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Photos depict deserted streets and shops, with ruined buildings and rubble everywhere. Although no biblical sites have been destroyed, many of the structures that house them are pitted with bullet holes.
Milt and Ava Gould, Warsaw, visited the Mideast from March 6 to 16. Their trip took them to: Amman, Jordan; Bethlehem and Jericho, in the Israeli West Bank; and to Jerusalem, in the Palestinian area of the West Bank.
Milt Gould is of Jewish descent and has served as a Methodist minister for the past 33 years. He is currently pastor of Atwood Aldersgate and Clunette United Methodist churches. He is a Messianic Jew who believes in Jesus and the New Testament, and is a mission volunteer with American Messianic Fellowship International. Ava Gould, his wife, is the administrative assistant to Bill Crane, Genesis Management Services. They are both knowledgeable about the area, having made several previous trips to the Middle East.
Two large photo albums hold the pictures that record what it's like in the area today. To anyone who has seen and heard only what is in the news, the photos bring the situation closer to home and add a personal dimension.
In addition to featuring biblical locations, there are pictures of vacant shopping and tourist areas, which in previous visits were crowded, the Goulds said. People are afraid to go outside, even for needed supplies. Hotels and restaurants have been bombed or closed due to lack of visitors and local patrons.
For those who have never visited a country that has seen a great deal of fighting, the amount of destruction is appalling, and it's difficult to imagine how the people are living.
Refugee areas house people who are not held against their will, but have nowhere else to go. The conditions within these areas range from clean and healthy to filthy with open sewers, the Goulds said.
Although people are not confined to the refugee locations, Jordan is the only country in the area that is open to new citizens. Israelis and Palestinians cannot freely move back and forth between the two countries. People whose houses are destroyed or who are displaced by other factors, such as fear, must rely on families and friends for shelter and other assistance.
When asked what stood out the most compared to previous visits, the Goulds said, "The children."
They explained by describing the happy little children seen playing in the streets and how they change over the years. By the time they become teen-agers, they are hard and embittered and ready to fight.
The Goulds attribute a portion of the destruction to teen-age street gangs roaming the empty streets expressing their anger.
According to the Goulds, most common people want to live in peace, but "how do you heal when your daughter was just run over by a tank?"
The actual number of those injured or killed is unknown because ambulances refuse to go into buildings and private homes to retrieve the injured and dead.
What makes the current situation the "worst in decades?" Milt said: "Outside powers are more influential than the Israeli involvement; the 'bombers' are different; there's a question of who to trust, which creates a 'wave of fear'; and possibly because the Israelis are being more aggressive in trying to wipe out Palestinians rather than maintain a status quo. The attitude now is 'win-lose' and it will be difficult to achieve 'win-win,'" he said.
It's difficult for many Americans to understand all the aspects of the fighting, Gould said. Part of this may be attributed to the geographic locations and the small areas being subdivided. The Goulds believe that the United States' level of involvement could be greater, since we are the only remaining super power.
The Goulds seldom were afraid. There were instances, however, such as when a soldier waved a gun and told Ava to walk in front of him and the ever-changing procedures at border points, which were frightening, they said.
They made the trip, they said, at a time when their personal safety was not guaranteed. The Goulds were quick to say that they were glad they left the area when they did, before even more severe activities, such as the bombing at the Seder dinner and the fire in the church next to the Church of the Nativity, started.
