We can all agree that Gaza is a mess, but how it all started, and what the mess is over, is up for debate. Israel recently shot more than fifty “protestors”, but some people claim that they were actually “terrorists”. It is almost pointless to argue about. We do know this – the shots fired will go down as an historic event in Israeli/Palestinian history. We also know this – violence begets more violence.

Part of the problem with Americans understanding the middle east could be our need for instant gratification and our short attention span. For us, Israel was founded so long ago that the Palestinians should just get over it. For them – this happened yesterday, and they will never get over it. Even though many Christian Americans can sympathize with Israel, most do not have the same strong feeling for that land as those who live there.

Phycologists suggest that even if an animal could speak English, we wouldn’t be able to understand it because our points of reference are so different. It is this problem that leads so many to jump to conclusions with regards to what is happening in the middle east. As much as we try, there are certain aspects of the Israeli and Palestinian struggle that we will never be able to fully comprehend.