Three wise men hit a barrier in Bethlehem
Pastor Dale Morgan
Three wise men hit a barrier in Bethlehem*
By Rebecca Harrison
Reuters
Wednesday, December 12, 2007; 12:48 PM
BETHLEHEM, West Bank (Reuters) - Tawfiq Salsaa's olive wood nativity
scene looks like thousands of others sold to pilgrims in Bethlehem at
Christmas. Except in his version, a wall separates the baby Jesus from
the three wise men.
"I wanted to give the world an idea of how we live in the Holy Land,"
the 65-year-old Palestinian carpenter said in his workshop, his sweater
speckled with sawdust.
"I was inspired by our own wall."
Salsaa has sold almost 400 of his hand-carved nativity scenes
caricaturing Israel's West Bank barrier -- a hated symbol of occupation
for Palestinians. They have gone to churches and individuals through a
British-based charity and advocacy group.
With his carvings, Salsaa aims to chip away at a sentimental image of
Bethlehem portrayed in Christmas cards and carols worldwide to show the
hardships faced by Palestinians today in the town revered as the
birthplace of Jesus 2,000 years ago.
Modern Bethlehem is encircled by checkpoints and Israeli walls and
fences built on Arab land on a line that Palestinians say obstructs the
possibility of them establishing a viable state and stifles the economy.
Israel says it needs the barrier to keep suicide bombers out of its cities.
Tourism to Bethlehem, a mixed Muslim and Christian town, virtually dried
up during the second Palestinian uprising, which started in 2000. It is
slowly recovering, but residents say intimidating Israeli security
doesn't help.
Visitors to Bethlehem -- the West Bank's top tourist attraction -- must
clear military security before passing through the barrier. A sign
reading "Peace Be With You" hangs from a high concrete wall next to an
army watchtower.
Tony Blair, the former British prime minister who is now the
international envoy to the Palestinians, spent the night in a hotel in
Bethlehem on Tuesday as part of his effort to encourage Western tourists
to stay in the city.
Noting the Bible story of Mary and Joseph's flight from Bethlehem with
their infant son, Salsaa said: "I was thinking about how Jesus escaped
from here 2000 years ago.
"It wouldn't be so easy now."
British NGO Amos Trust said it was selling the nativity scenes online as
part of a broader campaign that includes publishing alternative
Christmas carols such as "At the Army Checkpoint" to the tune of "In the
Bleak Mid Winter."
"We don't want anyone singing 'O Little Town of Bethlehem' this
Christmas without people realizing what's happening there," Garth
Hewitt, director of the Amos Trust, told Reuters.
And what if Palestinian and Israeli negotiators manage to broker a deal
on peace? Salsaa has made his "barrier" detachable.
(Editing by Alastair Macdonald)