I can remember the book and the movie, "Exodus." It was romantic to see how a people who had survived the Holocaust were able to take over people's land and establish their own

And it's continued that way for over 50 years.

The problem now is that Israel does not see itself as a part of the world community. It has nothing to do with the United Nations and refuses to adhere to U.N. resolutions. It does not adhere to the Geneva Convention on torture or the killing of civilians. And we, as a country, support whatever it wants to do, even to the tune of 5 million dollars a day that we pump into its economy: your taxes and mine. With that money, it continues to build illegal settlements on the West Bank and to continue the military occupation there that is the longest in modern history. Its military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza is the violence that continues in the Middle East. If the military occupation were to end, my guess is that peace would be available in the Middle East.

Two weeks ago, I left to attend a conference in Jerusalem on how to support the Christians that remain there. It's the place where it all began. It's a beautiful place. While I was there, I made my pilgrimage to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

But I was heartsick at what I saw and experienced.

In 1982, I found my way over to Jerusalem for the first time. I took a group from St. Mark's Cathedral and I've never been the same. My reading of the Bible and my understanding of events there took on a whole new meaning.

I discovered I could no longer support the State of Israel in the way it treated the Palestinians - especially the way it was building settlements in the occupied territories. Back then, there were only 30 settlements and 25,000 settlers. Now there are 190 settlements and 300,000 settlers. During the recent peace process, there were more settlements built there than under any other government. No wonder the Palestinians didn't like what was happening - especially since the settlements were supposed to disappear.

We don't get good information in this country. It's against the rules to criticize Israel, so even articles in the Jerusalem Post are censored for the American public.

Let me just say that the conference I went to included 350 people from 19 countries throughout the world. Over 100 were American; 5 were from Oregon. We heard speakers from all points of view: Muslim, Christian, Jewish. All were opposed to the military occupation that Israel has imposed for 33 years on the Palestinians. We visited Ramallah, Bethlehem, and Gaza. We heard gunfire at night. We saw villages that were being targeted by missiles. We saw houses that had been bombed. We heard from families that had lost a family member or had been injured.

The violence is the military occupation. End the occupation, and a chance for peace will occur. Remove the settlements and the people of Palestine will be able to find their future again.

Our conference opened with a welcome and a prayer for the patriarch of the Roman Church there. He's quoted this week in the "Catholic Sentinel":

"Latin-rite Patriarch Michel Sabbah invites Israelis to shoot churches if it would keep them from firing on civilian-populated areas. 'Destroy our churches, but spare the homes of our faithful... We will find other places in which to pray, and we will continue to pray for ourselves and for you," he said. "We agree to offer our churches for ransom for any house that they want to demolish," he said. "Try and see that your occupation of their land since 1967, the privation of their liberty, and, today the blockade of towns and villages...leads to that which you call terrorism," he said. "In fact, this is the cry of the poor and the oppressed who are demanding their liberty and their dignity."

Since September, 18,000 Palestinians have been injured. 2,500 of these have life-long injuries such as blindness. We know about the 400 killed, but shootings go on daily. Innocent civilians and civilian populations are being targeted. Read the material I brought home.

We have begun Lent. Ash Wednesday has come and gone. I wanted to share something of my experience with you because during Lent I hope you will explore a dimension of your life that not only affects your life, but the lives of others.

Violence.

Jesus was raised in one of the most violent societies that has ever existed. The Roman Empire had a stranglehold on his people and yet he brought a message of love.

He not only taught it, he lived it. And he died a violent death. His life remains the focus of two-third's of the world's population and this group I was a part of in Jerusalem was struggling to interpret the meaning of his life in the midst of the difficulties there.

Violence.

Look at your own life and how you can make changes that will lead to less violence. It may be the way you work with people. It may be the way to talk to people. It may be the way you treat your children or your next door neighbor. It may be the television programs you watch.

Violence begets violence. The cycle needs to be stopped in our personal lives and in our political lives. The military occupation of Palestine is the violence there. All other violence stems from that. To end the violence means to the stop the occupation.

It's okay for you to write your Congressmen and say, "Stop the occupation." It might wake someone up who needs to be awakened. Also ask for an international force to protect the Palestinians against the violence of the military occupation.

AMEN.

Richard K. Toll is rector of St. John the Evangelist Episcopal Church in Milwaukie, Oregon. He also serves as convenor of Friends of Sabeel of Oregon. This is a sermon he preached at his parish on March 4, 2001.