Mondays: Modern Hebrew; Popes, Jews & Blood; Bringing the Bible to Life
Tuesdays: Modern Hebrew; Methodological Issues in the Study of Religion
Wednesdays: Reinventing Paul
Thursdays: Modern Hebrew; Cultural Encounters between Judaism & Islam in the Middle Ages
I think I ended up with some good classes, although most of them are outside of my field. I am excited about studying the relationship between Judaism and Christianity and between Judaism and Islam.
I was asked to blog about what is going on in Cairo and what sort of reactions I am seeing and hearing here. My parents and I were flipping through the channels one night at one of the hostels when we stumbled on CNN footage, although I honestly couldn't tell you what day that was. I would guess it was footage of the Jan. 28 protests. I remember realizing that it was footage of some sort of demonstration in Egypt and feeling a momentary sense of panic that was relieved when I realized that there was no attack. I was concerned that a(nother) war had started. Of course, since then I have realized that just because there isn't a war (at least not yet), that does not mean that everything is okay. There is concern over what sort of government there will be in Egypt when all is said and done, and if that government will be anti-Israel. That being said, the Egyptian revolution hasn't been a big topic of discussion, at least not among the people I have been around.
One exception to this, though, was Friday night. In celebration of a new semester, we had went to the German Colony for synagogue and Shabbat dinner at Jon's (sadly, though, it was too cold for the merpeset). After dinner, Jon asked if we had met any of the "Cairo kids," that is, the four Rothberg undergrads who had been studying at the American University of Cairo when the revolution started. Since things were too dangerous for the students to remain in Cairo, Hebrew U invited them to study at Rothberg instead, even offering them additional Arabic lessons. Jon told us about a Jerusalem Post article on these students, which I have since read. I will admit that some of the quotes were less than diplomatic, but I also sympathize with what they have been through in Cairo and now having to adjust to living in a city and attending a school that they had probably never considered before all of this. And while they probably shouldn't have criticized the country that has taken them in (especially to the media), I understand their frustration. They went to Cairo to study Arabic culture, in an Arabic country, and suddenly they find themselves in a Jewish state that can be very anti-Arabic.
Of course, there is always the question of the peace talks, which have yet to resume. Some say that what is going on in Egypt is a reason to resume the talks, others are using it as an excuse to not to continue the talks. And of course, the veto by the US on the UN Security Council resolution which condemns Israel's settlements does not help matters. (The US was the only one to vote against the resolution, but as a permanent member of the Council, the US has the power to veto any resolution.) So much for Obama being against the settlements. I am amused, though, that Israel is now ready to resume the peace talks - after the resolution was vetoed.
Living in the Middle East - in Israel, in Jerusalem - makes a person sensitive. Sensitive in that you are more aware of what is going on around you, and sensitive in that your responses to things tend to be more emotionally-charged. Nothing is black and white - and yet everything is presented as black and white. No one is entirely innocent, and no one is entirely guilty. And as an outsider, it is so easy to pass judgment, to say who's right and who's wrong. As if it were that simple.
No comments:
Post a Comment