The decision by the Israeli government to remove settlers from some of the occupied territories is a welcomed if grossly overdue move and helps foster the cause of peace in the Middle East. Beliefnet blogger Jesse Kornbluth wrote yesterday:
A Day I Never Thought I'd See
August 18, 2005 | 6:30 p.m.
"The hardest part of making peace with your enemy," a boy at the Seeds for Peace camp said on the "Today" show, "is that you have to go to war with yourself."
But enough Israelis did that to make this great day possible. And rich Americans--most of them Jewish--have stepped up to provide millions of dollars to support Palestinian businesses, thus giving thousands of Arabs one less reason to hate their Jewish neighbors.
Of course there was resistance, some of it violent. And the ultimate outcome of Israel's evacuation of its settlements couldn't be more uncertain. No matter. For once on the planet, in a place where no one expected it, sanity has--however briefly--prevailed.
'Days of Awe.' Here they are, unfolding before us.
Amen, Jesse!
For more information on this issue visit Jewish Voice for Peace.
