Praying for Peace

Andrew Wilson
October 4,2010

Dear friends of peace,

Since I'm not only an academic but also a religious guy, I've been praying regularly for peace in the Middle East. I hope many of you are also keeping the current peace talks in your prayers, especially during this critical week when the settlement issue is threatening to derail the talks.

I have been praying especially for Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu. I've also been praying for Mahmoud Abbas, and for the children of Gaza. One of the points I received in prayer is that Netanyahu and Abbas, who are both in the parental position to their peoples, could better unite if they feel some parental concern for the children of their counterpart. I sensed some movement of heart along these lines a year or two ago when I heard about delegations of Palestinians visiting Auschwitz, so that they could understand the pain of a generation of Jews who lost their parents, siblings and children in the Holocaust. It would also be good if as Jews, we could sympathize with the pain of lost generations of Palestinians stuck in the camps -- this is not to assess/assume blame but just to feel for their situation -- children who are left in limbo and hopelessness. This applies particularly to the children of Gaza. The prayers of parents who can love not only their own children but also their enemy's children can be particularly effective.

Central to my prayer has been to ask God, what does God want for Israel? What should be the future of the settlements, for example? What kind of outcome could satisfy both sides, something that God wishes to lead them towards? Thus for example, I received that Abbas's move to have talks with the Arab league is a good thing, supporting God's hope for a more durable peace that would involve all nations in the region. That outcome would be better for Israel's long-term security.

I also received that we cannot leave out Gaza; there must be a way that God can move in Gaza to soften Hamas. Father Moon sent the MEPIs to Gaza, as we recall. Thus, I am praying for the children of Gaza. Would you be willing to pray not only on behalf of the Jewish people but also on behalf of the Palestinians and the children of Gaza?

One last point about my prayer: I'm trying to seek God's viewpoint and support it, and to say as a Jew: "Not my will, but thy will be done." I don't know how many Jews or Palestinians are praying like that -- most are probably asking God to help them fulfill their needs -- either make Israel strong, or push the settlements out of the West Bank -- without considering what God would have them do in terms of a result that would best serve the whole purpose. But even if other Jews and Palestinians do not pray this way, if we can be God's object partners and pray like that, it will I believe strengthen the forces of peace. I, for one, trust that God in His/Her Parental heart is genuinely seeking a win-win outcome.

Dr. Glaubach, this is how we can be co-creators with God and the heavenly spirit world. Our prayers supporting God can give God more leeway to act and discipline the recalcitrant actors and bring them in line.

Peace, Shalom, Salaam,

Andrew