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Sulha means 'reconciliation' and in ancient Palestinian tradition is a means of bringing about lasting peace and forgiveness between the offended and the offender, whether they are individuals, families, tribes or whole communities. This summer's On the Way to Sulha event builds on five years' experience of bringing together thousands of Jews, Muslims, Druze, Christians, Bedhoin, academics, peacemakers, spiritual activists, children, artists, professionals, elders, clergy and educators. Both the religious and secular will engage in dialogue, listening circles, seminars, meditation, prayer, the sharing of food, singing and dancing. Previous events have brought about many cathartic emotional encounters, for example between bereaved parents from both sides of the conflict and those whose opinions of 'the other' have been transformed. The roots of sulha lie in ancient desert traditions of the Arab tribes in the pre-Islamic period however, as a traditional process of forgiveness, it as relevant today as when it first appeared in the early Semitic writings, Christian Scriptures, pre-Islamic and Islamic Arab literature. Sulha is a process that recognises that true justice is connected with honour and compassion and it follows an age old protocol whereby a jaha or peace council mediate with great sensitivity, wisdom and respect to bring about a reconciliation which involves and receives the blessing of the whole community. The outcome is communal absolution, symbolically sealed by the drinking of bitter coffee and the sharing of food. Sulha's pre-Islamic beginnings evolved over centuries of dealing with human conflict and the desire for peaceful co-existence. The principles involved are embedded in tribal culture and in wisdom and experience passed down from generation to generation and relate very closely to matters of survival, honour, respect, community, family integrity, ownership, human value, justice and hospitality. Elias Jabbour, a passionate peacemaker, has a lifetime's experience of this traditional peacemaking process, as did his father before him. He lives in Galilee and has carried the message of Sulha everywhere across traditions and cultures, national and tribal boundaries in his quest for peace. The work of reconciliation taught to him by his late father through the transmission of ancient oral lore was used, before 1948 to resolve conflict between Palestinian Jews as well as Muslims. Serving on the jaha or peace council in the Arab village of Shefa Amer, Elias has been instrumental in bringing about lasting peace between individuals and families in his community and has recorded this traditional Palestinian peacemaking process in print. He is the founder of an International Peace Centre called House of Hope which has ministered reconciliation for the past twenty years and is on the steering circle of the On the Way to Sulha event. For more information and to support their work contact: On the Way to
Sulha Email:
sulhaoffice@sulha.com (Source: Positive News: http://www.positivenews.org.uk/index.php)
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At the end of July, peacemakers will gather in
Mekorot Hayarkon, Israel at an event which aims to develop trust,
compassion and reconciliation between neighbours in the Holy Land. On
the Way to Sulha, aims to complement diplomatic and political channels
and one of the main challenges will be to integrate the Israeli
withdrawal from Gaza (Pinui) into the content of the gathering.