Where peace begins

This year, unusually, the Christmas season coincides with the Muslim fast month of Ramadan as well as the Jewish Feast of Dedication, Hanukkah. More than a third of the world's population will be involved to some degree in marking one or other of these occasions.

Tragically, the Middle East, the birthplace of the three great Abrahamic faiths, has seen terrible outpourings of hate and bloodshed--not least in recent months. All too often western Christians--as we editors are--pray earnestly for peace but tend to feel that the problems of the Middle East are not our problem, except in so far as they threaten world stability, oil prices and trade prospects.

Yet this conflict, like so many others, has its roots far back in history. Since Christianity first took root in Europe, our interpretation of our faith has often been tainted by prejudice--and outright aggression--against our brothers and sisters of the Abrahamic faiths. As we look with justifiable horror at what has been taking place in Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, we should not forget the Crusades, centuries of atrocities and pogroms against the Jews culminating in the Holocaust, and the manipulation of the region by colonial powers for our own purposes. Nor should we forget that this prejudice lives on today, particularly in the Islamophobia of many western societies.

The human heart is made for love and not for hate. In this holy season, people all over the world will be praying for peace in conflict situations. Perhaps we could all start by recognizing the unacknowledged reserves of prejudice and stereotyping in our own hearts.

The late 20th century saw breakthroughs in some of the world's most intractable situations, from the fall of the Berlin Wall to the end of apartheid in South Africa. This year, the overthrow of the Milosevic regime in Belgrade has offered new prospects of peace in the Balkans, another region where the Abrahamic faiths converge. As we look with hope into a new year, could the miracles of peace and healing we so long for in the Middle East and around the world begin in our own lives?