The Berean challenge
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The wake-up, don’t-look-dumb, not-boring-at-all, guide to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Fourteen days to becoming more human.
Who are the Bereans?
Berea (northern Greece) was a city of ancient Rome. It is mentioned once in the New Testament when St. Paul visited the city in the first century C.E. The Jews of Berea captured Paul’s attention because they had a greater sense of curiosity and skepticism about his message than he typically encountered in Jewish communities around the empire. While others tended to immediately accept or reject Paul’s message, the Bereans…
“…were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.” —The Acts of the Apostles, Ch. 17, NASB
This was a rare trait in ancient Rome just as it is today.
Be a Berean
Take 20 to 30 minutes each day for the next two weeks and, with a curious mind, give yourself the gift of a brief education about one of the longest standing and furthest reaching conflicts in the world today. See whether the things you’ve heard about the conflict are true, and see what else there is to find.
Below is a list of fourteen short articles. Each article introduces a topic and is followed by weblinks to video, audio, print, and visual content in the following categories…
quick overview (20 min. or less to digest)
especially for Christians
optional deep dives for the curious
We use a variety of sources for the weblinks and include primary sources where possible. We try to select sources that are not annoyingly biased, while also avoiding a false (and boring) sense of balance. Our goal is to provide information and perspectives that are interesting, thought provoking, reliable, and are unfamiliar to most Americans, especially American Christians. See our About page for more about us.
Contents [in progress]
how did this happen
day 1 — Aladdin is Chinese
day 2 — The curious case of the disappearing Palestinians
day 3 — Jojo and Einstein vs. the Jabberwocky
day 4 — Europeans will be European
day 5 — In six days they created...
coming soon…
day 6 — "We come in peace" and the unsettling settlers
who’s in charge here
day 7 — We came. We saw. We corrupted.
day 8 — Divide & conquer... and blow smoke
what’s the hold up
day 9 — “We speak for you!” and Western anti-Criticism
day 10 — The mainstream or the extreme?
day 11 — "A head for an eye and a child for a tooth" and other doctrines
day 12 — The 48ers and the 49ers… making a comeback
day 13 — Let's play 'Pass the Palestinian'
come and get a peace
day 14 — Not a chance in Sheol