Starting Oct. 16, Dr. Phil Metres began leading silent “peace walks” around John Carroll’s main quad. These walks are in honor of the lives that have been lost in Israel and Palestine over the last few weeks.
Participants are invited to take small candles in their hands and walk together in silence around the quad, joining collective grief into one great memorial for the innocent lives and families that have been taken in these acts of violence. I was lucky enough to attend the walk that took place on Oct. 17.
I was joined by faculty, friends and fellow students in this silent walk – the energy was palpable. Even in the silence, I could feel the depth of the grief the people around me were experiencing, as well as their prayers for the violence to end and the loss of innocents to be halted. As we gathered in a circle at the end of the walk to say any final thoughts or intentions, many were making the sign of the cross over themselves, mumbling quiet prayers or holding their candles close to their chests in hope and loss.
I was joined on the walk by fellow classmate Sarah Azzi ‘24 who had a similar experience.
“With so much going on right now, the peace walk was very moving to me,” Sarah said. “It meant a lot to me to walk with students and faculty, and I strongly believe in the power of prayer during these heartbreaking and unprecedented times.”
Dr. Metres has been working for 25 years for a just peace in Israel/Palestine, and this is the worst violence he has ever seen in his lifetime. These peace walks are his way of feeling like he has some control over a situation that is out of control.
“This recent violence brings up the ghosts of genocide – the ongoing Nakba for Palestinians, the haunting of the Holocaust and Jewish precarity,” Metres said. “There are still hostages taken by Hamas, and Israel continues to bury its dead. At the same time, some are calling what’s happening now in Gaza a genocide. With the U.S. providing $4 billion dollars of aid to Israel every year, we are deeply implicated in what’s happening. On a more personal note, one of my friends, the Palestinian poet Fady Joudah, has had at least 49 members of his family killed by Israeli bombs. Another, Mosab Abu Toha, now living in Gaza, has had at least 30 killed. Nearly half the homes of Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. Over a million people have been displaced. When will we cry out?”
If you or anyone you know would be interested in joining in one of these peace walks, please feel free to contact Metres via his email, [email protected].
