Approaching reconciliation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

“Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.”

PSALM 85:10

This verse is widely applied to the topic of reconciliation because it communicates that reconciliation requires mercy, truth, righteousness, and peace.

One of the biggest challenges facing the international community’s involvement in reconciliation efforts is how often news about the Gaza War is reported before a full investigation.

The mainstream media repeatedly pushes false narratives before verification, and again and again, as time passes, the truth becomes easier to see.

In late May 2023, headlines told us that Israel bombed a tent city in a humanitarian zone in Rafah. The horrific images of civilian casualties from a subsequent fire caused global outrage. Though Israeli government investigations are still underway, initial reports of the location bombed suggest that Hamas targets were hiding near civilians taking shelter. Additionally, Hamas was storing ammunition and weapons that caught fire in a secondary explosion, the presumed cause of the innocent lives lost.

As Christians and agents of reconciliation and peace, we must insist on truth.

It is an act of fortitude to wait for unfolding investigations and verification, and a choice to remember incidents in the context of Israeli-Palestinian relations, the region, and history. Times of war are indeed emotionally distressing and tragic, and events happen all the more quickly in the digital age.

What is a certain truth? That Hamas continually violates Articles 19 and 21 of the First Geneva Convention, waging war amongst civilians and using them as human shields.

Join us in praying Psalm 85.

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