Mending Divides

In this episode of the Everyday Peacemaking Podcast, hosts Osheta Moore and Jer Swigart discuss the centrality of the table as the most important furniture used in the work of peacemaking. Jer shares an incredible story from his recent trip to the front lines of the conflict in Burma, where a shared meal revealed the belovedness of former enemies. Osheta helps apply Jer’s story to the everyday tables we are a part of, encouraging us to use what we have, lower our expectations, embrace a slower pace, and make room for one another. They also reflect on the role of the interpreter at the table, the person helping heart-level communication happen. The conversation culminates with an invitation to consider what our “other” might need to hear that disarms their walls and makes space for our shared humanity to come forward.

Learn more about us at globalimmerse.org

Support our work: globalimmerse.org/donateTurning Over Tables theme music courtesy of The Brilliancewww.thebrilliancemusic.com 

As we step into 2024, Osheta and Jer invite us beyond New Year’s resolutions into a journey of intentional self-reflection. In a year already marked by “anti” sentiments, they aim to shift their focus towards what they aspire to be “for”. Embracing the belovedness of each person, they discuss loving their enemies and the necessary shifts in their lives to better love their neighbors. They emphasize the importance of remaining curious about others and acknowledge the challenge of letting go of relationships and spaces that no longer serve their formation as peacemakers. Join us as we embark on making peacemaking a habit in 2024.

Learn more and participate in the Gaza Ceasefire Pilgrimages this Lent at gazaceasefirepilgrimage.com

Learn more about us at globalimmerse.org

Support our work: globalimmerse.org/donateTurning Over Tables theme music courtesy of The Brilliancewww.thebrilliancemusic.com

Peacemaker Ben McBride joins Jer for this soul-stirring conversation about the interior formation of peacemakers in 2024. With the humanity and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. as a springboard, they grapple with the idea that the social transformation we’re dreaming of will not be realized in our lifetime. They wrestle with the stark contrast of peacemaking work fueled by anger versus animated by love and candidly consider who our “enemy” really is. Finally, Ben gives a prophetic invitation to us all in response to the question: What kind of peacemaker do you want to be in 2024?

Ben's website: benmcbride.com

Purchase Troubling the Water: benmcbride.com/the-book

Follow Ben on Facebook: facebook.com/benjmcbride

Follow Ben on Instagram: instagram.com/officialbenmcbride/

Learn more about us at globalimmerse.org

Support our work: globalimmerse.org/donateTurning Over Tables theme music courtesy of The Brilliancewww.thebrilliancemusic.com 

This Advent, while global Christians prepare to commemorate the arrival of the Prince of Peace, our Palestinian kin in Gaza suffer unthinkable violence. Their cries for deliverance, echoing those of two millennia ago, seem to be falling unheard in the United States. To see their pain and hear their cries, US Christians must move beyond information to transformation...from webinar to worship.

On December 23, the special worship gathering "Christ in the Rubble" was live-streamed from Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, featuring this sermon by Rev. Dr. Munther Isaac.  Central to this liturgy of lament is the prophetic message that if Jesus was born today, he would be born "under the rubble."

[Co-organized by Red Letter Christians, Christ at the Checkpoint Conference, Bethlehem Bible College and Churches for Middle East Peace; supported and sponsored by kindred organizations]

In our ongoing Virtual Immersion series, we engage in a thought-provoking conversation with Rabbi David Jaffe from the Kirva Institute.

Delving into the complex landscape of the Gaza-Israel conflict, we navigate through the lenses of antisemitism, Islamophobia, trauma, and power dynamics. Rabbi Jaffe brings a distinctive perspective to the forefront, shedding light on Jewish self-determination and advocating for a theology of power and sharing the land.

We candidly explore the imperative need for theological transformation within Judaism and Christianity, steering away from doctrines of dominance toward embracing our collective mandate of unprecedented hospitality and sacrificial love. The conversation culminates with the importance of maintaining human connections amid the conflict in order to be part of healing our wounded world.

02:30 October 7th

06:46 current war

15:17 anti-semitism

20:53 resisting binaries

24:54 theology

35:03 word to American Christians

The Virtual Immersion is a series of conversations to platform and amplify the experiences and insights of our Palestinian and Israeli friends and peacemaking partners. The live conversations first take place on Instagram Live @globalimmerse, and are then made available as podcast episodes. These are vulnerable, challenging conversations with peacemakers embedded within this war's trenches.

Learn more about us at globalimmerse.org

Support our work: globalimmerse.org/donate

Learn more about the Kirva Institute at rabbidavidjaffe.com/the-kirva-institute 

This Virtual Immersion features a conversation between Greg Khalil (@eternalvagabond) of @thetelosgroup and @jerswigart. It includes remarkable analyses of this current moment in Israel & Palestine, what made it both predictable and preventable, and the outcomes that global power brokers are pursuing. They discuss the power of language to shape realities that either move us toward or away from one another. They challenge us to break agreement with image management, performance, and platform-building if we want to be a part of ushering in a world of mutual flourishing. The conversation culminates with Greg issuing a prophetic call to American Christians to live into the extraordinary and very distinct power and influence we have to promote human security by demanding our own leaders defend human rights.

02:29 Greg intro

10:33 Unpacking this current moment

15:13 Jerusalem

24:05 Problematic Evangelical Theology

26:00 Use of language

36:01 US American Christians

49:03 Closing Reflection

The Virtual Immersion is a series of conversations to platform and amplify the experiences and insights of our Palestinian and Israeli friends and peacemaking partners. The live conversations first take place on Instagram Live @globalimmerse, and are then made available as podcast episodes. These are vulnerable, challenging conversations with peacemakers embedded within this war's trenches.

Learn more about us at globalimmerse.org

Support our work: globalimmerse.org/donate

Learn more about Telos: telosgroup.org 

Osheta and Jer wrestle with Advent and how it exemplifies our posture as Everyday Peacemakers. Osheta explores the gift of pondering as Mary did, waiting in expectation for God’s restoration. Jer confesses deep feelings of despair and discouragement as the violence seems to be winning. Together, they rediscover the deeper truth that in our world obsessed with power, the Advent story reminds us that true strength lies in vulnerability and that Christmas was always about powerlessness.

Learn more about us at globalimmerse.org

Support our work: globalimmerse.org/donateTurning Over Tables theme music courtesy of The Brilliancewww.thebrilliancemusic.com 

This special Virtual Immersion conversation is with two peacemakers, Robi Damelin (Israeli Jew) and Layla Alsheikh (Palestinian Muslim), bereaved mothers who share their stories of loss, reflect on the current horror in Israel and Palestine, and encourage us forward on the journey from revenge to reconciliation. Robi and Layla are members of the Parents Circle – a joint Israeli-Palestinian organization made up of more than 700 bereaved families. Their common bond is that they have lost a close family member to the conflict. But instead of choosing revenge, they have chosen a path of reconciliation.

This live conversation was held on November 13, 2023, in partnership with Feast World Kitchen, a Spokane-based nonprofit renowned for its elevation of immigrant chefs and former refugees. Feast took center stage on November 12 in a stirring act of solidarity. Five local chefs, united by their Israeli-Palestinian heritage, crafted a menu featuring traditional recipes from both cultures, showcasing unity amidst the turmoil in Israel and Gaza. The day’s proceeds were dedicated to the Parents Circle. The Parents Circle and Global Immersion have partnered in immersion experiences for American faith leaders in Israel/Palestine, empowering them for the vital work of peacemaking.

Here are five quick links to resources mentioned in the conversation.

1. 1. Parents Circle Jam Session, a collaboration of Israeli and Palestinian mothers and chefs: https://www.theparentscircle.org/en/pcff-communities_eng/pcff-women_eng/jam-session_eng/
2. 2. New York Times article by Nicholas Kristof featuring Parents Circle: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/08/opinion/israel-palestine-war-family-loss.html
3. 3. NPR Interview featuring Parents Circle: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2023/11/05/1209976575/israel-hamas-war-hope-empathy-personal-stories
4. 4. CNN article featuring Robi and Layla: https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/15/us/iyw-israeli-palestinian-hth/index.html
5. 5. An upcoming conversation on Israel/Gaza at Whitworth University in Spokane (11/30 @ 7p): https://forms.whitworth.edu/calendar/event/detail/4152
6.  

Here are the five next steps offered in the conversation:

1. 1. Host a viewing and/or share this conversation.
2. 2. Contact your Member of Congress to demand a ceasefire with this script: https://www.telosgroup.org/advocacy-call-script-call-your-member-of-congress-now/
3. 3. Reach to your Jewish and Muslim kin in your communities.
4. 4. Invest in and subscribe to organizations like Parents Circle, Feast, and Global Immersion that are training peacemakers, mobilizing healers, and incubating dreams.
5. - Parents Circle: https://parentscirclefriends.org/donate/
6. -Feast: https://www.feastworldkitchen.org/donate
7. -Global Immersion: https://globalimmersion.networkforgood.com/projects/206880-support-global-immersion
8. 5. Grow a more holistic, pro-human understanding of and response to the violence in Israel and Palestine by listening to other voices in our Virtual Immersion featuring peacemakers embedded in the trenches of this war on Global Immersion's Instagram and the other “Virtual Immersion” conversations in our podcast feed: https://www.instagram.com/globalimmerse/
9.  

The Virtual Immersion is a series of conversations to platform and amplify the experiences and insights of our Palestinian and Israeli friends and peacemaking partners. The live conversations first take place on Instagram Live @globalimmerse, and are then made available as podcast episodes. These are vulnerable, challenging conversations with peacemakers embedded within this war's trenches.

In our second Virtual Immersion conversation, we delve into the profound realms of Jewish trauma with Jared, a Jerusalem-based Jewish historian and theologian. Through his personal narrative on October 7th, Jared provides insights into the pervasive fear that extends throughout the Jewish community, exacerbated by the ongoing violence in Gaza—a consequence he attributes to the collision of unaddressed trauma and unchecked power.

Throughout our discussion, we explore various peacemaking themes. Jared emphasizes the influence of language in either reinforcing or dismantling oversimplified binaries and false equivalencies. We delve into the delicate balance between urgency and grief, contemplating how to navigate this tension effectively. We underscore the significance of speaking truth to power and advocating for societal change within our respective traditions, fostering engagement rather than disengagement.

Our conversation also touches on the paradoxical nature of attempting to eradicate an ideology with the very violence that gave rise to it. We highlight the imperative of cultivating a more comprehensive, pro-human understanding and approach in the face of crises. Finally, we speak to the power of acknowledging one’s fallibility—the recognition that we are never entirely right and are inherently prone to error.

The Virtual Immersion is a series of conversations to platform and amplify the experiences and insights of our Palestinian and Israeli friends and peacemaking partners. The live conversations first take place on Instagram Live @globalimmerse and are then made available as podcast episodes. These are vulnerable, challenging conversations with peacemakers who are embedded within the trenches of this war.

Follow Global Immersion on IG: https://www.instagram.com/globalimmerse/

Support our work: https://globalimmerse.org/donate/

Osheta and Jer delve into the challenges of bridging ideological differences when power differentials are at play. Osheta shares a challenging personal experience that kicks off the conversation, sparked by their interaction in Episode 2 where Jer shared a story about bridging differences with his dad.

They consider how to move beyond mere thought experiments to grasp the impact of our ideology on individuals from different social locations. Peacemaking is ultimately framed as a process of transformation where each party commits to becoming a better, more holistic, flourishing version of themselves. Key takeaways from this episode include recognizing power imbalances, prioritizing understanding the pain of others, and learning to move at the pace of trust.

This conversation is particularly relevant in the context of ongoing discussions about the Israel/Gaza conflict in light of the power differentials involved.

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Listen to the episode a few weeks ago when Jer shares about bridging differences with his dad, which sparked the conversation in this episode:

https://globalimmerse.org/blog/navigating-deep-disagreement-with-loved-ones-everyday-peacemaking-podcast-s5-ep-2/

Learn more about us at globalimmerse.org

Support our work: globalimmerse.org/donateTurning Over Tables theme music courtesy of The Brilliancewww.thebrilliancemusic.com