May 18, 2003

Last night, Sharon and Abbas met. Hamas and Jihad have responded with their vote, several bloody suicide bombings in Israel - one in nearby Afula. Meanwhile, the Israeli military continues its oppressive activities in the West Bank. We're hoping the Road Map will bring results - people here have heard years of talk; what they need is real movement on the way to a just peace.

Maqloube (literally, “upside down”) is one of our favorite dishes.

We worshiped with the Orthodox church this morning, bringing all of these concerns with us as we prayed. After the liturgy, we went down to the Melkite church for fellowship. After worship, the community (it's not big) gathers in the hallway of the parish house for coffee and chat. There's a good spirit here. We also had a lunch invitation with the Greek Orthodox priest Fr. Thomas, our neighbor. We'll definitely miss being fed delicious Arabic dishes by the good people of this town.