the prisoners. 
During this meal they told us of the "BINGO" list.  This is a list that the Israeli officials have of local activists.  During any holiday, parade, or celebration, Israeli soldiers would enter homes during the dark of night and take away fathers, sons, uncles, grandfathers....anyone they thought might speak out during the public gatherings.  Lilian's dad was ALWAYS picked up.  If the "BINGO" list was leaked in any way, they formed a calling tree to let people know they were on the list and needed to hide out until the soldiers stopped searching. 
One time the Israelis picked up Father Ibrahim as a young man.  After some exchanges of words, the guard handed Father Ibrahim back his papers.  Little did he know, but he had also handed him the top secret "BINGO" list.  Needless to say, they started calling everyone on the list to let individuals know that the soldiers were coming for them! He still has that list tucked away today...
The meal was delicious....like a giant Philly sandwich with grilled onions and peppers.  Everyone ate this dish with their hands, dipping it into fresh yogurt.  Our conversations at this table were deep and difficult.  Mr. Kawwa has been through so very much.  He reminded me very much of my father, a Vietnam vet that had a soft heart, but life had required him to be tough and hard. 



The oldest barber in Nablus...

Samer and Lilian led us through the streets of Old Nablus.  It was like stepping back in time....Cobblestone streets, venders selling their wares.  He took us to an antique store and showed us all of the old things that he loved.  We bought some of the famous olive oil soaps .  As it grew dark venders still recognized this man and greeted him as we walked along city streets.  I recalled the big
red warning sign we had seen our first night telling us not to enter this area because of danger.  All that we experienced here were warm smiles and tight hugs...

STILL MORE WEDNESDAY :)

 

We left the church and headed up Mount Gerizim, the holy mountain where the Samaritan village is.  Pictures above show Father Ibrahim looking down on Nablus from atop the mountain, and his daughter, Ranim to the right.  The beautiful palace on one of the hills belongs to the wealthiest man of Nablus.  He is responsible for building the new university and hospital in Nablus.  He's an incredibly generous man with a heart for his Palestinian brothers and sisters. 
As we wound our way to the top, we went through a closed checkpoint. Settlers have found there way to this mountain...they are also employed to work at an ancient excavation site.  As we entered the village, there was a museum and the sacrificial area for worship and slaughtering offerings just as they have done for thousands of years.  As of 2012, there were only 751 of this sect of people in the world.  To try to explain their history would take a whole blog unto itself, so I suggest going to the following link from a reporter or using Wikipedia for information. 
We were invited into the home of one of the high officials and made welcome for Allie's visit and interview.  He talked of his linage and family tree traced back to Adam as his son and grandchildren ran in and out of the house.  His wife came in long enough to serve us tea and wrapped sweets.  There are strict laws about touching and eating certain foods. 
I asked about the wire rack above our heads in the living room and his son flipped open his phone to show us a picture.  During Passover, the rack is filled with a large design made of fruit that is share by the family during the holidays.  Although they accept only the first 5 books of the Bible and claim their lineage from the tribe of Levi and the son's of Joseph, they are quick to reprimand if called Jewish. 

 

If you want to learn more about this group here is a link also:
http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2009/06/03/visiting-the-samaritans-on-their-holy-west-bank-mountain/



The family graciously allowed us to take photos in the living room.  This was truly a rare opportunity.  We gathered up our things and headed down the mountain to meet some of the workcamp gang to visit the university where they attend school. 

 

The An-Najah National University is right in the center of Nablus.  The old campus has quickly become overcrowded, so a Palestinian philanthropist built a new campus and also a hospital where the medical students also serve internships.  Nidal, Fadi, Ranim and Ameed all attend classes here.  The curriculum is outstanding.  We were taken around to all the buildings by our workcampers and a host guide from the university.  Out of over 20,000 students only just over 50 are Christians.  The university , like the city is predominantly Muslim.  It's beautiful and full of life.  Below are photos of the campus and our tour group....so impressive, and they are so proud of the campus!