Craig Simenson, a University of Wisconsin senior, spent his winter break abroad in Israel-Palestine.
“I have seen and experienced the places here in Israel-Palestine that I have only imagined before. Even in ruins, Masada is so majestic and so grand. It stands as a symbol of the great resilience of the Jewish people throughout a history of oppression,” Simenson said of his trip.
He and four other undergraduates and two directors comprised a group known as Quest who came together through The Crossing, a campus Christian center. Each member went through an application process and, once chosen, attended frequent lectures and training sessions before departing.
“The whole idea of Quest is to learn to welcome the stranger,” The Crossing director, Doug Pierce said. “[We want] not … as Christians to go to some of the more challenging parts of the world and not … to tell people what to do but to listen.”
Quest left Jan. 7 and arrived by Tel Aviv airlines to Ibillin, Israel. There, they stayed with Father Elias Chacour, a religious leader and three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee who had visited UW in October to begin communications with Quest.
“They were frighteningly hospitable,” said Quest member Luke Bauman, a junior studying international relations. Bauman also said he immediately felt comfortable and welcome.
For UW junior and Quest member Matt Ley, meeting with Chacour was something he had wanted to do since reading Chacour’s novel “Blood Brothers” in high school.
“It was very intimidating, just his presence,” Ley said. “You better know where you are and who you are when you approach him and start talking about things.”
While staying in Israel for a total of 14 days, the group embarked on many community activities and became intimate with the culture. Quest attended religious lectures, helped Chacour build an elementary school and traveled to Nazareth to see the Church of Annunciation, famous for the biblical story of Mary and the angel Gabriel.
“Some of us got to do house stays with students there,” UW sophomore Tomek Krzyzoataniak said. “It was a real eye-opener.”
“They are coming at [the same idea] from totally different perspectives,” Krzyzoataniak said.
Although Quest had a lot of community interaction, they did have a few days for themselves.
“Some students went with us to the Soreq Cave,” Krzyzoataniak said. “We also went to the Dead Sea and did the whole floating in the sea thing.”
However, Quest believes the most valuable experiences were acquired during their personal interactions with the people.
Bauman said he was surprised to see how similar the views were that Palestinian and Israeli cultures had.
“It was like a window into their society,” Bauman said.
After returning to Madison, Quest held a special service at their church where they shared the group’s stories and their personal reflections on their voyage through Israel and Palestine.
