12August2011 Intermediary

"blessed are the makers and maintainers of peace"

Omar and Mohammad sat in chairs opposite one another.  Hussein and I were sitting on a couch between them, in Hussein's living room.  Tensions were high and the clock was ticking slowly.  How in the world did I get in the mess?

It all started with a snide comment, an angry stare, and some hurt feelings between a couple high schoolers on the bus.  Now, I was sitting in a room with the fathers of those kids, feebly attempting to mediate what had escalated into a middle eastern family feud.  My Arabic was pretty weak so I could only understand a little bit of what was being said, but I clearly understood that two of my friends were getting ready to come to blows over this disagreement.  Hussein and I were there to resolve the matter and make sure things didn't get out of hand.  He did all the talking in that regards.  My only contribution to the process was sitting in between the two men, providing a physical barrier.  After several hours and several glasses of tea the men agreed to end the argument.  Nearly as quick as it started it was over.  

This was a whole new thing for me, being the peacemaker, but an important aspect of Arab culture.  I had no idea that basically everything, from solving arguments to finding a job, is done through a third party.
Not only was this a great ethnography lesson but it also brought something I'd recently read to life.

"there is one mediator between God and human beings"

Thank God for intermediaries!