June 28, 2005
06/27 Jerusalem/Massada - Day Six
There is a church in the city called Notre Dame of Jerusalem. In 1955 it was located on the edge of no-man's land between Israel and the Jordanian occupied territory of East Jerusalem. Inside the church was an elderly nun who leaned out the window to sneeze and accidentally "blew out" her false teeth. They fell several stories and landed on the ground in between the fences of no-man's land.
The nun wanted them back. In 1955 it wasn't an easy thing to make diplomatic connections. They couldn't just pick-up the phone and call the proper authorities. Letters of inquiry had to be written and sent. Wires had to be sent to Geneva. Permission to enter the demilitarized zone had to be granted. Several days passed after the initial request was formally made to retrieve the pair of false teeth. Finally, a small detachment of Israelie soldiers under a white flag of truce and a small group of UN peacekeepers under the light-blue flag of the UN walked carefully along the fence and found the missing teeth. They marched back into Israel, and into the church and proudly gave the nun her teeth.
This was an amazing story told by our guide today. What's even more amazing is that this kind of bizarre behavior has been the norm between Israel and her neighbors for the last fifty years.
Life is difficult here. You can't just simply reach out and retrieve your false teeth for crying out loud.
The only hope for this land is reconciliation. And the only ministry for the Christian faith that makes sense to me is that the Church be a bridge-builder for both sides - Palestinians and Israelis alike.
Jesus said, "Blessed be the peacemakers ... they shall be called sons of God." The peace of Christ is what we all need.
Posted by roger at June 28, 2005 01:52 PM