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Religion causing a war? Nah…

You know, I doubt I’d have even seen this story, but I happen to be in Baltimore, visiting my mom, which means that I drank my coffee this morning while reading  a copy of the Baltimore Sun (a paper I used to respect a lot, but which seems to be seriously slipping with regard to both content and copyediting. Sigh).

The story is an unprecedented exchange of letters between two of the Middle East's most respected journalists: Salameh Nematt, an Arab, and Akiva Eldar, an Israeli.”  And in the spirit of the amazing Lemon Tree it asks honest questions in a direct manner.  Which is what makes straightforward dialogue so interesting.

I’m posting it here because they’re being blunt, using the words “Jewish” and “Muslim”.  They aren’t pretending it’s only about regional politics.  But they're also not treating the religious issues as simple issues.  Which means they can ask things like, “What will it take, dear Akiva, for Israel to realize that it has to do the right thing before it can claim the higher moral ground?” and carry a sense of religious expectation into the question.

Israel is not only about faiths, but it is about faiths, of course.  In a complicated, tangled mess.  I’m curious to see how these two journalists handle the topic.  More especially because when people speak as themselves, in letters, reacting to other human beings, they tend to get real.  I like when people get real, fuck up, say what they feel… I'm hoping these two go out on a limb.

Now… if only the Baltimore Sun would carry more stories like this one!

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