200 People Join in Muslim-Jewish Peace Walk in Tucson, Offering Prayers for Peace in the Middle East

March 6, 2006

Source: Arizona Daily Star

http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/118766

On March 6, 2006 the Arizona Daily Star reported, "As the conflict in the Middle East smolders, more than 200 Tucsonans on Sunday took a step toward cooperation between Jews and Muslims. The group walked from one house of worship to another, where they were joined by others in a celebration as part of the third annual Muslim-Jewish Peace Walk. The walkers made their way from the Islamic Center of Tucson... just west of the University of Arizona campus, to Temple Emanu-El... There, the children played games — noncompetitive games — while the grown-ups shared their traditions. And just as important, they caught up on everyday concerns that people of all faiths share: about their children, their families and their communities, said Shafir Lobb, rabbi of Congregation Ner Tamid. 'It always helps when a person meets the person and sees the person as more than just a Muslim or a Jew,"'said Lobb, who also is director of the Tucson-based International Center for Peace. 'We have to break down those stereotypes and get people to see each other as real people'... Before the crowd set out on the Peace Walk, prayers were uttered in Hebrew and Arabic, many of them asking for God's help in bringing an end to violence throughout the Mideast."