FOS Colorado Fact-Finding Trip June 4-18, 2011

Seeking Understanding in Israel/Palestine: A Two-Week Fact-Finding Trip

June 4-18, 2011

Organized by Friends of Sabeel-Colorado

DOWNLOAD THE TRIP BROCHURE-CLICK HERE (PDF FILE)

Trip Highlights:
• Stay in the Old City of Jerusalem, within easy walking distance of the Western Wall, Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Dome of the Rock.
• Explore the holy sites and bazaars of the Old City of Jerusalem.
• Tour the illegal Jewish settlements of East Jerusalem with the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD).
• Meet with B’Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories
• Visit the Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center in Jerusalem.
• Stand with the Women in Black on Friday at noon, and visit with Machsom Watch Women and ex-soldiers from Breaking the Silence.
• Visit a Palestinian refugee camp and witness checkpoints and roadblocks.
• Visit in the homes of Palestinian Christians in the Beit Jala area.
• See the Wall and learn about its impact in Jerusalem and in villages in the West Bank.
• Travel to Galilee to visit Nazareth, the Mount of Beatitudes, and spend two nights by the Sea of Galilee.
• Learn about Palestinian villages that were destroyed in 1948, and the current struggle of “unrecognized Arab villages” in Israel.
• Visit Nablus, a West Bank city completely surrounded by checkpoints.
• Visit with a Jewish settler in a West Bank settlement.
• Meet Christian Peacemaker Team in Hebron, visit Mosque of Ibrihim, honored by Jews and Muslims as the burial place of Abraham.
• Swim in the Dead Sea and visit Qumran.

Tour Leaders
Joy Lapp teaches religion at Iowa Wesleyan College. She spent three years in the Middle East working with Mennonite Central Committee and serves on the Friends of Sabeel-North America Steering Committee.
Arnie Voigt is a Lutheran minister. He has visited Israel/Palestine many times and has led numerous tour groups. This is the fifth trip that Arnie and Joy are organizing together.

Cost Summary
$2200 Includes: hotel, 2 meals per day, tour guide and entrance fees, transportation, and tips. Does not include: airfare, lunch, souvenirs, personal expenses or travel insurance. Travelers will arrange their own flights to arrive in Jerusalem by June 5. Our program begins with dinner at our hotel at 6 pm on June 5, followed by introductions and orientation. Prices are based on double-occupancy. Supplement for a single room is $565. Prices are based on a minimum of 20 travelers, and subject to changes due to circumstances beyond our control.

Travelers must have a passport that is valid six months beyond date of re-entry to U.S.

Confirmation and $100 payment needed by March 1, 2011.

For more information, please contact:
Joy at 319-219-9171 or lappj@earthlink.net
Arnie at 303-798-7887 or arnievoigt@msn.com

We extend a warm invitation to join this cross-cultural encounter to view the holy sites, and to visit with people passionately involved in the effort of peacemaking today.   Please join us on this unforgettable journey!