Southern Californians are fervently praying for the safety of loved ones in the Mideast and feeling anguish about the recent violence between Lebanon and Israel.
Maronite Lebanese Missionary Father Abdallah Zaidan, pastor of Our Lady of Mount Lebanon-Saint Peter Cathedral in Los Angeles, said he feared for some 250 parishioners, including children, traveling to visit relatives in Lebanon this summer.
"I am concerned for their safety. I don't want anything to hurt them in any way," said the priest of the Maronite Eastern Catholic tradition. The parish serves 900 families.
The priest said he and his parishioners are calling relatives and friends in Lebanon every day. E-mail contact is difficult because many power plants have been hit. Summer vacations have turned into nightmares, as families flee to basements to avoid the air strikes. So far no one Father Zaidan knows has been killed.
His parish planned to support the efforts of the Catholic churches in Lebanon to open their doors and provide shelters to refugees.
Father Alexei Smith, interreligious officer for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and pastor of two parishes, also expressed concern about the safety of several of his Lebanese parishioners traveling in Lebanon, including two Catholic high school students from Notre Dame Academy in West Los Angeles.
"My fear is they are trapped there," said Father Smith, who pastors St. Andrew Church in El Segundo (Russian Greek Eastern Catholic) and St. Paul Church in Los Angeles (Melkite Greek Eastern Catholic). Sunday's Mass was offered for the well-being and safety of the two families.
Members of the greater Los Angeles Jewish community also expressed shock about the sudden violence and concern for family members in peril.
"We in the Jewish community deplore the escalating violence and mourn the loss of innocent civilian life," said Rabbi Mark Diamond, executive vice president of The Board of Rabbis of Southern California. "I fear for the suffering of all God's children caught up in this senseless conflict."
The rabbi has family in Israel including a nephew serving in the Israeli army. Friends and colleagues live in Haifa, a port city whose beauty he compared to that of San Francisco. Israelis are now living in bomb shelters to protect themselves from rockets and missiles fired by Shiite Muslim group Hezbollah --- which is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S.
"I never thought I would see the day when rockets are falling on cities in Israel," Rabbi Diamond said. "Homes and businesses are being destroyed. It's a great shock."
The Jewish Federation is raising funds nationally to transport more than 2,500 children from Israeli cities under attack to summer camps in safer areas.
The intent is to offer children "some semblance of normalcy even as rockets are falling on their schools and towns," said the rabbi. "This is terribly important. These are innocent children."
'A prisoner in their hands'
The situation has challenged religious and community leaders to comprehend the complex root causes and chain of events that have led to renewed fighting between Israel and Lebanon and its impact on the civilian population of both countries.
"We all condemn Israeli air strikes, especially when it hits civilians," said Father Zaidan, adding it will take years for the country to fix its destroyed bridges and infrastructure.
The pastor also opined that that Hezbollah needs to disarm, noting that the organization was keeping Lebanon "as a prisoner in their hands" and not allowing the legitimate Lebanese government to function.
"My heart goes out to people of Lebanon," added Rabbi Diamond. "This fledgling democracy allowed their country to be hijacked by terrorists. The people and government of Lebanon have to disarm the terrorist infrastructure. It's spreading like cancer in their midst."
However, Father Zaidan said he thought the Israeli reaction to the killing and kidnapping of soldiers by Hezbollah "was way too much. Way more than anyone could have imagined."
The state of Israel, countered Rabbi Diamond, has an obligation to defend its citizens from unprovoked terrorist attacks. While the Israeli army strives to avoid targeting innocent civilians, Hezbollah's terrorist campaign deliberately targets civilians, said the rabbi. "No nation on face of earth can stand for this type of assault against soldiers and its people," he said. "Israel has been attacked. Israel deserves our support."
Local Jewish organizations are mobilizing Jewish and non-Jewish community support for Israel by holding a solidarity rally July 23 at 4 p.m. in front of the Jewish Federation Goldsmith Center, 6505 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles.
Daniel Sokatch, executive director of the Progressive Jewish Alliance in Los Angeles, expressed concern that the U.S.-led war in Iraq has destabilized the Mideast and is contributing to the rise in extreme militant Shiite Muslim forces.
He also added that Iran's support of Hezbollah is aimed at distracting the international community from focusing on Iran's nuclear capabilities by once again goading Israel into becoming the "enemy."
"It's incredibly painful to see Beirut pounded by Israeli bombs," said Sokatch. "It's also wrong to pound the Israeli civilian infrastructure. Even as a progressive Jew I feel torn. Israel was put in a position where it has to respond."
Sokatch said he hoped the U.S. would back the call for a U.N.-sponsored international force in Southern Lebanon to stop attacks by Hezbollah.
Prayers for peace
Religious leaders agreed that the role of faith and prayer and community support during times of crisis and uncertainty is paramount.
Father Smith, who a year and a half ago traveled to Israel with a group of religious leaders from various faith traditions, said he felt disheartened by escalating violence that threatens the hope for peace in the Mideast.
"I feel profound disappointment that the glimmer of hope I saw in people's eyes is probably, sadly, not there," said Father Smith. He reflected that the Christian response to despair is to keep praying and striving to rekindle the hope that Israel and its Arab neighbors "could exist peacefully side by side."
Our Lady of Mount Lebanon-Saint Peter Cathedral was scheduled to hold a Mass and an hour of Eucharistic adoration July 19 to pray for peace. "We will be praying that all leaders choose peace, not war and destruction, not terrorism, not fighting. Peace and dialogue. That's what we need," Father Zaidan told The Tidings July 18.
Added Rabbi Diamond: "Our prayers for peace are more fervent than ever. In times of crisis, we turn to our traditional prayers and pray for the residents of Israel and the residents of Lebanon. We hope and pray that voices of peace and reason will prevail over hands of violence and hatred.
"I am a man of faith. I do believe we'll get there," said the rabbi. "This is going to take us more time than any of us imagined." |