Life and The Way to Knowing: Israel vs Palestine

Israel vs Palestine - Symptom of a Larger Problem

It seems to me that ever since I became old enough to care, the Middle East has been in conflict over the State of Israel. From its inception Israel has been surrounded by people hostile to the very idea of its existence and yet that existence is continually mired in the same morass of belief, tradition, emotion and struggle that has characterized other areas of the Middle East seemingly since the beginning of time. Let me here ask the obvious rhetorical question. Why is Israel different?

As a Christian I have long been captured by the allure of the "lands of the Bible" and while it pains me to see such upheaval, it comes as no real surprise. No matter what version of history you claim to believe, these areas have seen almost constant conflict on various scales for over 4,000 years. As a Bible believer I am reminded of prophecies, yet to be fulfilled, that foretell even further conflict and upheaval on a scale not yet seen.

There seems to be no solution and no prospect of the elusive and long sought after peace between Israel and its enemies. The ongoing situation has provided the impression of dividing nations while on an individual level I have seen it cause sharp divisions of opinion, some of the sharpest being between Christians themselves.

Tunnel Vision

Part of the problem is that a large portion of the world's population seems to have developed tunnel vision. We have taken sides and become immersed in our respective positions to such a degree that we can no longer see what is really going on. If we could for a time put our emotions aside, take a step back and consider the bigger picture we might be amazed at what we discover.

Loss of objectivity is unhelpful at the best of times but never more so in the conflict between Israel and its neighbors. The world is currently riding a tide of anti-Israeli sentiment that seems unprecedented and yet at the same time highly convenient. Take just one of the United Nations statements on the issue.

Geneva, July 6 – The United Nations Human Rights Council followed up its endorsement of the Davis Commission’s report on the 2014 Gaza conflict by telling Israel today that it must provide the Gaza Strip with the Iron Dome missile defense system to protect the territory from rockets launched within the territory that fail to reach Israel, putting Gaza residents at risk. “The investigation of Israel’s conduct in the 2014 conflict found blatant disregard for Palestinian civilian welfare,” read the Council’s statement. “That disregard of course included taking no measures whatsoever to shield the Gaza Strip civilian population from rockets fired by local militants. As the possessor of technology that enables such measures to be taken, Israel bears responsibility for not supplying that technology to the embattled Gazans.”1

Since the governing body in the Gaza strip is Hamas, which also happens to be the organisation firing the rockets and firing them from within its own population centers, this amounts to an imprecation that Israel should embark on the self-destructive policy of defending its enemies from themselves. Not only is there no precedent (that I am aware of) for such an action at any stage in the known history of the world, but no mention is made of UN-operated schools and public buildings in Gaza being used as rocket warehouses or the fact that in more than one case these weapons were handed back to Hamas2.

If we then consider Israel's actions we will see that it has not always embarked on the most ethical or humanitarian course of action both in times of conflict or peace. The continual issue of Jewish settlements seems specifically designed to separate and isolate portions of the West Bank thus preventing them from merging into a cohesive unity. Isolation of the Gaza strip from the West Bank deprives the Palestinian territories of much-needed access to a port and the outside world. So while playing the "we have consistently offered to make peace" card, Israel pursues strategic policy seemingly intended to destabilize and prevent the formation of a Palestinian State thus also undermining any possibility of peace.

In such a situation of moves, counter moves, promises and contrary actions any attempt at meaningful resolution becomes a somewhat nonsensical argument that is taking place under the guidance of the world's most influential nations. In fact one of the preconditions for resumption of peace talks with Israel was that the US should run them. As a long time ally of Israel, the US is hardly a neutral party. Logic seems to have no place in it and neither do ethics or morality since all these seem relative to a nation's political position of the moment. Perhaps it is time to take a look at what is really going on in the world.

Survival of The Empire

Without turning this into a too lengthy diatribe, my take on it is that the United States is the latest dominant world empire, taking over from the British empire following World War 2. The US will maintain its dominant position by any means necessary, while other powers attempt to undermine and destroy that dominance so that they might rise to fill the void. Unfortunately most of the world's population still have misplaced faith in the trustworthiness of their government, scientific institutions and media outlets. The result is they are fed a diet of sanitized information designed to reinforce the opinions that the power brokers want them to have. In the case of the western world this opinion would be that the US is the great bringer of peace, champion of democracy and defender of the free world. Nothing could be further from the truth.

In a Gallup Poll in 2014, the United States of America was voted the greatest threat to world peace by a significant margin3. One only has to study US policy in respect to other nations around the world to see that this is quite likely to be true. In fact the more one looks into it, the more examples one finds. Study of US policy and actions in regard to Nicaragua (Contras vs Sandanistas), Chile (Allende/Pinochet coup), Vietnam, and the current fallout from the "Arab Spring"4 events is particularly instructive.So how does a dominant empire maintain power?

Strategies

Work with those who have something you need (oil rich countries).
Destabilize those countries who could possibly become a challenge, either through their own power or self-reliance.
Control the population of your own country.

Tools

These aims are accomplished by using a number of tools and sub-strategies, among them:

Commercial, economic and financial embargoes against opposing countries
Support, supply and fund the in-country opposition
Covert military missions of numerous types
Control of the internal political process
Conducting illegal actions contrary to own policy when necessary
Managing the media (control what is reported)
Removal of individual freedoms

This is not an exhaustive list and in the interests of space I have not attempted to here substantiate these. Do your own research.

The overall basic idea is that we have the power so we set the rules. If you do not fall into line we will do whatever is necessary to make you do so or to destabilize you to the point of irrelevance. The policy must necessarily change for dealing with strong foreign nations like Russia, those we term allies, those that have something we need (Saudi Arabia's oil) and those that are particularly weak, can't hit back and against whom the most aggressive tactics can be used without legitimate fear of recrimination. The end goal, however, remains the same - survival of the empire.

Those of you Australians who think you are lucky you do not live in America obviously have not taken a good hard look at our own politics, media reporting or involvement in world affairs. There is a good reason Australia is a valued ally of The United States of America.

Christian Perspectives

So how as Christians should we react to this situation? There seems to be constant struggle against the forces of empire throughout society. People and organisations speak out against poverty, war, war crimes, abuse of human rights, etc. as we express our desire for all to be treated equally and fairly. Unfortunately we don't always see the poker game for what it is and often don't even have a seat at the table. Governments routinely trumpet their contributions in foreign aid, relief work and peace efforts through diplomacy while using aid as a bargaining chip to achieve compliance, and diplomacy as a smoke screen for covert destabilization.

If there is honesty, transparency and truth to be found it is not in human governments, democratic or otherwise. As a Christian I have a source of ultimate truth that I can trust in. Furthermore I have a road map for world events that tells me the current situation will continue and even get worse. The Bible tells me to obey the laws of the government, yet after all the above discussion how can this be a good thing? Because God allows it to be that way. It fits in with his plan. If the evils of the world could be vanquished by human means, the clock turned back on human suffering and misery, why does the Bible tell me the world in which I live is doomed to judgement and destruction? Only God can bring an end to sin and evil and He will do so according to His plan.

The first thing Christians can do is to lift up their heads and take a look around. Step back from your prejudices for a moment and begin to think critically. Put aside your emotion and logically assess what is going on in the world. Avoid where possible, becoming polarized in your views on worldly affairs for in so doing you risk losing objectivity - the ability to see and tell it like it is. The destiny of the world to undergo judgement and destruction may seem somewhat fatalistic leading you to ask "How can I make a difference?", or "What is the point?"

2Peter3:19 - The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

It seems to me that it is more important to find God than to live. By all means speak out against injustice, persecution and evil wherever you see it (within the limits of the law), do good to all who cross your path (especially those less fortunate than yourselves), for you are a witness of God and His son Jesus Christ in this world. But remember the end game (eternal life with Christ) and don't be subverted by the magic act of governments. Don't bring the power struggles of the world into the church by becoming irrevocably polarized in opinion. In-fighting among Christians over world events presents a false witness of Christ to the world.

Life and The Way to Knowing

Sunday 19 July 2015

Israel vs Palestine - Symptom of Larger Problem