All Nations Café

Ten days ago I returned from 4 months in Jerusalem where I was studying as part of my rabbinic training at Hebrew College in Massachusetts. While I was there, I became aware of the many small, grassroots efforts of Jews and Arabs who are seeking communication and cooperation. People both within and outside Israel rarely hear about these groups, and with all of the discouraging news from Israel and Gaza these past weeks, I am reminded of the importance of sharing stories that offer hope.

Shortly before I left Israel, I went with one of my classmates to the All Nations Café, a group of Israelis, Palestinians, and internationals who meet one evening a week in an abandoned Arab house in a wadi (dry riverbed) in the West Bank. My friend and I took a taxi as far as the checkpoint, then walked across after brief questioning by 2 Israeli soldiers, and continued on foot down the road through a beautiful valley outside Jerusalem.

Usually, people who come to All Nations Café gather around a fire to share food and stories, but that evening there was also a special concert to celebrate the end of the Muslim holiday of Eid. The moon was full, and the path over a rocky gorge was lit by candles in paper lanterns. We arrived early and sat outside by the fire, drinking tea and talking with several Palestinians who live in a refugee camp outside Jerusalem. While we were talking, two young men came by, one Palestinian and one Jewish Israeli, to ask if anyone could help with a project they are working on to build a receptacle for water at the home of a Palestinian man who lived nearby. The previous week I had been on a tour of the south Hebron hills with Shovrei Sh’tika (Breaking the Silence) a group of former IDF soldiers who are critical of the policies of the Israeli government and army in the occupied territories. They took us to the home of a Palestinian family and showed us a well where Jewish settlers had dumped a car so that the well could not be used. Poisoning wells is one way that life is made unbearable for Palestinians in the occupied territories, so it was inspiring to see that there are Jews and Arabs working together to repair some of the damage that has been done.

For the concert we went inside the abandoned stone house. The only lights were candles, some on the floor and some set into the stone walls. There were about 30 people there — roughly 1/3 Palestinians, 1/3 Jewish Israelis, and 1/3 people from other countries (Argentina, Germany, Norway, France and the U.S). The concert included psalms from the Hebrew bible and poetry by the Sufi mystic poet Rumi set to sitar music. It was truly an amazing evening. The singer and sitar player were both Israeli Jews, and after a while a 6-year-old Palestinian girl got up to dance to the music. She was mesmerizing, with her free movement and beautiful smile. Her presence and her joy gave me a sense of hope that not all of our children are being brought up to hate each other.

After to concert there was a sharing circle where each person told where they were from and what had brought them to the All Nations Café. I am truly grateful to know that such a place exists, where Jews and Arabs and Christians come together to meet each other. On the way back, we got a ride part way and then took a taxi. The taxi driver asked whether we were coming from Tel Aviv. I hesitated, then decided to tell him the truth, that we had been at a place in the West Bank where Jews and Arabs meet to talk. He asked me whether I thought there would be peace and I said, “Yes. I don’t think there is any other possibility. There must be peace.” The driver began to talk about how the Arabs hate us and are always trying to kill us. I listened to him but also reminded him that, though there are extremists on both sides, there are also many people who want to live together in peace. When we arrived at my apartment, he turned around and smiled at me and said, “I hope you are right. I hope there will be peace.”

Then he added, “I don’t hate them. They are our cousins.” He didn’t drive away but spoke about Isaac and Ishmael, and how Sarah was the one who wanted to send Hagar and Ishmael away but that Ha Kadosh Baruch Hu (God, the Holy Blessed One) did not want them to die and gave them water in the desert. By the end, the taxi driver and I were laughing together and parted with warm smiles and good wishes. “I know most Arabs also want peace,” he said. I really felt that he was glad to know that there are people meeting together in that wadi, people who are not willing to give up on the hope of understanding between our peoples.

I want to leave you with the words of a Rumi poem that was the last song of the concert:

“Out beyond ideas of wrong doing and right doing, there is a field; I’ll meet you there.”

I think it is important to know that there is a group of people meeting in a field outside of Jerusalem. In the midst of the violence in Gaza they continue to meet. And though it is the darkest time of the year, this group of people brings the light of fire and candles and a sweet, small ray of hope.

Much love,

Hannah Orden

Massachusetts, USA

By Eva van Sonderen

This afternoon I was visiting Yaffa in Nachlaot, when she received an emergency call about Abed, the Palestinian farmer on whose land (around 30 dunam) the people of the All Nations Cafe are usually gathering.   We were told that Abed had been taken to a checkpoint by the Border Police and been presented with a demolition order and we were asked to come to support him, as a sign of solidarity. Even though this was the day of the “Jerusalem Hug” manifestation, where hundreds of peace activists would form a human circle around the walls of the |Old City, with music and prayer and dance, we decided that showing up at Abed’s land was more urgent.

Going out on caravans has been an All Nations Cafe tradition since its inception. Setting out into the desert on camel back to visit our Bedouin friends, embarking on a musical exploration caravan of Jordan and heading off to Europe on a concert and workshop tour -

are just a few of our magical mystery tours. Since then, we have found our little oasis on the historical route of pilgrims, shepherds and farmers leading to Bethlehem and Jerusalem, and are little group settled down and began to grow in number and strength.

Now, we invite you, European, American, Australian, African, Asian and friend of this planet, to become a member on board this caravan into the future, where the past friendship between Muslims, Jews and Christians in the Holy Land, and the sense of community and shared fate of all beings - is reawakened in our hearts and reenacted in our deeds.

The journey will go through landscapes, sites and the homes, from the Mount of Olives, Gethsemane, Temple Mount and the quarters of the Old City of Jerusalem, Nabi Musa in the Judean Desert, Bethlehem, Dheishe Refugee Camp, Nahalin and Walaja villages and Ein Haniya.

We will meet with children who live on both sides of the wall, visit homes, meet remarkable people of all nations who are active in their pursuit of a brighter future. We will learn songs in Arabic and Hebrew, practice Dances of Universal Peace. We will enjoy the best of Middle Eastern hospitality. We will taste fresh goat cheese, extra fine olive oil, fresh figs from the tree, za’atar (thyme), maramiya (sage) for our tea and Arabic coffee with cardamom on the fire. We will share feelings, emotions and impressions, meditate, pray and have quiet moments together.

After the caravan, there will be an opportunity for those who wish to stay in one of the places we have visited, deepen the connection with the people, and get involved in work that is going on there.

Seven Days , From Destruction to Love - Program*

Sunday, August 10^th

Tisha B’Av Day of Destruction of the Jerusalem Temple

Afternoon: Arrival to Jerusalem and check in at our hotel

Visiting DominusFlevit Church

Opening Circle on the Mount of Olives overlooking the Old City

Dinner at Hajj Ibrahim’s home, A-Tour

Night: Return to sleep at our hotel

Monday, August 11^th

Old City of Jerusalem

Morning: Breakfast at our hotel

Walk to the first All Nations Cafe site, by the Church of All Nations

Walk to the Temple Mount, Wailing Wall and Al-Aqsa Mosque

Lunch at Hummus restaurant in the Old City

Afternoon: Holy Sepulchre and last stations of the cross

Optional - Return to the hotel for siesta, or sitting at a tea house

Evening: Dinner in a restaurant in East Jerusalem

Night: Return to sleep at our hotel

Tuesday, August 12^th

 

Bedouins in the Desert

Morning: Breakfast at our hotel

Drive to the Judean Desert

Lunch: Picnic in the desert or at our Bedouin friends’ dwelling

NabiMusa Mosque in the desert

Dinner in Abdallah’s Bedouin tent

Night: Hafla Celebration with our friends from Israel and Palestine

Sleeping in our tent in the desert

Wednesday, August 13^th

Bethnay and Bethlehem

Morning: Coffee and tea on the fire

The Labyrinth Walk at its desert site

Drive to Al-Azariya (Bethany)

Lunch at a restaurant in Abu-Dis

Afternoon: Drive to Bethlehem, check in in our hotel

Visiting the Nativity Church and sight seeing

Evening: Dinner in a restaurant in Bethlehem

Night: Return to our hotel

Thursday, August 14^th

Life in the West Bank

Morning: Breakfast in our hotel

Drive to Dheishe Refugee camp, visit at friends’ homes

Drive to the Tent of Nations project

Visit our friend’s demolished home in Nahalin village

Lunch on the way

Afternoon: Visit our friends lining in a Jewish settlement in Gush Etzion

Evening: Dinner in a restaurant in Bethlehem

Night: Return to our hotel

Friday, August 15^th

Tu B’AvNight Celebration at Ein Haniya

Morning: Breakfast at our hotel

Drive to Ein Haniya

Walk to Sheik Ahmad’s 4000 years old olive tree in Al-Walaja

Picnic lunch in the field

Walk ofAbed’s ancestral land to pick fresh herbs and hear his story

Afternoon: Drive Jerusalem and check-in in our guest house

Drive to Ein Haniya, where we cook dinner together and organize our Celebration

Evening: Shabbat Prayers, Dinner, Music and Dancing by the light of the Full Moon

Night: Return to our guest house

Saturday, August 16^th

Tu B’Av, a Day of Love

Morning: Breakfast at our guest house

A walk in West Jerusalem

Shabbat lunch

Sharing circle and closure of the caravan

*The program is subject to changes.

 

Registration and Inquiries

 

To keep the group intimate, we will keep room for about 20 participants on a first registered basis.

In order to register, please send us an email, with the words Holy Land Caravan in the subject, to: allnationscafe@gmail.com

You can read more about the All Nations Cafe at: www.allnationscafe.org

On our weekly gathering in Ein Haniya on Tuesday, September 4th 2007 we had among our participants Irwin Cotler, a member of Canada’s parliament, a former minister of Justice and an international human rights lawyer, visiting from Montreal, together with Bassem Eid, a journalist and the director of the Palestinian Human Rights Monitor Group coming from Jericho.

We also had the pleasure of hosting the young members of Garin Dvash, an Israeli ecological group focused on creating community gardens in Jerusalem and advocating green living in the city.

Later in the night, towards the end of the gathering, we had a Circle of Longing around the fire, leaded by Gill from Ramat Hasharon, where each person shared there deepest personal longing with the group. It came as no surprise that the people present shared similar - if not same - longings, whether  they were Palestinians, Israelis or internationals.

Wednesday the 16th of May was celebrated in West Jerusalem as “Jerusalem Day” the day the city had been united 40 years ago.

We at the All Nations Cafe have chosen to have our weekly gathering on this day, with our Palestinian-Israeli family and a special guest friend from New Jersey, SiriOm Singh.

Our open cafe in Ein Haniya is right on the border between Israel and Palestine, a place that has remained a frontier even 40 years after the city had supposedly been united.

The people who come to us are as diverse as can be: Palestinian refugees, Israeli settlers and soldiers, families from both countries, international guests and volunteers and people from many nations, cultures and religions.

SiriOm introduced the Sikh faith to our circle, and took us on a trip to the magical chants of India, and then on an inward trip to the wonderful rhythms of our body. Considering that for some of the people present it was the first experience of any kind of meditation or awareness exercise, we reached a surprisingly high level of group consciousness.

Miriam from Zurich in Switzerland has brought her ancient South American clay flutes and let different people play them in harmony to enhance the quietness that surrounded us.

In that enchanting atmosphere you could not imagine that we are sitting in a militarized zone between to enemy countries in a state of active war, that only a few minutes walk up the road there is an army checkpoint and all around us armed soldiers are patrolling by jeep and by foot.

If one of this soldiers would step into the All Nations Cafe, as it sometime happens, he or she would probably be overwhelmed by what their senses would show them: A quiet meditative circle of Palestinians from the West Bank and Israelis from Jerusalem and from Jewish settlements, together with a couple of Americans and a European, rhythmically breathing and drumming on their bodies..

 

 

• heavy waterproof canvas (50 sq.m.)
• straw/plastic mats (5X4 m)
• small lockable storehouse
• heating: gas/kerosene heater
• lighting: oil lamps, flash lights, gas light, electric battery
• cooking: gas oven
• cups and pots for coffee and tea
• eco washing liquid

• 2 spacious vehicles to collect people from Jerusalem area and from Hebron and Bethlehem areas at Tuesday afternoons and return them in the night.

One people One planet One spirit - all we need is Love

The second week of August was one to remember. While the eyes of the whole world were turned to the war in Lebanon and Gaza, a group of Palestinians and Israelis managed to live and work together and create a sense of family of women, men and children who trust and help each other, and feel deeply related to each other.

We chose a valley where a Palestinian village used to be, close to the Israeli-Palestinian border, the green line, with some houses and stone terraces still intact, and within a short distance from both Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The idea was to intuitively reconstruct the old way of life that had been throbbing in the veins of this valley.

Our site was just a kilometer away from the Israeli army checkpoint, where Palestinians are not allowed to go any further. A couple of times soldiers were sent to inspect us. At one time, they interrogated the people they found at the camp site and eventually decided to leave us alone. At other times, they were simply friendly and accepted our presence there as a fact, even at a time of war, when a closure had been in effect to prevent Palestinians from coming so close as we were to Jerusalem. The local people, including the original owners of the land, accepted us whole heartedly, expressing a hope for continuing our presence in Ein-Haniya.

A couple of days after the camp ended, Lisa and Dhyan went with Abed to Dheishe refugee camp to visit Abu-Adel, a beautiful 73 year old Palestinian, who used to live near Ein-Haniya until 1948. He told us that they used to stay outdoors during the fruit picking season and the boy scouts used to come there to have a summer camp each summer, much like ours. He added that the place where we held our dinner parties and harvest moon celebration, was the same place where in the old days they used to bring all the grain at the harvest season and hold a Hafla, a celebration with traditional food and dancing, for the farmers and their families. 

Nature – Our Shared Home

We begun the week by clearing rocks, making a path and stairs to walk down the hill, setting up a big tent and a kitchen tent and cleaning the old house we used for sleeping and creative sessions. Daphna and Ali, working side by side without knowing each other’s language, looked like a picture from the 19th century, when the first east European Jewish idealists came to Palestine to work side by side with the local farmers.  The first theme of the camp was our relationship with the natural surrounding, the earth and water, the fire and the air, the animals and plants growing around us, and the people who live in our proximity. We took time to clean the Ein-Haniya pool and the mountain spring that feeds it, and to redirect the precious water that had been spilling on the road to nourish the thirsty agricultural terraces.  We were led by two local farmers, Abed and Muhammad, to their plots of land on the hill right above the army check point, where we received fresh cucumbers and local herbs, za’atar and sage, from simple and remarkable people who love and care for their land.

Love and Relationships

The other theme of the camp was inspired by the Harvest Full Moon night at the middle of the week, which since biblical times marked the Love Festival, when young women used to come out to dance in the fields and the young shepherds went after them to look for brides.

We invited guests to join us for a celebration that night, with music, belly dancing and an original production of Romeo and Juliet, where Ali from Palestine played a young man who fell in love with Israeli Miriam, but his mother (played by his 17 year old daughter May) forbade the relationship. We had a happy end, of course, with reconciliation and a wedding, but not before Romeo’s brother (played by Ali’s 9 year old son Murat) had a Karate fight with Miriam’s sister (played by Amit, a 13 year old girl from the north of Israel who came to find refuge from the war). The chant of the camp “One People One Planet One Spirit” was translated to Arabic and Hebrew for this event by May and Dhyan, and Daphna invented the movements to go with it, so we could all sing and learn a dance of universal peace. Later, our own Esperanto expert Jeremi completed the song with this universal language of peace.

The Palestinian kids, enjoying Lisa’s endless care and support, were confident enough to communicate non verbally with the Jewish families who came to swim at the pool. Though shocked at first, the Israelis, coming from Jerusalem and from West Bank settlements, quickly learned to appreciate the spirit of our camp, and begun offering us their floats and even expressing words of hope and faith in this kind of Arab-Israeli relationships.

At the end of the camp, we all felt a longing to stay together and not to say goodbye. Some of the participants suggested to prolong the camp, and others said we should open there a permanent café for our gatherings of great love. We agreed to have a fair well party in three days time, after which we will decide how to continue our work there.

The vision that came out of this camp is an All Nations Café, a meeting point of hearts and family on the border of Israel and Palestine, with people from both sides reconstructing the fabric of life that was there for many centuries and is still a strong, viable and uplifting possibility for all of us today.

Support

We are looking for people all around the world who share this vision and wish to be part of it, by joining us physically on in the spirit, and by sending financial support for this project. You are welcome to contact Dhyan Or, our focalizer

 

Watch more camp photos..

by Dhyan Or

Yesterday, we had a meeting of young Israelis and Palestinians, as well as internationals, at the Home of Hajj Ibrahim on the Mount of Olives.    

   

The idea came from Adi, one of a group of 18 year old Israelis who postponed their army service for a year after finishing high school to go and live together in a community and learn about some of the realities of life in this country in order to make a change. Although they come from varied towns and villages, including settlements in the West Bank, for most of them this was the first visit to a Palestinian neighborhood, and obviously to a Palestinian home.    

   

At her request, we also invited young Palestinians from East Jerusalem; although this was a busy time, one day before the Palestinian legislative council elections, In’am and her friends Suheila, Fauzi and Rawan, all working together in a children project at the Shu’afat refugee camp, made an effort to come and meet Israelis, not wearing uniform, which is also not common for them. We also had the pleasure of having Ra’ed, a local Hebrew and Arabic teacher and a peace activist, Mohammad, Ibrahim’s Son, Ali, Ibrahim’s ardent nephew, as well as some neighbors who watched and listened from windows all around.    

Hajj Ibrahim, with the help of some of the residents in his home, who also attended the meeting, namely: Claudia (from Germany), Liz (UK), Judy(Italy), Kevin (France), David (UK), Robin (South Africa) and his little son Jeremiah, prepared a wonderful setting on the roof and balcony, which, with some squeezing, accommodate the crowd of about 70 people with tables laden with colorful fruits, cookies, drinks and delicious knaffe, and welcomed all the guests whole heartedly.    

   

Everybody introduced themselves, mainly in English, with some Israelis showing their skills in spoken Arabic, which made everybody laugh; and then I asked each group (Palestinians, Israelis, Internationals) to state a personal vision for the Middle East (the credit for this question goes to Stanford, a process psychologist and a friend).    

   

Here are some of the visions people shared:    

   

“We must, as Jewish, as Palestinians, look for a solution to our problem, because nobody can solve it from the outside, we must look for our peace inside, in ourselves, I think this is the first point, and we can start from this point.”    Inam, Silwan, East Jerusalem    

   

“My vision is that one of the people in this room, on this roof, will be the Rais [leader] of the Israeli side and I hope that one of the Palestinians in this room will be the Rais of the Palestinians, maybe then the change will come ..”  Jonathan, Herzliya, Israel    

   

“You should welcome a one state in this country, because you are cousins, you are very similar in your characteristic, originally you had the same sort of culture, and you can live together.” David, UK    

   

“I agree with David, Palestine to me is not only the West Bank and Gaza, I believe in a one state solution which includes everybody.” Ra’ed, A-Tour, East Jerusalem    

   

“I think there is too much ignorance.. we should start educating people.. nobody is really talking to each other .. I think this house is a good start .. it gives hope” Ari, West Jerusalem    

   

“There are no enemies, just two wounded nations .. fantastic to meet you all .. such good hearts”    Liz, Glastonbury, UK    

   

Alongside the optimistic voices, people on both sides acknowledged the Israeli and the Palestinian wish for independent and safe states, and said that the situation seems grim at the moment, but they are determined to change it.    

   

Some of the Israelis who live in West Jerusalem said they will come back to Ibrahim’s Home in the future, now that they know a place like this exists.    

   

Suheila, a Palestinian law student, said she will not forget the faces and the eyes of the Israelis in the meeting, and that in the future, when she will perhaps be in a powerful position, will kindly remember them, as she also hopes that next year, when the Israeli group is going to serve in the army, and perhaps some will be stationed in East Jerusalem, they will also remember her face.    

   

For me, hearing the realistic yet hopeful words of these young people gave me great support and inspiration to continue working for a bright future in the Middle East, knowing that, in the words of Khalil Gibran, these are the children of tomorrow, and no smoke will veil their eyes and no jingle of chains will drown out their voices, and although they may be few in number, the difference is as between a grain of wheat and a stack of hay… They are the seed dropped by the hand of God in the field, breaking through its pod and waving its sapling leaves before the face of the sun. It shall grow into a mighty tree, its root in the heart of the earth and its branches high in the sky..