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Teach Peace!
Help us Teach Peace!
In a recent letter sent out to its mailing list, Middle East Fellowship urged its supporters to help teach children peace. We are currently raising funds for children's peacemaking projects in Palestine, include a program which is striving to make peace education a permenant part of the national Palestinian school curriculum. Please make a tax-deductible online donation today. Every dollar you send will be forwarded directly to peacemaking projects in the Middle East!
Below is an appeal letter we sent on in December, 2005:
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"Blessed are the Peacemakers"
-Jesus Christ"If we are to teach real peace in this world? we shall have to begin with the children."
?Mahatma Gandhi
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The first Christmas was one marked both by great miracles and great tragedy. A little more than 2,000 years ago, King Herod learned that a king?the promised Messiah?would be born. He saw this development as a threat to his political power. As a result Herod ordered the slaughter of all male children two years old or younger in the Bethlehem region (Matthew 2:16-18). Though Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus escaped to Egypt, many children lost their lives.
Today innocent children continue to suffer throughout the world. In 2004, for example, 179 Palestinian and 8 Israeli children were killed in acts of political violence. Children living in Palestine?the same land where Herod once ruled?live in fear for their lives and are in some cases exposed to daily acts of brutality and violence.
Without positive role models, a supportive community and a sense of optimism?a tangible hope that the future will be better--these children will not be able to envision a new world of freedom, independence, justice and peace.
This is why Holy Land Trust is proactive about providing positive opportunities for Palestinian youth. In 2000 we launched the ?Remember the Innocents? campaign. Every December 28th we host a festival in Manger Square to remember the innocent children within our community who?like the children of Herod?s time?have lost their lives due to political oppression and armed conflict.
We also started a Remember the Innocents (RTI) club which provides a safe place for Palestinian children and youth to grow and develop. The RTI club focuses on training children in the skills of conflict management, nonviolence and peacemaking.
We believe that if we ever want to live in a world of compassion, tolerance and justice we must teach peace?not just in Palestine but on every part of the globe. That is why we have developed the Peacebuilders program.
Peacebuilders is a program designed to teach teachers. Palestinian teachers are being given the skills they need to teach peacemaking and conflict management skills in the classroom.
Our goal is to create systemic change within the education system and make peacemaking a permanent component of the curriculum in all Palestinian schools.
The late Pope John Paul II once said "To reach peace, teach peace." With your help, we can teach an entire generation of Palestinians the skills they need to pursue justice and peace within their own communities. As peacemakers, they can serve as a model for the rest of the world.
But we need your help to implement these goals. Your investment of $100, $50 or whatever you can send will enable our staff to "Teach Peace" in schools and other community institutions throughout Palestine. We urge you to use the return envelope that accompanies this letter and send your tax-deductible contribution to our "Teach Peace" campaign.
Your generous gift will help us:
Build a peaceful and nonviolent generation for the future. Bring hope and joy to the lives of children traumatized by violence. Provide a safe place for children to grow, learn and develop. Translate additional peacemaking materials into Arabic for teachers. Continue our annual "Remember the Innocents" festival in Bethlehem.
Sincerely,
Sami Awad
Executive Director,
Holy Land Trust
Bethlehem, Palestine
Phil Elkins
Executive Director,
Middle East Fellowship
Pasadena, CA USA
P.S. Remember: every dollar you give will help support peacemaking projects for children and youth in Palestine!Make a tax-deductible donation: