June 30 2015
Emma Pritchard was an Ecumenical Accompanier serving with Group 56 in the West Bank. She wrote this song based on her own experiences and those of her team, and she sang it as a solo in the handover service in St Andrew’s Scots Memorial Church on Monday, June 15.
Come and take a walk with me
Through the streets of old Jerusalem.
Tell me what you see and then
I’ll tell you what I do.
A farmer in the field, a soldier on the hill
A mother at a checkpoint, with a child that’s fallen ill.
A walk becomes a protest, a meal a heartfelt prayer
That one day, soon, God willing, all sides will flourish there
Come and take a walk with me
Through the streets of old Jerusalem.
Tell me what you see and then
I’ll tell you what I do.
Children bearing guns, facing children throwing stones
People from another land, taking land that someone owns
A faith that can’t be broken, a hope that won’t be stirred
After fifty years of waiting, will justice now be heard?
Come and take a walk with me
Through the streets of old Jerusalem
Tell me what you see and then
I’ll tell you what I do.
A land whose heart was broken on memories of the past
Years of fear and hatred, and peace that did not last.
A city once divided, united now and shared
Years of fear forgotten? If only people dared.
Come and take a walk with me
Through the streets of old Jerusalem.
Tell me what you see and then
I’ll tell you what I do.
A war that’s fought in olive groves, in fences and in fields
A well, a pipe, a house destroyed, and still they do not yield.
In every home a welcome, in every heart a smile
For those who come to listen and talk of peace a while
Come and take a walk with me
Through the streets of old Jerusalem.
Tell me what you see and then
I’ll tell you what I do.
© E.Pritchard 2015
Emma has an MA in conflict resolution from the University of Bradford and is interested in gender issues and transitional justice. A member of the Church of England (for her sins),[1] she has now returned to the UK to do advocacy based on her experiences. Her blogs and those of her teammates can be read here, and her personal work is posted here.
The Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI) brings internationals to Jerusalem and the West Bank to accompany Palestinians and Israelis in nonviolent action and advocacy. The programme was founded in 2002 in response to a call made by the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem.
Since 2002, over 1,500 volunteers have come for three months to be Ecumenical Accompaniers (EAs). Each year in the spring, roughly 20 EAs are recruited in the UK and Ireland, for service in Israel/Palestine the following year.
EAs offer a protective presence to vulnerable communities and monitor and report human rights abuses. They join Palestinians and Israelis, Arabs and Jews, who work in nonviolent ways for peace and support the local churches. When they return home, EAs use their first-hand experiences to help open the eyes of the world to the realities of life in Israel/Palestine and campaign for a just peace based on international law.
EAs range from 25 to 70 in age and come from many different backgrounds. What they share is a deep dedication to human rights.
Internationally, the EAPPI programme is coordinated by the World Council of Churches. In Britain and Ireland, it is coordinated by Quaker Peace & Social Witness (QPSW). Keep an eye on the Quaker site for recruitment dates and deadlines.
In keeping with its commitment to justice, peace, and reconciliation, the Church of Scotland supports the programme, as do the following church and church-related organizations:
- Baptist Union of Great Britain
- CAFOD
- Christian Aid
- Church Mission Society
- Churches Together in Britain and Ireland
- Council of Lutheran Churches
- Iona Community
- Methodist Church in Britain
- Pax Christi UK
- Presbyterian Church of Wales
- Religious Society of Friends in Britain
- Scottish Episcopal Church
- United Reformed Church
- Trócaire
A number of Anglican church bishops in the UK and Ireland also endorse the programme.
EAPPI embraces an expansive ecumenism, deliberately working with people of all faiths and none. It consults with the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem, takes guidance from a reference group of Christians, Jews, and Muslims, brings EAs from a variety of backgrounds, and works with all communities in Israel/Palestine regardless of religion.
EAs practise the internationally recognized model of accompaniment used for humanitarian work in conflict zones. EAs also embody a theology of accompaniment, where internationals walk side by side with local Christians and support all those suffering in Israel/Palestine while sharing in their daily life.
This is a land of two peoples and three faiths. EAs ally with every force, Palestinian or Israeli, Jewish or Arab, working for justice and peace. Success will come only when we see the pain of both peoples – and when they desire more than anything to live in peace, justice, and reconciliation.
Note
[1] She said that. We couldn’t possibly comment.