Mark Braverman: Palestine Summer Encounter's "Scholar-in-Residence"!

Renowned Author Joins Summer Program, Session II

(Above: Mark Braverman, author of Fatal Embrace: Christians, Jews, and the Search for Peace in the Holy Land).

Mark Braverman, the grandson of a fifth generation "Palestinian Jew," [1] first visited Israel at the age of 17. Raised to see Israel as a blessing to his generation, Mark fell in love with the young state. "I was proud of the miracle of modern Israel," he told audiences, "of what my people had done, creating this vibrant country out of the ashes of Auschwitz." But his concerns about Israel's policies grew "in direct proportion to the pace of illegal-settlement building." [2]

"Still," Mark admits, "I held to the Zionist narrative: Israel's militarism and expansionism were the price of security. Then I went to the West Bank." Everything changed. "I saw the separation wall and knew it was not for defense. I saw the damage inflicted by the checkpoints on Palestinian life and on the souls and psyches of my Jewish cousins in uniform. I saw the Jewish-only settlements and the restricted roads. I witnessed the vicious acts of ideological Jewish settlers." [3] Ultimately, Mark was led to write Fatal Embrace: Christians, Jews, and the Search for Peace in the Holy Land, which Walter Brueggmann has described as a "courageous, evocative book that merits close attention and continued pondering." [4]

Mark has been a fearless advocate for peace and justice in the Holy Land. And we are honored that he will be joining us for the second session of the 2011 Palestine Summer Encounter- not just as a guest speaker, but as a "scholar-in-residence." He will be joining the tours, giving public presentations and even leading a small team of our volunteers. The hope is that Mark can serve as a mentor to a new generation of leaders seeking peace.

If you haven't read Mark's book yet, it's still available on Amazon.

And, if you haven't registered to join us in Palestine this summer with Mark, it's not too late to apply!

More Information:

www.markbraverman.org

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Footnotes:
[1] Mark's grandfather was born in Palestine, in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, but moved to the U.S. before the creation of Israel in 1948.
[2] http://markbraverman.org/writing/remarks-for-panel-on-the-role-of-faith-...
[3] http://markbraverman.org/writing/remarks-at-world-council-of-churches-la...
[4] Walter Brueggman's forward to Fatal Embrace, June 2, 2009