AS FINAL STEPS NEAR, RECONCILIATION WALK LEAVES ITS MARK - OF PEACE
THE FINAL STEPS in The Reconciliation Walk, a three-year effort to undo centuries of enmity between Christians and Muslims and Jews, are being taken over the next few weeks.
Having retraced from Europe the steps of the Medieval Crusades - which organizers say are the root of modern-day tensions and misunderstandings - Walk participants will join in a special gathering marking the 900th anniversary of the fall of Jerusalem, next month.
Around 2,500 Christians from around the world have joined the "peace trek" since it began at Easter 1996. Along the way they have distributed to people they met an official statement apologizing for the way the "holy wars" to reclaim the Holy Land from Muslim control "betrayed" the real message of Christianity.
On July 15, nine centuries to the day since the Crusaders slaughtered thousands on finally taking Jerusalem, Walk leaders will present the message of regret to senior representatives of the city's Muslim, Jewish and Eastern Christian communities.
Some 100 Christians have distributed the apology since the Walk arrived in Israel in mid-April. Their efforts have received a more mixed response than along the rest of the route - including Turkey, Syria and Lebanon - where they met an overwhelmingly enthusiastic reception. Walkers were greeted by civic and religious leaders and applauding crowds in some towns and villages.
One reason for the cooler reaction in Israel was that more people there were from Western backgrounds, said Walk international coordinator Lynn Green. "Generally as Westerners we do not consider history to be as important as Easterners do. They accept that it is important because it shapes today."
Another factor was resistance to Christian tourists trying to evangelize people. "If all they see of Christians is people driving by in air-conditioned coaches and traipsing through chapels and holy sites, and occasionally diverting from this to thrust pieces of paper into their hands trying to proselytize, it is understandable that they are a little suspicious."
Despite this, some people had received the message warmly. "The religious leaders of the various faith communities have been very positive. I think that gradually what we are trying to do will be better understood more widely," added Green, Youth With A Mission's Europe, North Africa and Middle East director.
The three-year initiative has helped break down stereotypes on both sides of the Christian-Muslim and Jewish divide. "Hundreds of thousands of Muslims, Jews and Eastern Christians now know that there are Christians who are deeply remorseful about the negative ways that Western Christians have behaved towards them in history," he said.
"Conversely, several thousand Christians have gone home without the typical Western fear or blame of Muslims. They see them as warm and hospitable people, not 'the enemy'. It has been a very positive thing."
While The Reconciliation Walk officially concludes next month, organizers will be considering the possibility of continuing with the efforts at bridge-building. "We have received a range of invitations at an official level from religious and governmental leaders requesting that we go back and help them with the process of continuing to spread the message," said Green.
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