What a breath of fresh air in the news from Lebanon! The Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Beirut, Elias Audi, has declared that there is no such thing as holy war, and his stand represents other leaders of his church. The Archbishop’s statement, on October 19, was intended to distance the Lebanese Orthodox Church from the […]
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Last week representatives of the religions of the world met together in Salt Lake City. To me this event seemed significant and exciting, especially because it was only the sixth like it in the history of the world and was happening at a time when conflict in the Middle East seemed to be fueled by […]
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Fareed Zakaria said on CNN on October 18 that decades from now we will be glad that Barack Obama refrained from a more active role in Syria. Eugene Robinson in the Washington Post on Oct 5 wrote that Obama is right to be cautious about choosing friends in Syria and right to pursue a […]
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The Beirut Daily Star, which a couple of months ago expressed dismay that the U.S. had not appointed a successor for the outgoing ambassador, David Hale, reported relevant good news on October 8. Since I also was disturbed by the apparent apathy toward Lebanon at this highly critical period of time, I must report the […]
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I have read in the Baptist Press that you are “troubled” about the pope’s speech to the Congress, and now I am troubled. I speak as a retired Southern Baptist missionary. My husband and I were under appointment to the Middle East for 32 years. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Amman Baptist […]
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This may be news or rumor. I have heard it but cannot verify. The U.S. is going to send a new ambassador to Lebanon, and it is a woman. She, whoever she is, is awaiting confirmation. Meanwhile, because of the tense and drastic situation in the Middle East, Ambassador David Hale is being left in […]
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International Peace Day caused me to discover something very interesting that I will share with you in this article. I tried more than usual that day to think about the things that create peace. I am not the only one who struggles with this issue, of course. There are some wonderful people and organizations making […]
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David Hale, the U.S. ambassador to Lebanon, will reach the end of his term of service within a few days and has been confirmed as ambassador to Pakistan. The State Department has appointed no one to take his place in Lebanon. On August 22 the Beirut Daily Star suggested that the failure to appoint […]
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Today, I am told is International Peace Day. My daughter, Jan Fuller, senior chaplain at Elon University, has raised this question: “What can I do today to promote peace?” So I am thinking. The reason we never make peace, I think, is that we wait until violence breaks out and then we think about it, […]
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Another September 11. What to do with it? Already 10:15 in the morning and I realize that this should be a day of introspection. A day of deliberately ignoring those who have hurt us and looking in at ourselves. This thing happened 14 years ago today, and it changed us. We know we will not be […]
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