"There is a reason Jesus spoke Aramaic rather than Sacred Hebrew. Hebrew was the language of the Temple and of the High Priest; it carried prestige and authority. Greek was the language of administration and of the empire. But He chose to speak Aramaic, the language of ordinary men." Camila Rocha

 

Camila Rocha

 

@Camila_Rocha

 

There is a reason Jesus spoke Aramaic rather than Sacred Hebrew. Hebrew was the language of the Temple and of the High Priest; it carried prestige and authority. Greek was the language of administration and of the empire. But He chose to speak Aramaic, the language of ordinary men.

 

The Jews expected an earthly king from the High Priest’s line. Jesus was from the line of David, a Judahite, not from the line of the High Priest. But God had reserved a most humble and generous coming for His Son.

 

Jesus was born a Nazarene, born in a manger. He also spoke the low vernacular, because He came for all, for the just and for the poor. And the measure of someone’s value was not in status or in what he possessed, but in what his heart carried: love for the Most High.

 

That is the essence of God’s most beloved souls: poor in spirit, independent of whatever their status might be.

 

For before Him all stand as children, and God alone is the true Father.

 

https://x.com/Camila_Rocha/status/2032967019461808306

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"And yet we watched as those subtle, innocent, beautiful nuances of our tongue were twisted into indicators of suspicion. In an American discourse so heavily imbued with anti-Palestinian racism and so rife with Islamophobia, Palestinians or those who dare see them as human are not allowed to have legitimate intentions or legitimate grievances. They are to be constantly seen as suspicious. Even if they speak of human rights, equality, dignity, they can never really be trusted to mean those things because of who they are — sneaky shapeshifters with deeply held, murderous, ulterior motives. It is quite remarkable how much this echoes antisemitism throughout history, and that should surprise no one. All forms of racism are connected" Yousef Munayyer

 ... An Era of Being Exogenously Defined 

On a nightly basis after September 11, 2001, so-called terrorism experts who knew next to nothing about the language, religion, or cultures of the region would appear on news broadcasts — indoctrinating our friends, neighbors, classmates, and coworkers to treat our language as suspicious.

We watched as those subtle and innocent nuances of our tongue were twisted into indicators of suspicion.

I remember hearing an Arab-American elder once explain to a curious neighbor, “In Arabic, God is in every conversation.” At the time, I thought it was a bit overdramatic. It is undoubtedly true that it is hard to imagine an Arabic conversation where Allah is not uttered. Whether in our bismillahs, alhamdulillahs, mashallahs or inshallahs or our yallahs or wallahs, God makes routine appearances. But these are not necessarily religious conversations at all. Even the non-religious use these terms; it is just the nature of how we communicate in our language due to its historic ties to faith. It is also one of the many things that makes the Arabic language beautiful.

And yet we watched as those subtle, innocent, beautiful nuances of our tongue were twisted into indicators of suspicion. In an American discourse so heavily imbued with anti-Palestinian racism and so rife with Islamophobia, Palestinians or those who dare see them as human are not allowed to have legitimate intentions or legitimate grievances. They are to be constantly seen as suspicious. Even if they speak of human rights, equality, dignity, they can never really be trusted to mean those things because of who they are — sneaky shapeshifters with deeply held, murderous, ulterior motives. It is quite remarkable how much this echoes antisemitism throughout history, and that should surprise no one. All forms of racism are connected.

A Shoe on the Other Foot

Imagine for a minute subjecting words or phrases in a different language, or about a different people, to the same unfair treatment. Consider the Hebrew phrase Am Yisrael Chai. The literal meaning of the phrase is “the people of Israel live,” and there are plenty of instances where the use of this phrase is mundane. However, the phrase is routinely chanted by murderous Israeli settlers as they engage in mob violence against Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. Recently, it has been shouted by Israeli soldiers as they commit heinous war crimes in Gaza and shared widely and proudly by those same soldiers on social media. Thus, one could argue that Am Yisrael Chai is a genocidal slogan and must be banned, and that all those who use it or have used it must be criminalized and viewed with deep suspicion.

Surely, this is absurd. And yet this is the absurdity Palestinians and those who support their freedom are constantly subjected to. Still, too many cannot see the glaring double standard... READ MORE

https://theintercept.com/2025/07/10/mamdani-globalize-intifada-democrats/

Zohran Mamdani Shows Democrats How Not to Take the Bait

By refusing to capitulate on "globalize the intifada," Mamdani rejected a long tradition of demonizing Arabic language.

by 

Yousef Munayyer

July 10 2025

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Christians in Israel and Palestine fear rise in violence ahead of pope's visit... Earlier this week vandals wrote "Death to Arabs and Christians" in Hebrew on the Vatican's Notre Dame centre in Jerusalem's Old City

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http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/may/09/christians-israel-palestine-rise-violence-pope-visit
Concerns raised about spate of vandalism by hardline Jewish nationalists in Jerusalem churches and attacks in Galilee

Hebrew graffiti on a church wall near the ultra-Orthodox neighbourhood of Mea Sharim in Jerusalem reads: 'King David, king of the Jews and Jesus is garbage'. Photograph: Thomas Coex/AFP/Getty Images

• Orlando Crowcroft in Tel Aviv
• theguardian.com, Friday 9 May 2014

Christians in Israel and Palestine fear an escalation of violence against them after a spate of vandalism in Jerusalem churches by hardline Jewish nationalists ahead of Pope Francis's visit this month.

Earlier this week vandals wrote "Death to Arabs and Christians" in Hebrew on the Vatican's Notre Dame centre in Jerusalem's Old City and on Thursday night offensive graffiti was written on a wall close to the Romanian Orthodox church.

Pope Francis is due to stay at the Notre Dame centre during his two-day trip to Jerusalem and Bethlehem from 24 to 26 May.

Both incidents come just weeks after a spate of attacks against Christians in Galilee, where a place of worship was vandalised and stones thrown at pilgrims. A radical rabbi also sent a threatening letter to a priest in Nazareth.

"It is increasing daily because nobody is doing anything about it. The police must know who these people are," said Jamal Khader, the head of the Latin Patriarchate seminary and spokesman for the pope's visit to Palestine.

Khader said there were no safety fears in terms of the pope's visit, but he dismissed criticism by some commentators in Israel that graffiti was a minor offence being blown out of proportion.

"Should we wait until they start attacking Christians? What we have seen in Rwanda, in South Africa, even in Germany in the early 30s is that … a wave of hatred, of demonising the other, can be followed by attacks," he said.

In a statement earlier this week the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem said that Christians in Israel felt neither safe nor protected and called on the government to take action against rightwing Jewish extremists.

Acts of vandalism and violence against Palestinian Arabs in the West Bank are known as "price-tagging", a campaign of intimidation that extremists claim is the price Palestinians should pay for Israeli government crackdowns or restrictions on settlement activity... READ MORE

In Arabic, French, and Hebrew with English subtitles: Inheritance

 OPENING NIGHT will feature the premiere of the Palestinian film Inheritance directed by veteran actor Hiam Abbass. The film screening will take place on Friday, October 25 at 7:00 PM and will be immediately followed by a reception.

Inheritance follows a Palestinian family living in the north of Galilee as they prepare for the wedding of the patriarch's eldest granddaughter. But war raging between Lebanon and Israel as well as among the family members cuts short the festivities with air raid sirens and bruised spirits. The conservative patriarch-grandfather is losing control over his family. As his health deteriorates, his five offspring and their adult children strive to uphold tradition, or their versions of it, against a variety of modern day challenges. The young women seek independence, and Hajar, in particular, faces a potentially difficult decision regarding her British boyfriend. The other siblings struggle with debt, infertility, infidelity and identity; secrets are revealed and no one remains unscathed. Veteran actor Hiam Abbass (The Source, Arabian Sights 2012) pours volumes of rich personal experience into her directorial debut. She triumphs in weaving together these delicate stories to create an unflinching and courageous portrait of a modern Palestinian family.

In Arabic, French, and Hebrew with English subtitles

SCREENING WILL BE FOLLOWED BY A RECEPTION

Co-presented with American Task Force on Palestine

Friday	October 25	7:00 PM	AMC Mazza Gallerie	$20.00   Buy Tickets

American Task Force on 

Palestine

MOVIES

 Arabian Sights returns for its 18th year! From October 25 – November 3, Arabian Sights will present two weekends featuring some of the best in contemporary cinema throughout the Arab world. A panel discussion on the current post-revolution cinema in Egypt will also be held. Guest filmmakers will be present for post-screening discussions.

All film screenings will take place at AMC Mazza Gallerie. Tickets are available for presale and will be available for purchase at the theatre during the festival.

 

Press Releases

Kristin Van Meerbeke
Press Relations
filmfestdc@filmfestdc.org
202.274.5782

• The 18th Annual Arabian Sights Film Festival kicks off Friday, October 25 - Media Advisory, October 10, 2013
• Arabian Sights Film Festival 2013 - Media Advisory, September 30, 2013

Suspected hardline Israelis scrawled pro-settler graffiti and religious insults on a monastery outside the walls of Jerusalem's Old City on Tuesday, police said, in the latest of a series of attacks on non-Jewish sites.

http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/pro-settler-vandals-deface-jerusalem-monastery/

Pro-settler vandals deface Jerusalem monastery

Tue, 2 Oct 2012 11:33 GMT

Source: reuters // Reuters

JERUSALEM, Oct 2 (Reuters) - Suspected hardline Israelis scrawled pro-settler graffiti and religious insults on a monastery outside the walls of Jerusalem's Old City on Tuesday, police said, in the latest of a series of attacks on non-Jewish sites.

The vandals wrote the phrase "price tag" in Hebrew on the gate of the Monastery of Saint Francis on Mount Zion - a reference to a violent campaign supporting unauthorised settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

The "Price tag" is the retribution some Israeli settlers say they will exact for any attempt by their government to curb settlement in the territory, which Palestinians want as part of a future state.
The group has targeted mosques and, less commonly, Christian buildings, regarding any non-Jewish religious sites as an intrusion on the land.

The monastery of Saint Francis is near the spot where tradition says Jesus gathered his disciples for the Last Supper.

It was the second attack on a Christian institution in less than a month.

"Price tag" attackers set fire to the doors of Latrun monastery in the West Bank on Sept. 4 in a possible retaliation for the eviction of families from an unauthorised outpost.

"Price tag actions are contrary to the Jewish religion and causes great harm to Israel," Israeli President Shimon Peres said in a statement in response to Mount Zion attack. "Holy sites must not be harmed."

A police spokesman said a number of people had been charged in connection with several of the incidents, but gave no details.

Palestinian officials and Israeli rights groups have accused the authorities of not doing enough to investigate the attacks. (Writing by Ori Lewis; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

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