As we await Christ’s birth in the church year, there is a family farm and peace community outside of Bethlehem, Palestine called Tent of Nations, much beloved for their daily living into their now world famous motto “we refuse to be enemies.” Some in the Church of the Saviour community have visited Tent of Nations and many CoS members continue to support their work and the work of other justice and human rights organizations advocating in Israel/Palestine.
Although they have been on their land for 105 years and have demonstrated many times in and out of court the legitimacy of their residency, Tent of Nations has faced continued aggression by the Israeli military and neighboring settlements. A December 13, 2021 court hearing hopes to finally re-establish their ownership registration so that they can stay and continue their peacemaking mission without constant provocation.
Even the Archbishop of Canterbury posted about it!
Please pray for justice and a positive outcome for the Tent of Nations in their court hearing on Monday and support them in other ways.
Bshara Nassar, a son of the Tent of Nations family, now resides in the D.C. area and has long been a close friend of the CoS community. Over the last several years he has been the lead proponent of the establishment of the Museum of the Palestinian People, which opened its doors in 2019 at 18th and T Street, NW (1900 18th St. NW, Washington, DC 20009). Bshara serves as the Director of MPP.
Go visit the Museum in person or virtually, reach out on social media, and donate so that Palestinian art and stories can continue to be told. Their motto is: “Many stories, one heart.”
From the Tent of Nations homepage on their 105 year anniversary:
“In the year of 2021 we are celebrating 105 years of existence on our land. In May we are delighted to welcome family members, previous and new volunteers, friends from around the world to join us for 3 days reunion, celebration, activities, workshops, group discussions, food, dancing being and working together.
We would also love to invite you to join us throughout the rest of the year, & there are many opportunities to do so; you can come as a group or an individual, to visit or to volunteer, you can join one of our workcamps & help with our harvests.
We welcome you to come, meet us, learn our story and join us in continuing this celebration of our land.”
More:
Independent Catholic News – “Holy Land: Appeal from Tent of Nations”: https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/42783
Museum of the Palestinian People virtual tour: https://mpp-dc.org/TourSupport/
