Several years ago, I interviewed Bishop William Shomali, the Patriarchal Vicar for Jerusalem and Palestine, who shared with me the ongoing injustices imposed upon Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank by the Israeli government. And sadly, the situation is growing worse by the minute.
Bishop Shomali explained to me that among the serious hardships facing Palestinians is the Israeli imposed restrictions on movement. For example, he noted that Palestinians living in Bethlehem or Ramallah need to obtain a permit to go just six miles to Jerusalem. And permits are only given during principle feasts. He said the ongoing illegal building of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is an extremely serious roadblock to a peaceful solution.
According to Amnesty International “Swimming pools, well-watered lawns and large irrigated farms in Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories stand in stark contrast next to Palestinian villages whose inhabitants struggle to meet their essential domestic water needs. … In many places Palestinians receive water only one day per week or every few weeks, in some areas not for months at a time.”
Bishop Shomali told me that “Gaza is the worst case! It is an open-air prison.” With the blockade, Israel completely controls who and what comes and goes in Gaza. Bishop Shomali said that Hamas’ tunnel building in preparation for war against Israel and their numerous attacks against Israelis is also morally wrong. The many violent Israeli injustices against Palestinians, and Hamas’ violent counterattacks upon Israelis, is a vicious cycle that can only be broken with peace, he said.
To correct these injustices, Bishop Shomali said Israel needs to participate in good-faith negotiations toward the two-state solution: the establishment of an independent viable Palestinian nation coexisting peacefully with a fully recognized state of Israel.
He emphasized the two-state solution continues to be firmly supported by the Holy See. Regrettably, there is virtually no U.S. or Israeli support for the two-state solution.
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. warned, “Violence begets violence; hate begets hate; and toughness begets a greater toughness. It is all a descending spiral, and the end is destruction–for everybody. Along the way of life, someone must have enough sense and morality to cut off the chain of hate.”
Let us storm Heaven with personal prayers, group prayers, and petitions in the Prayer of the Faithful during Mass–for peace between Israel and all Palestinians.
