May 29 Beautiful People of the Land

Part 1 from the "pen" of Kristi

The moments have slipped into days filled with wonderful, unexpected joy and the overflow of learning. This day began with a strong swelling in my spirit to sing love over the people of Israel who we would meet over the course of the day, so we sang ‘My Beloved,’ the new song the Lord gave yesterday. This simple, but necessary act of intercession was soon met with another first time experience for us; a visit to the Memorial centre for the fallen Druze IDF in Daliyat al-Carmel. “Druze?” you might ask. Well let me give you a few facts about these kindred spirits:

1. The Druze take as their prophet Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law.
2. The Druze community in Israel today numbers 140,000 and continues a long history of kinship with the Jewish nation.
3. The Druze were the only Arabs who signed a covenant with the State of Israel.

How precious it was to see Dean being led by the hand around the memorial by Mr. Amal Naser El Deen, an elder in the Druze community. Personally, I had never heard of the Druze and was shocked to hear of their deep mutual respect of Israel, their participation in the wars to insure Israeli independence and safety, and their selfless acts of binding themselves to the Jews. Wow! A quote from one biography by Mr. El Deen about Mr. Begin (a former Prime Minister of Israel) says in a prayer-like way to which Christians can agree: “We will keep these chose relations and together we will build the country and protect it from enemies and strangers until we accomplish the hoped for peace.” Amen!

We were joined again by Deputy Minister Ayoob Kara whom we met last week at the Knesset. He is Druze, and a most poignant moment occurred when Mr. Kara sang HaTikvah (The Hope), Israel’s national anthem, with a heart full of passion. As a Member of the Knesset, he encourages that HaTikvah is sung often in the halls of government. If you haven’t heard the song, YouTube it or better still – come to Israel and hear this beautiful song of Hope. In English it goes as follows:

As long as deep within the heart

A Jewish soul stirs,

And forward, to the end of the East

An eye looks out, towards Zion.

Our hope is not yet lost,

The hope of two thousand years,

To be free people in our land

The land of Zion and Jerusalem.

Dr. Faydra Shapiro teaching "Eating Jewishly"

What a beautiful way to be introduced to this little-known people group, the Druze. May we all stand so strong for the Jews and for the Peace of Israel as history has proven they do. J

Part 2 (Karilyn)

Visiting with Rachel (middle) in Mitzpe Netofa.

I wanted to tell you about a special moment that also took place today. After eating a scrumptious lunch with Dr. Faydra Shapiro, a Canadian orthodox lady who made Aliyah from Ontario with her family almost three years ago, we enjoyed her  Selah Workshop. Faydra lives in Mitzpe Netofa in the Lower Galilee.  She taught us about Jewish eating customs which was very enlightening. My sisters, Stephanie Bourassa and myself were invited to the home of Rachel Jehuda who we spent Shabbat with, and it is so wonderful to build a friendship with a Jewish girl! I felt so blessed by her hospitality and kindness. Her affection for her family and God gave me a bigger love for her people.

Part 3 (Kathleen)

This part of the blog consists of the discovery of the Brethren of Early Christianity community in Magen Shaul, not far from Afula. Before we came to Israel, our family was privileged to spend several days at the Return Ministries’ base in SW Ontario. While we were there, we had the opportunity to tour the Brethren Farm in Bright, ON, and were informed that the arms of the Brethren of Early Christianity stretch overseas to Israel. The Brethren’s desire to bless the Jews was seen in Israel yesterday! We were able to visit and see the wonderful enterprises the Brethren have become involved in and hear their amazing testimonies of grace, mercy, humbleness, and faith. I saw that since these families choose to align themselves with Israel they are being blessed in the shadow of His wing.  

The Brethren factory that we visited in Magen Shaul.

These Brethren in Israel are people that want to remain hidden so that all the glory will go to God! How humbling is that!? It was beautiful to come together as sisters and brothers in unity, showing our support for one another and having a deep love that was based upon Christ’s love for us!

This entry was also published at http://return-to-israel.com/2011/05/