Teaching Children about Israel and Palestine

As educators, we may have our own beliefs, perspectives, faith, political views, etc. and I do not believe those things should be hidden from our students because when we hide these things we are not teaching students how to engage in civil discourse. We are not teaching them to listen to, speak to and respect people regardless of difference. Instead of hiding where we stand on different things, we should model sharing who we are with a heart of empathy and respect for each human being.

When I say that I stand with Israel, I am speaking from a place of faith, a place of culture and a place of my own human experience. I am not a Jew, but my faith and even my specific church denomination is very linked with the Jewish faith. I grew up connected to the Jewish community and Judaism has overall shaped my worldview. I am not ashamed of that. I do not feel that I should have to hide this, because it is who I am. Currently, I am studying Hebrew, studying the Torah and to connect with the ancient form of Christianity, I am seeking to connect more with Messianic Judaism. So, when I heard about the attack on Israel, my heart instantly was grieved. Not because I hate those who are not Jews and not because I am ignoring the plight of Palestinians (and this may seem random but is true: and NOT because I am against my own race…somehow those of us who side with Israel are sucked into a race war here…in America….wild right??).

One of my greatest fears in Christian education is how we will teach about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In Christian education, schools have historically, demonized any group, belief or culture that they feel is a threat to their perspective on Christian ideals, but we can still hold on to our Biblical worldview, while also having a heart of empathy for all people. If not, then we take on the same spirit of White supremacy that has plagued our faith for centuries. Indoctrinating students in this way, causes them to only see and judge people through how they disagree. This also brings the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into America, into the classroom, and into our churches, when most students and even adults have absolutely no idea about the context of the conflict. No one knows the story on each side. We see the massacre on TV, read the heart breaking stories of those lives that have been lost and with the constant barrage of the media, biased teachers and biased preachers, our children and even adults are trained to hate.

Many of us who stand with Israel, base this mainly on our theological teachings on the relationship between the Christian faith, Judaism and end time prophesies. Every conflict that we perceive to be an attack on Israel is a sign that the Lord is coming soon! Yet, we must not be so heavenly minded that we are no earthly good. The Bible also says that “No man knows the day or the hour” that He will return, so what are we doing in the mean time? There is work to do and that work involves loving people and teaching our students to love people. “They will know we are Christians by our LOVE.” Sometimes we spend so much time tracing Biblical prophesy and how God is going to throw people into the Lake of Fire, while he will let us walk on gold streets, that we are wasting time doing the very thing that God will judge us for, when we meet him: HOW WE HAVE LOVED PEOPLE.

How does loving people unconditionally shape how we teach about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? I am reminded here of a quote from Martin Luther King that says, “A riot is the language of the unheard.” This quote applies to both sides of the conflict. Both sides in this conflict have a story of feeling hurt, unheard, afraid, or threatened that may seem to begin in ancient times, but there have been some twists and turns throughout human history that create a very complicated story. What has caused these feelings? What has led to the conflict? (I am not answering those questions for you! Do your own research!) It is not just about Abraham, Isaac and Ishmael. There are things that have happened in modern times that are unjust and the best way to give our children a clear understanding of the context of the conflict, is to spend time taking a teeny break from teaching Biblical prophesy and teach about Biblical empathy. This can only be done by “walking into Samaria” and learning about the story of each side.

Share the perspectives of both sides and allow students to have discussions on them. Many people are afraid to do this because there is a fear of losing a narrative that makes them feel safe and superior. However, shielding our children from learning the perspectives of the “other” is an indoctrination of hate. Someone is going to read this and think I’m “woke” or want to teach kids to become a Muslim, or that I am anti-Israel or (omg….so many labels), but I just want to be labeled as someone who loved unconditionally and who tried to teach her children and students to do the same.

We can already see the consequences of an unbalanced perspective on this conflict. We are starting to see a rise in violence against Palestinians and those who even look like they are from anywhere close to there. We will probably begin to see a rise in Muslims and Jews being persecuted in some way. If we are not careful, we will bring the war into our country, our schools, our churches, our homes and into the hearts of our young people. The best way to avoid being caught up in fighting a war that none of us are supposed to fight, is to read about both sides, discuss both perspectives, grieve with those who are grieving and teach the next generation how to see the world through a lens of empathy for all of humankind. Exploring other perspectives can be done without feeling like our own opinions and perspectives have to be sacrificed and creating a safe space within a classroom for civil discourse around these tense topics, is the best way to train the next generation to be agents of empathy and warriors of love.