Conquest Camp – Day 5

On the Fifth Day…
The fifth day of the camp was a very large change from the Jerusalem-area of the previous four days, as we traveled by bus up to the Sea of Galilee. We drove north on Route 90, following the Dead Sea for part of our trip and then the border of Jordan for the second leg of the drive. Arriving at the edge of the Sea, we drove along the road through several towns, passing the ancient ruins of Magdala on our way (that would be the Magdala where Mary Magdalen is from), and the construction site for the upcoming Pontifical Institute Magdala Center.

The Church of the Primacy of Peter
The first stop in the Galilee was the small, humble, but vitally important Catholic site called the Church of the Primacy of Saint Peter. This small stone structure is located in an unclear location – it is built right on the edge of the Sea of Galilee, at least according to where the water levels used to be. Due to the fact that the water level of the Galilee has receded several meters in 2000 years (mostly in the past few decades, as a matter of fact), there is now sort of a nice gravel beach between the church and the current edge of the water in the Sea of Galilee. The church is located near the property of the Tabgha church, which I visited previously – “Tabgha” is the anglicized version of the Greek “Eptapegon,” or the location of the multiplication of the loaves. As taken from the pamphlet they offer there, the Primacy of Peter was first recorded as having a church on its current location around the 12th century, at which point it was abandoned. This traditional tale goes on to describe a common story for churches in this land – it survived up until the defeat of the Crusader forces by Salah ah-Din, at which point it was destroyed. Then it was rebuilt several times over the years, until 1933 when it was redone by the Franciscans to its current form. There is quite a bit of interesting archeology to this site as well: there was a Roman coin from either 108 or 109 Anno Domini found on the property; evidence points to it being a quarry for the first 400 years Anno Domini; the centerpiece of the church is the stone Mensa Christi (Latin: “Table of Christ”), and it is also the site of a small cooking site that was excavated, which some people take to be evidence for the Biblical story said to have happened there: the instance where Jesus appears to the disciples and speaks to Peter three times as the follow-up to Peter’s three denials of Jesus, eventually making him the leader of the Apostles.

The camp’s involvement at that site centered around holding Mass outside of the church (as it was extremely hot and humid), and a homily that mentioned how difficult it is to be a Christian at points. Father Kelly mentioned the case of a 14 year-old kid from South America who was threatened with death if he didn’t recant his Christianity, which was a very strong anecdote, but Father Kelly is also a member of the fairly conservative Legionaries of Christ. More importantly, Father Kelly happens to be close personal friends with both the current Pope Benedict, as well as presiding over Mass for Pope John Paul II on several occasions, so he is fairly commited to the conservative Catholic approach, it would seem. That said, he is one of the most amicable people I have ever met, because he isn’t afraid of making nice with any individual in any situation. In the middle of Day 5, we had to go through a checkpoint in the north with a bus filled with Palestinian kids (who are not old enough to have their own ID cards yet, and thus would need to have their parents with them to get through). That said, Father Kelly just launched into a conversation with the Israeli soldier who climbed onto the bus with his somewhat limited Hebrew, and the guy seemed to like him. Then, however, Father Kelly forgot who he was speaking to and used several clearly Arabic expressions in a row – he said we were coming from “Al Quds” (Arabic for Jerusalem), and called the guy “haibibi,” which is “the one that I love” as a term of endearment in Arabic. I am happy to report, though, that Father Kelly’s overarching friendliness got us through without any problems.

Wave Pool in Tiberias
Our last stop for the day had the potential to be very bad as well. We were bringing a group made up of mostly Palestinian Catholic kids to a pool in Tiberias, which was otherwise all Israeli Jewish people speaking all Hebrew. As one can easily imagine, things could have gotten out of hand, but I am thankfully able to report that it was smooth sailing for our group. The guys from Texas had a blast with the water slides, one of which was literally a vertical drop for the middle portion. Everyone enjoyed the main attraction of that water park, which is the artificial wave pool they operate. Every thirty minutes, the DJ (whose setup consisted of three MASSIVE subwoofers that he cranked all the way up until your ribcage was constantly under assault) changed the music to a stereotypical Israeli piece of music – the Pirates of the Caribbean techno-remixed something awful. This change in music; from bad to worse, signalled that the waves were about to start so people should prepare themselves accordingly, and this in turn meant that the pool would fill up all the way. The kids themselves also had a lot of fun, as well as an excellent lunch – we made cold cut sandwiches and had all manner of fresh fruits under umbrellas in the blazing sun over the Galilee. Speaking of the sea, the water park also had a small beach area for those interested in swimming there rather than the crowded and overchlorinated pool, so we took advantage of that as well. Unfortunately, the kids all tried to walk on the water, but that turns out to be a one-time only sort of miracle. On the way back to the bus, I was given a fairly deep piece of wisdom by Aziz, one of the 12 year old kids in the camp. He was asking me if I liked to do photography and why, and I told him that it was a hobby of mine that I find relaxing and fulfilling. This made a lot of sense to him, so his next statement was “so you’re going to get a job doing that, right? Good hobbies turn into good jobs.” Coming from a kid, those simple statements encompass something that many people lose track of in this difficult world – that people who manage to either get a job or a volunteering position doing what they truly enjoy will have a good job as a result, and enjoy life more as well.

As per the preceding posts about the ConQuest Camp, all of the photographs can be found on the Picasa album (check out previous posts for the link).

ConQuest Camp – Day 3

The Shepherds’ Field
The first stop on the third day of ConQuest Camp 2009 was the Catholic Shepherd’s Field, outside of Bethlehem. The same place I went to for part of my birthday back in February, my visit this time was nearly 100% different than before. The kids in the camp showed noticeable improvements in behavior, responsibility, and politeness since the first day, and this aided our efforts in running the camp immeasurably. The first activity was a Mass in the ruins of the 5th century Byzantine church located there, with the homily consisting of a discussion of what might have happened on the hills around us (meaning the appearance of the angels to the shepherds, as from the Gospels).

We then spent some time within the chapel on the grounds there, and considered the meaning of each of the frescoes in the small alcoves therein. The kids all seemed to have an enjoyable time, and so we went off to the next place, discussing theological points on the way. That last sentence refers to something really cool – the priest would pose the question in English, and then Jon, the director of the camp, would translate the question and soon thereafter, answers into Arabic and then back into English. I love bilingual trips, it turns out.

The Catholic Activities Center Pool
We arrived at the pool after a hair-raising series of very acute turns and maneuvering by our excellent bus driver, also named Mike. We got out of the bus and went into the back pool area of the Catholic (something something “AB” in the acronym) center in Bethlehem, and the kids had an amazing time. They played all sorts of pool games, and the brand new footballs and dodgeballs brought by the Texan volunteers proved to be thoroughly enjoyable for their pool relaxation. After a solid two hours where they were in the sunlight and/or the pool, and therefore starving, we then departed for a restaurant over next to the wall and near the Beit Jala walking checkpoint for lunch.

There IS Such A Thing As A Free Lunch (TISATAAFL)
This restaurant was owned by a Palestinian Catholic family, and they therefore gave us a feast for lunch at no cost (as many of the kids attending the camp cannot actually afford the full cost of this week’s activities). They invited us in and brought out before us a pile of pitas for every table, and then something like 9 different plates of vegetables and different sorts of dips for the bread. The guys from Texas didn’t realize that they were only seeing the appetizer course, so they dug in right away. Eventually, after eating their fill, the platters of chicken- and lamb-kebabs came out, to looks of excitement on everyone’s faces except for those 4 gentlemen. That said, they admirably ate a lot of the main course and enjoyed it very much so (other than eating too much in the middle of a hot day, I suppose). As odd as it truly is, the owner of the place played mariachi music the entire time we were there, and I hold that it is because of the Texan volunteers (because honestly, how many West Bank eating establishments play mariachi music as the usual background music?).

Here is the video I took at lunchtime, and you can indeed hear the mariachi music in the background during the video:

The Holy Family Hospital, also known as The Creche
After lunch came the most difficult part of the day, and yet the most fulfilling in a big way. We visited the Holy Family Hospital of Bethlehem, a place which specializes in assisting pregnant women with taking care of themselves as well as childbirth. There is also an orphanage on the campus there, and that is the part our camp was to visit, as Father Kelly knows the French nun in charge. She is named Sophie, has been running the orphanage (which she calls “The Creche”) for 20 years, and has to be something like 65 years old. As “Creche” is French for “manger,” she deliberately chose that name 20 years ago to signify her strong belief that Jesus can be seen in each and every one of the “unwanted children” in the orphanage – I use such strong terms, because unfortunately, that is the orphanage for children whose parents either threw them out onto the streets, or mothers who have the children in the hospital and then decide they don’t want them. Even more sickening is that some of these kids suffer from a physical and/or mental disability, possibly as the cause behind their parents abandoning them.

We met the nun inside the chapel of the orphanage, and then she led us straight to the infants’ area of the orphanage, which very nearly brought me to tears (which is saying a whole lot, considering some of the truly horrifying things I have seen over these seven months). In the front three cribs out of 9, there were triplets. These three children were born prematurely, and as a result have some deformities in their leg bones (and possibly the arms as well), which is probably the cause for their mother deciding she “didn’t want them,” a premise that sickens me deeply. What happened next, however, was the first thing in nearly 3 months that actually warmed my heart and gave me some hope in this place. Even though the little infants in the cribs had some developmental issues and physical problems that might have scared away other children, the well-behaved young men of our camp walked right in and started smiling and laughing softly, and tickling the feet of the infants, as to show love and care in the way they knew how. They weren’t afraid of the gaunt-looking, too-small infants, but instead leaned right in and shared love with complete strangers, and meant every second of it. The campers had taken Father Kelly’s brilliant explanation very seriously: “we are going to visit little boys and girls who don’t have a mommy or daddy, or any brothers or sisters, so we need to go be those brothers to every single child we meet, as Jesus taught us to do.” A lot of people have a lot of bad things to say about Christianity, and while perhaps some of it is warranted (there are a LOT of people who call themselves “Christian” and come nowhere close, thus giving it a bad name), those would-be detractors should keep in mind that Christian values and Christian nuns, priests, pastors, and lay-people do a whole lot of good for individuals where no one else really even cares.

The experience proceeded in a similar way, as we walked outside to the play area for the older kids at the orphanage. Our camp kids walked right in and made friends with everyone, and there were a couple of highlights. First of all, there was a manually-driven merry-go-round – meaning it was on a big rotating pole, and by pushing the individual seats, the entire contraption would go around, causing sheer delight and joy amongst the children aboard it. Also, there were some very tiny see-saws, and when some of the Texan volunteers got onto one end with a tiny child of no more than 3 years on the other end, it was also almost too much for me. Something about such an international group of guys of all different ages, interests, and dispositions coming together to provide a week’s worth of love and care in the span of 45 minutes, regardless of race, was a truly wonderful thing. It sort of makes me want to grab hold of lots of people in power in this region, slap them, and then force them to volunteer at places like that orphanage until they start to get their priorities straight.

Here are the two videos I took while we were playing with the orphans at the Holy Family Hospital:

All in all, it was a wonderfully fulfilling day, albeit a difficult one at times.

And finally, some of my favorite photographs I took today (the rest are available here):

ConQuest Camp – Day 1 and Day 2

Introduction
This week promises something entirely different than all of my other experiences here combined. Over a week ago, I happened to meet and make friends with a Catholic priest at one of the Protestant holy sites in Jerusalem (and I still haven’t gotten the story as to why he was visiting there, of all places). I went and visited the Pontifical Institute of Jerusalem, where he works, and was very impressed with what I saw. At one level, they have the bar and restaurant where people like former British Prime Minister Tony Blair eat when they visit Israel. At another level, the Institute provides high-paying jobs to many Palestinians of Jerusalem birth. At another level, Catholics (and other denominations are welcome, by the way) who organize any part of their trips through the Institute are bound to have an improved experience as a result, as every single employee and priest at the Institute will bend over backwards to help people.

There is a Catholic lay organization called Regnum Christi, and they have organized something called ConQuest Camp for male adolescents in 70 locations around the world. Last summer, this camp was held for the first time in Jerusalem, and it seeks to do two things. Through a combination of athletic activities and spiritual activities, the camp is designed to facilitate and foster a positive image and sense of masculinity within the participants in the camp. That is a very good thing in all cultures, and especially here.

Day 1
The first day of the camp was outstanding, and let me set up the scene for you. We were out on the small lawn of the Pontifical Institute of Jerusalem. Presiding over the 15 campers was an Irish Catholic priest, a man of devout faith. There were 11 Arabic kids who are all locals, 1 Irish kid (his father works with the UN in Israel), and then a boy from Argentina. I was one volunteer, and I was accompanied by 4 recently-arrived college students from Texas. These 4 guys were in football shirts, and I am not joking: we were in that setting, right across the street from the Old City of Jerusalem, and there we taught 15 kids how to play American football, baseball, and dodgeball, on the lawn of one of the most important Catholic venues in Israel. It was surreal, in a way.

The various sports activities went very well, and the kids were amazed – both the Arab kids, as well as the Irish and Argentinian kids were dumbstruck: “how come we never got to play these sports before??!” Not the reaction I was expecting, as I personally prefer soccer, but I am more than glad that the kids enjoyed it. The other main event of the first day was going to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and the kids all seemed very impressed with that visit as well. They received a papal hat (white with a yellow bill, back from Pope Benedict’s visit) as well as a camp t-shirt, and a whole lot of fun. Read more about the experiences that will happen all week here.

Day 2
The second day, today, I woke up feverish, dizzy, and still exhausted after something like 11 hours of sleep. I haven’t been sleeping very well lately, so that added up until last night I suppose. Today, the camp went to Beit Shemesh to visit a cave tomb there, and then Abu Ghosh, a suburb of Jerusalem where Arabs and Jews live in peace and prosperity. I am not sure exactly how Day 2 went for the campers and volunteers, but yesterday’s experiences can help me guess accurately. It was amazing to watch a bunch of kids, with major language barriers (Arabic, English, and Spanish) still managed to have a lot of fun, learning unfamiliar sports from American kids. Who knows – maybe we can somehow get Jewish kids and Muslim kids to come to the camp someday, and then greatly increase the number of attendants, and then VOILA – wait one generation, and peace should be accessible. As one Hebrew University professor of mine put it in a personal conversation, things are not ever going to magically change one day because of a peace treaty on paper. It will require constant education of both sides to acknowledge the suffering and inherent worth of the other side, and it will not be easy. It is the most important possible pursuit, however, so if I can help with one small part of it in the present, I will do so and be proud of doing any part of the healing work necessary.

The second day revolved around one major theme – the concept of things not always appearing as they seemed. The kids went down to Beit Shemesh, where there is a tomb in an underground cave. After playing sports for quite some time on the plains above the cave, Father Kelly asked the kids what they thought might be underneath the ground, and most answers were along the lines of rocks and geological ideas. Then, they went down into the amazing tombs and were blown away at the possibility that not everything is always apparent on the outside, demonstrated in a very apparent way.

A video to give some sense of teaching American football to non-American kids:

And, even though this video put me in the line of fire, DODGEBALL!!

Selected photographs from the day’s activities are available here (I took the majority of these photographs).

Finally, here are some photographs of the Pontifical Institute of Jerusalem at night: (coming here soon)