December 14, 2001

The fields and olive branches of Zababdeh.

Today was the first day of our holiday. It was also a day that Pope John Paul II had called for as a day of fasting and prayer for peace. The season of Advent, like Lent, had historically been one fasting and preparation, but had lost that sense over the years. Today, with the world descending into further and further chaos, and with the convergence of Ramadan, Advent, and Hannukah, it seemed only fitting to join in the fast as part of our Advent practices this year.

We have also been watching the film biography of Ghandi, a compelling telling of his life. His fasts were very effective, particularly because they were accompanied by a sense of their faithful importance as real symbols of his complicity in the violence in India. How fitting for us today.