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That is why, though the historical arguments for Jesus's bodily resurrection are truly strong, we must never suppose that they will do more than bring people to the questions faced by Thomas, Paul, and Peter, the questions of faith, hope, and love.  We cannot use a supposedly objective historical epistemology as the ultimate ground for the truth of Easter.  To do so would be like lighting a candle to see whether the sun had risen.  What the candles of historical scholarship will do is to show that the room has been disturbed, that it doesn't look like it did last night, and that would-be normal explanations for this won't do.  Maybe, we think after the historical arguments have done their work, maybe morning has come and the world has woken up.  But to investiage whether this is so, we must take the risk and open the curtains to the rising sun.  When we do so, we won't rely on the candles anymore, not because we don't believe in evidence and argument but because they will have been overtaken by the larger reality from which they borrow, to which they point, and in which they will find a new and larger home.  All knowing is a gift from God, historical and scientific knowing no less than that of faith, hope, and love; but the greatest of these is love.

~N. T. Wright, Surprised by Hope, p. 74

The Process Continues

The process of trying to understand the conflict here, that is.

I certainly don't have it figured out yet. However, if you are interested in learning more yourself, here's a link to an article I found to be informative and humorous.

I was also just introduced to the short movie "West Bank Story" which can also be described as rather informative and humorous (especially if you've ever seen "West Side Story" or any other musical). It's about 20 minutes long, and in my opinion, well worth the watch. If the embedded video below doesn't work, try the link above.

As a side note, you may wonder why both the article and movie are humorous. Frankly, the humor helps us avoid utter despair. For people who live with this daily or even think about it daily, it can be very discouraging. You start trying to think of solutions: "If only the Jews would do this, if only the Arabs would do that..." And then you realize that those are concessions that will never be made. And even if they were made, they might just make more problems. And even if they did help, there are still hundreds of other problems. Seeing a little humor in the situation can help lighten the burden.

Humor aside, though, as I examine the situation here and learn more and more about it, I am left with the realization that, as cliched as it sounds, our only real hope for peace in the Middle East is found in Christ. Different people might have different ideas of what this looks like, whether peace will only occur at the second coming of Jesus to the earth or whether it can happen slowly, though one changed heart at a time. Either way Jesus is our only hope. And for now, while we may not be able to solve the entire Middle East Crisis, we can do our part to bring the peace of Christ to individuals. In spite of what look like insurmountable difficulties, let us not give up or despair.

"And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart." ~Galatians 6:9 (NKJV)