Pilgrims of Ibillin - Building Peace on the Desktops of Students
Ibillin is a small village in the hills of Galilee, hills over which Jesus may have walked as a boy. Today one of those hills is home to the Mar Elias (Prophet Elijah) Educational Institutions. About 3000 students arrive there every day to attend classes from Kindergarten to college. Most of them are Palestinian Arabs and come from Muslim, Christian, and Druze homes. They are challenged with rigorous academic programs from history to biotechnology. But the real task is “Building Peace on the Desktops of Students.” Students of the three faiths live, learn, and work together, but the bridge-building goes further. The faculty includes Jews, and the schools arrange for ongoing exchanges and interaction between Jews and Arabs, Israelis and Palestinians.
With conflict, tension, and bloodshed so common in this region, how is it that this large and diverse educational community thrives? The typical image of youth in the region is that of Palestinians throwing stones and being taught the tactics of terrorism, and of Israelis carrying automatic weapons in the face of imminent danger. But the picture in Ibillin is very different.
Elias Chacour grew up in the village of Biram, near the border with Lebanon. Even as Jewish immigration was leading to confiscation of Palestinian land, young Elias’ father taught his children that all people are “blood brothers.” As Jewish militia approached the surrounding villages in 1948, Elias and his brothers and sisters were taught to welcome them and show hospitality, since they were the survivors of terrible brutality against the Jews.
Nonetheless, at the age of eight, along with 750,000 other Palestinians, Elias Chacour found himself forced to leave his village as the State of Israel was established. He became a refugee in his own country.
Young Elias grew up to become a priest in the Melkite or Greek Catholic Church. He was assigned to the Ibillin parish in 1965. Poverty and conflict permeated village life. Convinced that education was the key to a better way, he started a kindergarten in 1970. Then came a high school in 1982, a technical college in 1994, an elementary school in 1997, a school for gifted students in 1998, and adult education programs.
For years Father Chacour greeted the children as they arrived, and started the day by gathering them together on the playground. He talked with them about human dignity, the value of every human life, respect for every person, and peacemaking.
In 2006, Father Chacour was elected Archbishop of Haifa, Akko, Nazareth, and all Galilee. He is the spiritual leader of the largest Christian community in Israel today, a community that continues to shrink. Twenty-five years ago the town of Bethlehem was about 65% Christian. Now it is 10% or less. In 1948 about 40% of the residents of Jerusalem were Christian. Now there are only 5,000 to 7,000 in that city of 700,000. In part it is because of the restrictions all Palestinians face, especially in the West Bank (Occupied Territories) and East Jerusalem, but also in Israel proper.
Christians find themselves in a particularly difficult position. Although they have often provided leadership in peacemaking, they have also been victims of stereotyping and daily pressures. A recent visitor to Ibillin was asking students about their daily life. The room filled with lively discussion turned silent when the visitor asked one student what it was like to be a Palestinian Christian in Israel today. After a pause, the student replied.
“It is difficult. The Jews tend to think of us as terrorists. And the Arabs tend to think of us as collaborators with the Jews.”
The visitor asked another question. “How then do you deal with all that?”
The student’s reply? “I come to a place like this where I am respected by everyone and where I get an education that gives me a future.”
When Archbishop Chacour speaks to groups today he often introduces himself by saying, “Here I am, a Palestinian. But look.” He opens his jacket. “No bombs.” Then he says, “I am an Arab, a Christian, and a citizen of the State of Israel.” The stereotypes of his listeners begin to break down. As he talks about the complexity of his roles and his heritage, he presses his audience to think of him as simply a human being created in the image of God, and to put aside some of the “baggage” that comes with those other labels.
“I wasn’t born a Christian. Or a Palestinian. I was born a baby.” And so were we all. This prophetic but gentle man of God encourages us to think of what we have in common, not the differences that divide. His passionate pleas for our support of Palestinians and Christians are always accompanied by pleas to create and maintain friendship with Jews. “If your support for us means hatred of the Jews, we don’t need you. There has been enough cruelty on both sides between Palestinians and Jews.”
The headlines from Israel and Palestine are primarily about rocket attacks, reprisals, terrorism, and occasionally about efforts in peace talks. What does not make headlines are the stories about graduates of the Mar Elias High School. Education brings achievement and achievement brings hope. It is the youth without hope that turn to suicide and terrorism. Archbishop Chacour tells a story about finding a graduate of his school in handcuffs in court. “Hassan,” said Father Chacour, “what have you done? Why are you in handcuffs?”
The young man replied, “I have been in jail and I have been brought before the judge again. But I think I will go back to jail, because nothing has changed. You see, I listened to you when you spoke to us on the playground every morning. I have been in jail because I refused to do military service. I will never take up a gun against another human being.”
Pilgrims of Ibillin supports Archbishop Chacour, his schools, and his vision for peace. We encourage Americans to spend time with Palestinian Christians. We seek to tell some of the story that many in the U.S. have not heard. We arrange visits of the Archbishop to the U.S. We encourage people to read his two books, “Blood Brothers” and “We Belong to the Land.” We raise funds to build schools and provide scholarships for students. We provide some support for other peacemaking projects in Israel and Palestine.
Our logo is a mosaic of the loaves and fish. Surely you remember the story. Thousands of people had come to hear Jesus. They were hungry, and no one knew what to do. Then a young boy came forward with five loaves and two fish. These were very modest resources, but they made a big difference in the lives of people on that hillside in Galilee.
In 1965 a young priest with very modest resources came to a poor village in Galilee and with those modest resources made a big difference in the lives of the people in the village. Today thousands who share his vision and support his work are making a difference in a very troubled land, giving youth an education and a future of hope.
