Dinner and Fellowship with Christians in Netanya

Click here to see where I went on the Map of Israel!

I had another opportunity yesterday to get out of Herzliya. My friend Hilla (a Finnish girl whom I met during the Orientation Trip) and I were invited by her friends for dinner, in the city of Netanya. Netanya is located about 22km north of Herzliya, a 15-min drive along the Tel Aviv-Haifa Highway. Since Israel is a small country, like what most locals would say, everywhere is close to everywhere. However, even though Netanya is close to Herzliya, it is so different from Herzliya in many ways, and it was indeed an eye-opener when I went there in the evening after a journey on a sherut. (Sheruts are shared taxis that travel fixed routes, often the same as followed by buses, both between the major cities and along bus routes within cities. The fare is much cheaper than taking the normal taxis.)

To the local Israelis, Herzliya is a very Western city. Many wealthy people and diplomats stay in Herzliya, and therefore the standard of living and cost of living is higher than many parts of Israel. Netanya, according to the locals, looks more like an Israeli city. Many people are poorer compared to those from Herzliya, and you could see the difference from the housing and the dirtier streets there. Also, Netanya is one of the closest Israeli cities to the West Bank (only 15-min drive away). In fact, on our way from the Central Bus Station to the apartment where we were going to have dinner in, one of Hilla’s friends David pointed to us (at a distance) the Park Hotel, where Hamas carried out a suicide-bombing terrorist attack in March 2002, claimed 30 lives and injured 140. (You can read more about the attack here.) According to him, Netanya used to have more of such attacks because of its close proximity to the West Bank. Thankfully, the situation improved significantly after the government built a security wall separating the city from the West Bank recently.

What made the dinner most special yesterday evening was that all of us (about 9 of us) are Christians, and it was a great time of fellowship among believers. Among us there is an Arab Christian called Steve (who cooked us authentic Arab food! Yummy!), and he shared with me much on what he faces as an Arab Christian living in Israel. (For those who want to find out more, please email me directly.) Another believer whom I have spent much time talking to was a local Jewish Israeli girl (unfortunately I couldn’t remember her name… =( ), and Israelis called Christian Jews as ‘Messianic Jews’. She accepted Christ about 3 years ago, and during the fellowship dinner she accounted how her life was changed since her salvation. I was so moved and encouraged by her testimony! I must say that when I walked out of the apartment after the entire fellowship session, I have just got more educated about the complexity of the people living in this country, that I would never know if I didn’t meet and converse with them face-to-face here in Israel.