I just finished reading Blood Brothers, by Elias Chacour. I never knew much about the Israeli-Palestinian history and fighting other than that they both lay claim to the same land. This book, a short, quick read, is written by a Christian Palestinian who was a child in the late 1940s when the Zionists took over what is now Israel. He recalls the soldiers coming to his village and warning that the villagers were in danger. They were to leave everything behind and head for the hills - and the soldiers would protect their homes and tell them when it was safe to return. They were never allowed back. It's a heartbreaking story.
Elias was sent to live in a city orphanage so he could be educated. He eventually went to seminary and became a priest. He is currently the Archbishop of Galilee of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church and works for peace and understanding between Jews and Palestinians.
In the western world, I think we most often see Palestinians as the bad guys. This true story shows another perspective. However, the point is not to turn the tide on the Israelis but to promote peace and reconciliation. It explains the history and puts faces to those involved in the ongoing war.
I would highly recommend this read! Anyone want to borrow my copy?
-Liz :)
Good review, Liz. Chacour's pretty amazing. We seem to have misplaced or loaned and lost our copy, so I bought another one recently and loaned that one out...
ReplyDeleteIn my not-so-humble opinion, his second book, "We Belong to the Land" is even better. We have a couple copies of that, if you're interested.
When you remember to bring me the other book you said you'd loan me, you can bring me this one too:)
ReplyDelete