"Can One Friendship Save The World?"
Thursday, 19 July 2007
"But peace does not rest
in the charters and covenants alone. It lies in the hearts and minds of all
people. And if it is cast out there, then no act, no pact, no
treaty, no organization can hope to preserve it . . . . So let us not rest all
our hopes on parchment and on paper, let us strive to build peace, a desire for
peace, a willingness to work for peace in the hearts and minds of all of our
people. I believe that we can."
John F. Kennedy
October 27, 1963
"If you think you are
too small to make a difference,
try
sleeping in a closed room with a mosquito."
Brenda Naomi Rosenberg's life
these days is worth studying. . .and emulating.
Steeped in her faith, and a generous contributor
to the Jewish community, she however doesn't hang out there as much as others.
Instead, all day and into the nights she is
single-eyed about finding ways to build bridges between Muslims, Christian, and
Jews.
Brenda has the wisdom and courage to step out
of her familiar clan and into churches and mosques no longer foreign or
threatening to her.
Anyone who knows Brenda Rosenberg (
BrendaStyle@comcast.net ) would wager she will keep bringing alienated
people face to face to heal relationship all the days of her life.
She loves it.
She gets tired, yes, but knows it's her and
humankind's high destiny to personally connect in this era as never before in
history.
Just ask Muslim Victor Ghalib
Begg ( GBegg786@cs.com ) who has been at her side and
urged her on in breakthroughs like THE CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM PROJECT that brought
together inner city youth of many races and religions.
READ more, VIEW the inspiring trailer,
and SEE about the available teaching and relationship-building
resources, at:
Recently, Palestinian Muslim Imad Hamad and Brenda shared a
meal.
READ and APPRECIATE their thoughtful
conversation as well-captured by reporter Ra'ad Alawan ( Yourvoice1@aol.com ).
Begin and continue forever these kinds of
conversations in your own life.
Every contact matters.
Life today is adding up to a new kind of wealth and
security.
Measured in our number of quality
relationships.
Published in Your Community Voice --
http://www.communityvoiceonline.com/OneFriendshipJuly.pdf
Can One Friendship Save The World?
By Raad Alawan
"This is for you," Brenda smiled
pointedly, as she handed Imad a gift wrapped brown
bag of coffee beans from her trip to
"You are always ahead of the game, Brenda," Imad said as a smile filled his jolly face.
The waitress approaches.
"Do you know what you want?"
"Ask first the angel of peace," Imad says politely, referring to Brenda.
"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha," Brenda laughs, her
brown eyes twinkling.
Then and there, at the Al-Ajami
restaurant in
Brenda Rosenberg is Jewish. Imad
Hamad is Palestinian.
Their unlikely friendship began with an e-mail.
"I got her e-mail through many interfaith
people," Imad says.
"She wrote something that caught my attention and
was consistent with our common devotion for dialogue and engagement."
A relationship bound to fail, you might say. After
all, they come from parts of the world where conflict is the rhythm of everyday
life. So why should you get to know someone you should hate, right?
And yet, where you expect shouting, there is none.
Where you expect shooting, there is
none.
Instead, Imad and Brenda
speak with an equal measure of passion and calm for peace.
And they listen -- really listen.
This is what I witnessed as a fly on the wall at their
latest lunch meeting.
"I think we should do a panel, or an introduction
to our community," Brenda suggests to Imad.
Imad replies: "I think
that it's good to entertain both ideas.
"People want to see other people.
"It's a statement for dialogue."
They're hashing out details and finding common ground
for a joint project called "Engaging The
Other," a conference aimed at bringing together the local Jewish and
Muslim communities for dialogue this October in
The project was created with a bold notion that their
communities can be friends, not enemies.
"I'm totally optimistic," says Brenda,
co-creator of the play "The Children of Abraham" and interfaith
activist from
"I believe in the world of peace, not of a world
of pieces," says Imad, director of
In the idyllic setting, it's easy to dream.
But can connections at lunch stand up to the
challenges of the real world?
Will another war strain interfaith relations like last
summer?
Will another violent event overshadow Brenda and Imad's work here?
"If something happens," Imad
says to Brenda, "it will take a great deal of patience and courage to deal
with this conference."
But both looked at each and agreed it would be a test
for everyone, and the kind of test their conference, their own bond, was formed
to combat.
"I think," Brenda tells Imad,
"no matter what else we do, people will see our friendship."
Imad nods in agreement:
"The common good will always prevail."
Eating at the same table, borders are erased by
looking beyond the daily headlines.
"We're so political with everything that we miss
the human element," Brenda tells Imad.
Without hesitation, Imad replies
to Brenda: "You're touching on a very important point here.
"At the end of the day, it comes down to trust.
"One demonstration that this can happen is us the
fact that we're talking.
"This is the example we need to promote."
If you listen closely, here is what Brenda and Imad are really saying:
Get to know me, and then judge
me. Get to know me, and then choose to be afraid of me, rather than caving in
to the ignorance and fear of all that is different and unknown. I do not hate
you, and I do not wish your death. I am not your enemy my people's and your
people's ignorance, hatred, and fear of each other is the real enemy.
Flip back to the picture (of Brenda
and Imad) on page 16.
A Palestinian man and a Jewish woman
dining together, and discovering that they're really not that different after
all.
They literally see the human side of each other, and
nothing looks the same.
They don't see the black-and-white world of their
friends, where Israelis are evil land-grabbers and Palestinians are
rock-throwing terrorists.
They see tolerance and understanding.
They learn to trust and respect one another.
They are not talking about each other, but with each
other.
And they're making sense.
At lunch's end, they are optimistic about the chances
for everlasting peace, at least in the short term, with their fall conference.
They remain hopeful and determined.
"So," Brenda inquires, "at the
conference, we do not set conditions for talking."
"That's it, period," says Imad.
Brenda replies, "And we don't judge or criticize,
we just listen."
Imad: "Yes, very
simple. It's not mission impossible."
Brenda: "Who would we bring to the panel?"
Imad: "You and
me."
They leave lunch as they came: smiling.
There's a saying: Governments negotiate treaties;
peace is made by people.
In this case, two people out of billions.
But what's wrong with that?
We all seem to dream these big dreams, as if Tinker
Bell is going to swoop down from the
Maybe we should start with small hopes at a restaurant
table with a bowl of pita chips and a dish of hummus.
It's a start.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Contact Raad Alawan at
(313) 333-5369, or at: Yourvoice1@aol.com.