Shannon Jammal-Hollemans

Certainly. Here are a few ideas for learning more...

Blood Brothers (book: available for purchase on amazon)

Canadian Friends of Sabeel (website: friendsofsabeel.ca) 

Churches for Middle East Peace (US, website: cmep.org)

Little Town of Bethlehem (film: available for purchase on amazon)

Thanks!

Thanks for your comment, Eric. I think you are misreading the post. I do not ask people to choose between talking about justice and doing justice. I state that Christians are spending too much time talking about justice, and too little time doing justice.

I wonder why you think that Palestine and the Middle East are a particular passion for me. I do not think we have ever met or corresponded with one another.

Hi, again. I think we are looking at my comments from pretty difference perspectives. I am writing this as a pastor, identifying a cultural issue in the Church that needs to be addressed. I am issuing a call to action, not a judgment on God's behalf. 

This article explains why this is a threat to Palestinian Christian communities in Jerusalem. 

This article highlights how this move hurts the Christian community in Jerusalem. Particularly, these lines:

"Taken at face value, this new policy suggests that if in the past Israel viewed the material well being of Jerusalem’s churches as a vital Israeli interest, the same view no longer holds sway. Indeed, this new tax policy, if it is not changed, will severely undermine the viability of many of the Christian communities in the city. Many of these are vulnerable communities, struggling to maintain the Christian presence in Jerusalem under daunting circumstances."

Sure, Kyle. The thesis would be: God is speaking to the people of the world in many ways, while one of those ways is through Christians called to testify to the hope we have in Christ, God doesn't need us to accomplish his purposes. He chooses us to do that. And he speaks to people in spite of us sometimes.

Amen, Greg. It is difficult for me to understand the mindset that is not compelled by faith to share our faith. I have so many friends who are not Christian, and it would be difficult for me to hide my faith with them. I know it can lead to uncomfortable moments between us, but because we love and trust each other, my atheist friends "put up" with my incessant Jesus talk, my Muslim family know that I will point to the divinity of Christ at every opportunity in conversation. I seriously have no idea how I could muzzle that kind of talk. Is it a problem of timidity we face, or are people so wrapped up in their Christian communities that they are failing to be in deep relationships of mutuality and trust with people who aren't Christians? I wonder some times. 

Thanks for your comment, Roger, but you don't know me, nor the relationships that I speak of. My friends and family members who are atheists do share ideas that offend me at times, but that does not mean that we can't be friends. They actually strengthen me as a Christian. Their diversity is not a threat or a barrier to our relationship. It is a gift. As Christians, we are called to testify to our faith in our relationships with others, but that does not mean we need to cut ourselves off from those who we disagree with. Do people prejudge me when they hear I am a pastor? Certainly. Will people occasionally be caught off guard or offended by my Jesus-talk? Yes. But does that mean that I must be offensive because of my faith, or unable to live in relationships with others that are loving and honoring of who they are? No.

I think you are missing the point of the article, but thanks for your comment, David.