Mother's Day

Flowers for sale on Mother's Day

It's Mother's Day in Palestine. Flower shops are plying their flowers all along the streets. Kids are buying bunches of flowers for 10 shekels to bring home to their mothers. The school opposite our house is having a party ... everyone is in the quadrangle, singing and dancing. Well most families are too poor to really celebrate so the schools help. Most mothers are at work anyway so they'll only see their children in the evenings. But a little joy is always welcome in this sad tragic world.

More news coming in that Israel admitted to bombing convoys of missiles in Syria. It's necessary that's for sure. But it also raises tensions in our northern borders. And internally tensions are also rising over as Hamas threatens to attack israelis during the Passover holidays. Now the jewish Passover coincides with ours so we too will be affected, if not as collateral casualties of Hamas attacks, then victims of road blocks and body-searches by the Israeli police.  http://www.jerusalemonline.com/news/in-israel/local/shin-bet-head-warns-hamas-will-target-israelis-during-passover-27337

As Easter approaches, christians in Syria and Iraq try to return to their towns and villages. Those who succeed find themselves among ruins ... their homes and churches destroyed by islamists. It's so sad but that is the reality of the Cross. While the rest of us pray the Way of the Cross in the luxury of churches this Good Friday, there will be thousands who will do so walking in the mud, among the debris, in rain and snow, cold, wet and hungry. They are the truly blessed ... who suffer persecution for the sake of Christ.  http://www.persecution.org/2017/03/18/christians-in-iraq-hold-onto-hope/

Very strong winds today

And we here in the Holy Land don't suffer as much ... but the persecution is a lot more subtle. Today's newspapers carry a sensational news that the stone ossuary (casket) of Christ has been found. That's old news ... it goes back some 15 years. But every year it comes back on the news as "new" and international media will pick it up as if it was only discovered yesterday. And of course the local news coverage is to discredit christianity ... that there was no resurrection, that the casket and bones have been found. Just watch the online newspapers ... these 2 weeks this type of news will flood the papers.  http://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/1.778379