Blood Brothers: The Dramatic Story of a Palestinian Christian Working for Peace in Israel
Blood Brothers: The Dramatic Story of a Palestinian Christian Working for Peace in Israel book cover

Blood Brothers: The Dramatic Story of a Palestinian Christian Working for Peace in Israel

Paperback – February 1, 2003

by
Price
$14.97
Format
Paperback
Pages
240
Publisher
Chosen Books
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-0800793210
Dimensions
5.51 x 0.51 x 8.5 inches
Weight
12 ounces

Description

Is it possible to live at peace in the midst of conflict?"From my perspective, both as a believer and as a diplomat, I take hope and comfort in knowing that amid all the hatred, destruction, and death, Father Chacour continues his patient work, softening one heart at a time."ttttJames A. Baker III, U.S. Secretary of State, 1989-1992"An accurate, moving account worthy of careful attention."tWes Pippert, former UPI bureau chieftAs a child, Elias Chacour lived in a small Palestinian village in Galilee. The townspeople were proud of their ancient Christian heritage and lived at peace with their Jewish neighbors. But in 1948 and '49 their idyllic lifestyle was swept away as tens of thousands of Palestinians were killed and nearly one million forced into refugee camps. tAn exile in his native land, Elias began a years-long struggle with his love for the Jewish people and the world's misunderstanding of his own people, the Palestinians. How was he to respond? He found his answer in the simple, haunting words of the Man of Galilee: "Blessed are the peacemakers." tIn Blood Brothers, Chacour blends his riveting life story with historical research to reveal a little-known side of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the birth of modern Israel. He touches on controversial questions such as:"tWhat behind-the-scenes politics touched off the turmoil in the Middle East?"tWhat does Bible prophecy really have to say?"tCan bitter enemies ever be reconciled?tIn a world of tension and terror, this book offers hope and insight that can help each of us learn to live at peace. Elias Chacour (Shah-koor), a Melkite priest, is a graduate of the Seminaire du Saint Sulpice in Paris and the first Palestinian to earn a degree from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He has built schools, libraries, community centers, and youth clubs throughout Israel's Galilee region, where he lives, as a source of reconciliation between Palestinians and Jews. Chacour, who speaks eight languages, has taught in synagogues, mosques, and churches around the world.

Features & Highlights

  • As a child, Elias Chacour lived in a small Palestinian village in Galilee. The townspeople were proud of their ancient Christian heritage and lived at peace with their Jewish neighbors. But early in 1947, their idyllic lifestyle was swept away as tens of thousands of Palestinians were killed and nearly one million forced into refugee camps. An exile in his native land, Elias began a years-long struggle with his love for the Jewish people and the world's misunderstanding of his own people, the Palestinians. How was he to respond? He found his answer in the simple, haunting words of the Man of Galilee: "Blessed are the peacemakers." In Blood Brothers, Chacour blends his riveting life story with historical research to reveal a little-known side of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the birth of modern Israel. He touches on controversial questions such as "What behind-the-scenes politics touched off the turmoil in the Middle East?", "What does Bible prophecy really have to say?", and "Can bitter enemies ever be reconciled?" Originally published by Chosen Books in 1984 and now expanded with a new introduction by the author, a new foreword by former Secretary of State James A. Baker III, and a "Since Then" epilogue by writer David Hazard, this compelling book offers readers hope-filled insight into living at peace in the most volatile region of the world.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(563)
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25%
(235)
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15%
(141)
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7%
(66)
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Most Helpful Reviews

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An essential read

If you want to really understand the Palestinian-Israeli conflict -here is your chance. Told not from a sociopolitical perspective but a human and personal point-of-view, you will appreciate the conflict in ways you never could from the nightly news or a text book. Before reading this book, I had no idea that Palestinian Christians existed or that so many of them lived in Palestine before the Zionists expelled them. This is a story that the mainstream American media does not want you to read. I first read this as required reading in a course on the Middle East. Years later, I still recommend it to all of my intellectual friends. This story is essential in understanding the roots of the Israeli-Palestinain conflict. That written, this book is not just a history, but a moving story of a great man of peace and love.
44 people found this helpful
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Moving and Powerful

Chacour transports the reader into his experience as a Palestinian child growing up amidst the turmoil of Zionist takeover in Israel. The experience of his family's diaspora and his personal journey from an exile living far from his destroyed home to his education in Europe to his return home to help sow the seeds of peace according to the Christian tradition prescribed in the Beatitudes.

This book shows a side to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict that is far too often untold or dismissed. It is the side of the exiled, those forced off their land to create the modern nation of Israel. In no way is this book a polemical jab against the Jewish nation, rather it is the true story of a Christian Palestinian working within Israel to create a peaceful land where all are truly welcomed and are safe.

This is a must read for all. It will open your eyes.
27 people found this helpful
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The Whole Picture

I was a pleasure to find an author to speak directly to the events of 1948 Palestine......where Palestinian Christians, Jews, and Muslims had lived in peace and tolerance for centuries. It's not too often that Americans can come understand the original context of the current tragedy. We now have a wall under construction, where there were bridges. How did this come to pass in the land of Jesus and the prophets?

The tremendous historic irony is that Jews, of all people, in the guise of Zionist extremeism, should have been party to ethnic cleasing, terror, destruction of indigenous villages, separation of families, confiscation of ancestral lands, and even murder.

Fr. Chacour reminds us all of the human costs and passions involved, and of the stubborn clinging to the human value of universal brotherhood, that will ultimately prove to be the only lasting solution to the fiasco of disorder that describes the Mid-East in 2005.
17 people found this helpful
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Autobiography

I just wanted to respond to the person who called this book "sickening" and accused Chacour of fabricating history. I would really like to respectfully disagree. While he does give an extremely brief general worldwide history of the establishment of the state of Israel, and I am not an expert (however I am getting a masters in Judaic Studies)however perhaps some of his general history is not valid. I have not seen anything that appears wrong, however nevertheless much of this book is his own personal and family history. What happened to him as a child has nothing to do with politics, he is just simply recounting his life. And if his family was taken away from him, had their land confiscated, and he was beaten at age 8 for a false accusation, he of course has been through some hard times, in which he has the choice to "forgive" or not. Maybe it would be pretentious to "forgive" someone you are accusing of being politically different from you, but forgiving the person beating you at age 8 is a very different story. This book is so precious, and I would really like if people read it. For those of you thinking of reading it, you must, and please don't let those comments discourage you.
13 people found this helpful
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Outstanding

This book is moving, powerful, and inspirational. It is extremely well written, engaging, and thought provoking. It had me in tears more than once. I feel privileged to have read it. Elias Chacour has been nominated three times for the Nobel Peace Prize, and it would be gratifying to see him win it. Whether he ever reaps such earthly recognition, however, he has indeed proven himself blessed by his Lord as a worthy servant and peacemaker.
6 people found this helpful
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Blood Brothers

If you want to know the real, honest, truth at what happened in Palestine between Jews and Palestinians this is a must read.
5 people found this helpful
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One Selfless Person Can Work Miracles

One interesting and legitimate tale of the complexities of the struggle for peace in the Middle-East. What makes this book remarkable is that it's a true story of one man's struggle to bring people together village by village. Just as in Three Cups of Tea, it's another reminder that peace comes through personal peacemaking at less cost and with greater promise than through the clash of armies.
4 people found this helpful
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Blood Brothers

I highly recommend this book for the information and the point of view which I think most Americans have never heard. Most Americans are not even aware that Palestinians include Christians as well as Muslims and we have grown up hearing how wonderful it was that Israel was "set aside" or "given" to the Jews as a homeland after the horrors of the Holocaust. It isn't that simple. It never was. This very personal story of Elias Chacour is told in a way most people can understand and empathize with and, hopefully, will add strength to the movement toward peace in that region.
3 people found this helpful
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Reconciling the Irreconcilable

In 1947, the Jews returned to the patch of the world which, according to Genesis, God long ago promised to them. In so doing, they displaced Palestinian landowners whose ownership stemmed from centuries-old legal principles. One teenager who was displaced left the country, studied at a seminary in Paris, and became a Catholic priest. He then returned to Israel, where he did his best, during his career, to heal the anguished souls of those he knew and counseled.

Recommended to all readers, especially those interested in the complexities of relationships among those who dwell, and have dwelt, in Israel.
2 people found this helpful
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An Inspiration

Blood Brothers is an accout of a Christian Palastinian who lives his faith, which was inspired by his father. In spite of the fact that militant Zionists took all the family's land and then offered the father the opportunity to take care of his own trees to make a paltry living, Elias Cachour never stops using forgiveness and hope as a guide to his ministry. He accomplishes some amazing things and gives hope that it is possible to solve the Israeli-Palastinian conflict.
2 people found this helpful

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