“Every morning, I know the sun will rise, and it climbs. Every morning, I hope for peace, and it remains elusive. Peace seems never to want to begin, unlike war.”
~ Arnaud Alibert ¹
Before the seperatist cordoning-off of that little area now known as ‘Israel’ in 1948 – that area alongside all of the other areas demarcated from then on as to remain in ‘Palestine’, that is, the entire composite of both areas combined – was simply called “Palestine”, and it was for centuries, accepted as such by Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike.
Now, this new-fangled demarcation war which btw, started with that 1948 seperatist carving up of the entire region into two distinct, segregated areas, is the cause of a massive disaster for the whole region we know and love as “The Holy Land”. Why can’t everyone just simply get over these seperatist squabbles and return to a non-partisanal, non-fracticidal peacable co-existance, the likes of which predominated by and large in the region, for centuries before 1948? That’s not to say Palestine was completely free of strife, of all conflict. No! There were in fact, from time to time, political disputes of one sort or another but none of these (perhaps with the exception of the tribal conflicts and imperial wars of ancient times) were ever on the scale of what we have witnessed since the carving up of the region in 1948.
For literally centuries, neither Jews, Christians or Muslims living there ever thought of themselves as anything other than “Palestinians” anyhow. And now there’s this huge gaping-jaws-of-hell gulf that’s opened up, making trivial squabbles over titular designations, squabbles which had prior to 1948, absolutely no place in the area before. But now these are “a cursed thing” that starts one war after another! Get over it guys!! The whole thing should never have become incendary in the first place. And whoever has “cast the first stone” needs to own up and take responsibility for having done so and stop taking further aim because the only thing that will solve this whole thing, is for every party to every interest to sit down and talk it out with every other party. And this needs to be done over and over and over – actually, it needs to become a habit – a good, solid, healthy habit of lauding reconciliatory initiatives above fracticidal ones.
With the current situation of carved-up territories and different governments that are not all that open to the kind of solutions proposed here, or where there is a case of one major ruling party not at all open but others who are, the issue becomes complicated and any attempt at initiating reconciliatory processes are routinely stifled by the stubborn-willed negativity of the governing party not open to these kind of processes.
And what’s more is, with a political situation of governance that’s set up in such a way whereby these so-called elected representatives don’t even provide the avenues or means for the people themselves from each and every party or interest to come together and discuss with these representatives about the interests of each group, then it becomes clear that the vast majority of the population do not have any real say in how such processes are handled or carried out or whether they happen at all, which of course they obviously aren’t happening at all right now anyhow otherwise you wouldn’t have the Gaza conflict.
So what has changed so significantly that a regional name accepted unquestioningly for centuries could so abruptly, almost overnight, and without much if any prior ado or indication become such an incendary trigger of division and war?
I’d like to propose a hypothesis that could help explain the backstory a little more clearly. And it’s about a sudden & unexpected manifestation of the collective unconscious whereby the pressure in the centuries-old cooker has reached beyond 100% on the thermostatic guage. And therefore, it is here we need to ask a pivotal question: What’s in a Name? Bearing in mind too, that pivotal questions almost always elicit pivotal answers, we will say in response to this question that for Jews, whose ancestral homeland is there in Palestine, layer upon layer upon layer of sediment which holds within it deeply entrenched histories drenched in the sufferings and tears of the colonized, afflicted, oppressed, dominated, exploited, downtrodden, enslaved, usurped, exiled, surfeited, blighted, maimed, with peace & liberty unrequited…..could all very well lie beneath the surface of the mid to late 20th and early 21st century Jewish collective memory associated with this name. And we can impart to this too the symbology of a pressure cooker that has finally blown its top. For the name Palestine, in the collective unconscious of a great many contemporaneous Jews bears an unlimited number of connotations which hark back to a time when the empires of Greece and Rome ruled the entire region absolutely, albeit at times with the aided strategy of indirect rule but more or less in absolutist terms. And it is too because the name Palestine has Latin etymological origins, that it has become associated to a certain extent in the modern Orthodox Jewish psyche with Roman colonial rule and the oppressive domination of foreign powers, that the seperatists of 1948 wanted to shirk it off, as incidentally many of their African neighbours around the same time were also doing vis-a-vis the respective names given their countries by foreign powers.
So we see at work here a completely human reason for these name games as it were. There is not one inkling of divine inspiration in any of this name shaming at all.² While I can completely sympathize with the plight of all those hearts who endured centuries of ill-treatment at the hands of externally imposed (and sometimes too, internally invited), colonial masters, there is nothing whatsoever to be gained in terms of achieving any lasting peace if the modern-day descendants of the colonized are not willing to take some measure of responsibility for the fact that their ancestors did corrupt political things that opened up doorways as it were, to let even bigger foes in. Take the example of Africa and the Atlantic slave trade. It is hugely popular in many university Humanities and Social Science departments to promote the theory that Africa innocently bore the brunt of European colonization which rode on the back of the Atlantic slave trade. What these popular myths do not ever let loose on is the mirey truth that Africa itself bears much historical responsibility for this evil trade in forced human labour trafficking across the Atlantic a few centuries ago. Slavery was actually rife on the African continent prior to the influx of European pirates to the shores of Ivory Coast and other nearby African port cities. European piracy was also a sought after mercantile negotiator in the corrupt minds of many African warlords. Hence the bargaining of slaves between these two mercantile interests, one local, the other foreign. Now, harking back to Palestine, we see a similar scenario of politico-economic depedance emerge between various imperial powers and Biblical Israel, with Rome being the last of these to see to it a swift end came to the localized unity of the nation of Judah. If you remember rightly that Judah was now, in Roman times, an already seperated nation from the rest of Israel. Incidentally, the rest of Israel was sent packing because of their being conquered by Assyria. In fact, a great part of the reason for being conquered in this context was they made so many bawdy and unGodly compromises with Assyria to the point where they kowtowed to the idolatrous practices of the Assyrians, liberally incorporating this worship of pagan idols into their own spiritual life, going utterly against the direct commands of God as expressed through the words of the Prophets. And then came the extinguishment, banishment, and exile from the land. We know these people in history today as “the Lost Tribes of Israel”. So, it takes a lot more than simply the avarice and haughtiness of an empire to enable that empire to wreak its havoc. Sometimes it takes politico-economic wrangling, wheeling and dealing from both sides (the colonizers and the colonized), which then lends to a intercultural matrix being established. Within this matrix is usually a series of bargains or compromises. In the African situation it was the mercantile trading of local African slaves to be exported to the New World and other parts of the globe where Great Britain and a smattering of other European powers had interests. It must be remembered however, that the “interests” mentioned here were by and large much more benign and above board than the importing of slaves. Slavery, although publically known, was behind the scenes a bi-product of piracy. Essentially, the point I am trying to hit home on here is that while the modern Jewish psyche is in the throes of a great upsurge of repressed collective memory, and sure, this memory is full of grief and bitterness that has its roots in a tragic and tumultuous past filled with the smoke of battle, the terror of forced slavery and exile, (and I say all of this too as someone who hails from Jewish heritage on my mother’s side of the family) real healing will not come until people are willing to make this healing journey a personal one in their own lives. And that is the difference between actually dealing with the trauma in a beneficial way, (one that actually brings true healing and recompense) and dealing with it in an abject fashion whereby you remain stuck in a heart full of malice wanting to exact the thuggery of vengence upon every other group or interest you see that is ‘foreign’ to yours because you cannot see that the way of real peace does not consist of either giving up your own unique expression of who you are as a people so that you can then, and only then make an artificial ‘peace’ with your neighbours OR exacting vengance upon them for simply wanting to “share some living space” with you. No. Real and lasting peace is achieved by each and every person going inwards and looking at who they are, and who they want to become, in light of who God sees them as. It consists of first finding the freedom within to honestly face the truth that the trauma your heart is going through can only become a thing of the past by bringing your whole body and soul – that is the composite of your physical makeup with that of your mind and emotional core – to bare it before the Lord God and say “I need You to show me the Way to go, I need You to show me how to fix that which I cannot fix.” And He will. But unless you are willing to take that first step of humbling yourself before the Lord and get on your hands and knees before him bearing the honest truth of rawness within the deepest parts of your heart, the healing process cannot truly begin for you because you are wanting to remain hardened and fixed into a position of solely focussing upon externals – seeing extrinsic carnally-focussed means as ‘the way’ to deal with these issues when in fact harnessing those abject means will only make things worse. This is the real roots of why the modern Jewish psyche cannot see past the past positively because it is stuck in a negative psychological “feedback-loop” relationship with that past. And the only way to break free from that is for each and every person of Jewish heritage to begin that very personal healing journey of humble acknowledgement before the Lord of Hosts. This IS a huge ask. But in the long run, it’s worth it, because God will bless efforts that sincerely endeavour to put Him and His interests, His relationship with you personally at the center of your life, of everything you are, everything you do, and everything you become. For this is the only way out of war, the only way towards establishing a true and lasting peace. See, there is a difference also between compromising the integrity of one’s soul with “the idolatrous ways of the world”, and making little healthy adjustments in the way we relate to others so that a more harmonious but uncompromised relationship between us and them can develop. It’s harmonious because we can relate well and whole to them. It’s uncompromised because we haven’t traded our own unique way of being ourselves for something else that is not “the us” God wants us to be.
This brings us to the other side of the story in the name game, to the paradoxial countertheme that ultimately saves the day for everyone, including Biblical Israel, which btw, ought not to be confused with the modern state of Israel for these are in fact two very different things. This “other side of the story” is that the name Palestine holds the collective memory of a rich abiding historical tradition anchored deep within the Catholic faith and so it is in and through the rare and ineffible beauty of this tradition that we find our unique source of rootedness in the ancient Promise inherent in Christianity from which spiritual strength, sustenance, and abundant healing flows. And this is a conviction that is rooted deep within the core of my own inner makeup. I am testifying here how my own spiritual journey has impacted my understanding of the bigger picture emergent in our world today. And throughout the context of this essay, I have used the lexical designations of “us/we” and “I” to denote the personal relationship I share with both my Jewish heritage and Catholic faith. Yes, there is both a “us/we” and an “I” there because it is both collective and personal. Further, this is why we must fight only the “good fight” that St Paul talks about – for our weapons and our warfare are not carnal (and therefore, ought not to be carnal inasmuch as many are so apt at making them) – we are not meant to be fighting persons but rather principalities and powers. And because we are to uphold peace with all peoples (insofar as that peace is possible), we must do all we can to seek and work for this peace through Godly reconciliation – never war, military strife. War is the antithesis of the Gospel and its message. War must never be in our hearts, on our lips or in our actions as our beloved Pope Francis is always adamant to say. When St Paul mentioned “warfare”, he always used this term referentially to describe the spiritual battle that we, as people who commit our lives to following Jesus, must engage in during the everyday course of our earthly existence.
A Prayer for Peace
Lord Jesus Christ,
You are the true King of peace.
In You alone is found freedom.
Please free our world from conflict.
Bring unity to troubled nations.
Let Your glorious peace reign in every heart.
Dispel all darkness and evil.
Protect the dignity of every human life and guard the sacredness of your entire creation.
Replace hatred with Your love.
Give wisdom to world leaders.
Free them from selfish ambition.
Eliminate all violence and war.
Glorious Virgin Mary,
Saint Michael the Archangel,
Every angel and saint:
Please pray for peace.
Pray for unity amongst nations.
Pray for unity amongst all people.
Pray for the most vulnerable.
Pray for those suffering.
Pray for the fearful.
Pray for those most in need.
Pray for us all.
Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, hear our prayers.
Jesus, I trust in You!
Amen.
Other References:
¹”I will Write Peace” https://international.la-croix.com/opinions/i-will-write-peace?at_source=piano&at_medium=email&at_campaign=11588&pnespid=GeQ7.1gB5joDlAyJ6suADF9GrRRjmrdv810TBa9fI8DKK02SDMe5Otg6SlHHnsjpleK_y0zF_A
²”Florida Jew opens fire, injures 2 Israeli tourists mistaken for Palestinians” https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hydrbolqkl
* “A Prayer for Peace” – Adapted from a prayer resource courtesy of the My Catholic Lifereflection app: https://api.appexecutable.com/mobile/download-app/appId/b3f8ec8cd837
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