Stephanie, I had the same thoughts. I’d like to educate myself on both the history of Christian encounters with Jews since Bible times and modern Zionism and the Arab-Israeli conflict of the last century and a half. I’ve ordered the two books that Professor McDermott recommended about Israel and the Palestinians. Once I understand the issue better, I hope to be able to understand the news better…and then maybe add some helpful comments in conversations with family and friends. As well, in any Bible study I participate in, I hope to be able to offer more accurate perspectives on the continuity between Judaism and Christianity, that avoid supersecessionism. I’m currently in a group that’s very liberal/modernist and has little love for the state of Israel, so I hope to know facts and be able to speak up for the general principle that Jews deserve a country where they can be safe, while advocating also a two-state solution that respects the security needs of both sides.
