Our respected professors and my fellow students, let me greet you all with the greetings of Abraham (Q. 19:47), David (1 Samuel 25:6), Jesus (John 20:19, 21), and Muḥammad – Shalom aleichem (שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם), Salāmun ‘alaykum, or may Peace be upon you all!

At the outset, I would like to extend my gratitude to the AISSO, SALAM-TAMS, KPPS, the Ateneo Film Circle, Al Qalam Institute, and all the supporting groups for the invitation for me to share a message of support. Guys, you really deserve a big round of applause!

As indicated in the invitation and the infographics, this campaign has two parts: Awareness and then Fundraising. The reason for this sequence is that before you can successfully ask a person to give a penny for a cause, he or she should be aware of it first and more importantly, be convinced of its validity or justness.

Awareness:

1. Not a religious war

* The Palestinian Question is not a religious war as we would treat the Crusades.

* The fact that the majority of Palestinians are Muslims, and most $ionists identify as Jews or are associated with Judaism is purely coincidental.

* The Palestinian Question is rather an issue of European-American settler colony being justified by an ethno-supremacist ideology called $ionism.

2. Judaism vs. $ionism

* Judaism is NOT identical with $ionism.

* While Judaism is an ancient Abrahamic faith tradition, $ionism is a political ideology founded by an atheist, Theodor Herzl, in the 19th century.

* It is very amusing to hear somebody claiming ownership of a piece of land as given by God, who at the same time, does not believe in the existence of the Giver.

3. “Blessed Nation”

The $ionists are the “Chosen People of God” – this is something we are taught hook, line, and sinker here in the Christian-majority Philippines.

As Genesis 12:3 states, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

“Therefore, no less than God has given this vast tract of land from the Nile to the Euphrates,” we’re told.

But if we look at the context of the verse, we will realize that it refers to Abraham and his descendants.

This is something which we discuss in comparative theology as the Abrahamic Covenant.

Qur’an 2:124 thus states:

۞ وَإِذِ ٱبْتَلَىٰٓ إِبْرَٰهِـۧمَ رَبُّهُۥ بِكَلِمَـٰتٍۢ فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ ۖ قَالَ إِنِّى جَاعِلُكَ لِلنَّاسِ إِمَامًۭا ۖ قَالَ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّتِى ۖ قَالَ لَا يَنَالُ عَهْدِى ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ ١٢٤

“And remember when Abraham was tried by his Lord with certain commands which he fulfilled. Then God said, ‘I make you leader (imām) of mankind.” Then Abraham pleaded: “Also leaders from among my descendants?” God replied, “Yes, but My covenant does not extend to the unjust and oppressors.”

The last part of the verse – “My covenant does not extend to the unjust and oppressors” only shows that to be God’s chosen people is NOT unconditional and unrestricted; otherwise, it is absurd for Jesus Christ to be described in John 1:11 to be someone who “came to his own, and his own people did not receive him” and to describe them as “wicked and adulterous generation” (Matthew 12:39, 16:4) “serpents and brood of vipers” (Matthew 3:7, 23:33)

Fundraising:

1. Fundraising as Awareness

* The ideal setup is that the means to generate the money is an awareness tool itself.

* In this regard, your choice of a film show is indeed laudable as visual art is one of the powerful tools in delivering a message and calling people to action.

2. Trust on both the fundraising and the delivery

* Bear in mind that the responsibility upon your shoulder does not end with your generation of the funds.

* In fact, you are equally duty-bound to ensure that the raised funds are duly delivered to the intended recipients.

* In this regard, I’m very confident that you are bearing this trust in both the fundraising and the delivery.

3. Symbol

* Whatever amount you will raise will not bring significant contribution to alleviate the pangs of hunger of the Palestinians during this upcoming onset of winter.

* For the past 12 months already, hundreds of tracks loaded with basic food and amenities are still lining up in the Rafah Crossing along the Egyptian border.

* What is important is the symbol of what you are doing and the pure intention behind it. A hungry Palestinian girl would console you, “QAṬRAN, QAṬRAN, FASĀ BAḤRAN – Drops, drops, it will make an ocean.”

With that, I invite you to reflect on this point:

Yes, there is no doubt that what is happening in Gaza is a humanitarian crisis, but this crisis exposes a far more serious crisis; that is, humanity crisis.

In closing, I have with me 10 copies of “Sansinukuban 1: International Studies from Mindanao – Traversing Spatial and Ideational Frontiers” (FREE sample copy: https://bit.ly/Sansinukuban1Sample) published by ElziStyle Bookshop. P500 is its suggested retail price (SRP). You may sell each copy for P450, i.e., 10% discount. And all the proceeds – P4,500 – will be donated to the campaign.

Thank you, wa’s-salāmu ‘alaykum wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuh!