Sabeel Colorado Fact-Finding Trip, June 2 - 16, 2013

Seeking Understanding in Israel/Palestine:
A Two-Week Fact Finding Trip

June 2-16, 2013
Organized by Friends of Sabeel-Colorado

TRIP BROCHURE (pdf file)

Trip Objectives
• To visit with Palestinian and Israeli peace and human rights groups and individuals working for peace.
• To see first-hand the reality of Palestinian life and the impact of the Israeli occupation - the wall, settlements, checkpoints, roadblocks, refugee camps, etc.
• To consider what is needed for a just peace.

Trip Highlights

• Stay inside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem within easy walking distance of the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and the Dome of the Rock.
• Explore the holy sites and bazaars of the Old City of Jerusalem.
• Stand with the Women in Black on a Friday at noon.
• Visit the Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center in Jerusalem
• Visit Augusta Victoria Hospital and learn how institutions of mercy struggle under the occupation to fulfill their ministries.
• Meet with the women of Machsom Watch, Israeli Jewish women who stand at the checkpoints to monitor solider behavior and assist Palestinians in crossing through.
• Visit a Bedouin community near Jerusalem, and learn of their struggles.
• Tour the Old City of Bethlehem and visit the Church of the Nativity.
• Visit a refugee camp and take a tour of the separation wall around Bethlehem, and witness checkpoints and roadblocks.
• Visit in the homes of Palestinian Christians in the Beit Jala area, with the option of staying overnight with a family.
• Visit Christian ministries in Bethlehem to see an example of how local churches are empowering people living under occupation.
• Travel to The Galilee to visit Nazareth, the Mount of Beatitudes, Capernaum, Tiberius, and spend two nights by the Sea of Galilee.
• Take a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee.
• Swim in the Dead Sea and visit Masada and see the caves at Qumran.
• Meet with Breaking the Silence, Israeli soldiers now working for peace.
• Meet with the Christian Peacemaker Team in Hebron and visit the Mosque of Ibrihim, honored by Jews and Muslims as the burial place of Abraham.
• Visit Nablus in the heart of the West Bank, meet with city officials, and tour the holy sites.
• Visit with a Jewish settler in a West Bank Settlement
• Visit the Tent of the Nations, a working Palestinian farm surrounded by settlements, now also a center for peace activities.
• Visit an “unrecognized village” and learn the struggles of Arab Israeli citizens.

Tour Leaders
Joy Lapp teaches religion at Iowa Wesleyan College in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa. Joy spent three years in the Middle East working with the Mennonite Central Committee, and she is on the Steering Committee of Friends of Sabeel-North America.

Arnie Voigt is a Lutheran minister who has visited Israel/Palestine many times leading groups, servant events, study, and independent travel. He is co-administrator of Friends of Sabeel-Colorado. This the seventh trip Joy and Arnie have organized together.

Cost Summary
Tentative cost is $2400.00 (to be finalized in January, 2013). This includes hotels, two meals per day, tour guide, entrance fees, ground transportation, and tips. This price does not include airfare, lunch, souvenirs, personal expenses, or travel insurance. Prices are based on double occupancy with $685 as a single room supplement. Prices are based on a minimum of 20 travelers, and subject to changes beyond our control. Travelers will arrange their own flights and must have a passport valid six months beyond the date of reentry into the US. Joy and Arnie will assist in coordinating flights to and from Israel/ Palestine. Confirmation and $100 payment is needed by March 1, 2013.

For more information please contact
Arnie: 303.798.7887 arnievoigt@msn.com
Joy: 319.219.9171 lappj@earthlink.net
http://www.sabeelcolorado.org/?q=node/14