Pope Francis in the Holy Land

Pope Francis is going to visit with representatives of the Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths over the next three days as he visits the Holy Land. Jordan and Israel, the cities of Bethlehem and  Jerusalem,  the Jordan River and the Wailing Wall, it is his “pilgrimage for prayer.”

Walking where Christ walked... 

Joining him are his friends, Rabbi Abraham Skorka and Sheikh Omar Abboud, who leads Argentina’s Muslim community.

He has refused to travel in an armored car and this worries me a little, because evil lives in the world.

But I understand he needs to do this because I know what he is saying to the world by it... all things are possible... And he likes to be close to the people...

I am praying for his safety.And amazed by his bravery.

Journal of Gratitude Day 19

I am grateful for my worldview, which teaches me to be as concerned for those in Gaza and Israel as I am for those within my borders.

The bombing by Hamas and Israel have already cost too many lives on both sides.

Today I am praying for peace in this trouble area. Day Six of an escalating bombing campaign on both sides- I am praying for the miracle of calm negotiation and ceasefire.

Haiti and the Israeli Field Hospital

Yitshak Kreiss, M.D., M.H.A., M.P.A, was the commander of the Israeli Defense Force field hospital in Haiti. In ten days of operation, his team treated over 1100 patients. By the time they left, other facilities were up and running, able to take over.

Today I heard Mitchell Schwaber, M.D. describe the time they spent in Haiti after the earthquake on December 12 that killed over 200,000. 86 hours after the earthquake, the hospital was up and running. Each patient had an electronic medical record with their photo.

The Israelis were joined in their efforts by Canadian nurses and Columbian surgeons. They used Moroccan casting material and Haitian-made orthopedic screws. They preformed lab tests, x-rays, surgery and delivered babies. They had an ethics panel to make the hard choices necessary in a disaster

After surgery, doctors worked the phones to make miracles happen. Their patients were transferred for additional care to a US surgical ship and hospitals in Miami and New York. Patients that were well enough went home.

All the care was free. In Haiti, where poverty was overwhelming, individuals received amazing, life saving care, regardless of the ability to pay.

Dr. Kreiss, on the day they were leaving, told his team, “Hope is the antidote to the despair of disaster” These amazing men and women gave the people of Haiti hope.

I for one am grateful.