As most of us know, the conflict between Israel and Palestine over the issue of Palestinian statehood seems nearly intractable.  Will peace ever happen?
     Genuine peace, that is, genuinely heartfelt peace, of any kind, is complicated.  It's complicated because genuine peace demands not only that all involved parties agree with the other, but that they agree in the inherent worth of the other.
     It's not easy of course to acknowledge that one's enemies have worth.  It's not easy to say that the one who hates you has value.  Moreover, most of us tend to view another's worth through our own lens.  We all want security, we all desire safety.  Yet we often want it in the compass of our own perceptions.
     And that has been a problem in many peace agreements.  I pray that the people of Israel and Palestine will indeed find common perception, and further agree that people are only as valuable as the idea of "value" is possible.
     And because God is there, it is.