Galilee Moms Come Together For Peace

We started the Muslim-Jewish Women's Network because it seems pretty clear that the restoration and inclusion of the voices of women worldwide is necessary in order to resolve the conflicts which beset human beings everywhere. Nitsana Bellehesen shares a heartening example of the fruits of women forming cross-cultural relationships:

For a group of Jewish, Christian, Druse and Moslem mothers living in Israel's Galilee region, peace starts in the home.

They started out trading recipes and home secrets - nothing unusual in a group of moms getting together to do that. But these mothers come from four different cultures living in Israel's northern Galilee region and were rarely in contact before.

Founded five years ago by Dr. Anat Pinto who was born in the area, the Christian, Moslem, Druze and Jewish women are a fiercely a-political group, dedicated to creating true friendship.

The Galilee moms range in age from 25 to 70, encompassing every level of education and type of occupation - they are lawyers, teachers, businesswomen, and housewives who share a willingness to leave their comfort zone to create a better society.

They plan seminars and activities for women from all over the country as part of the work of the new non-profit organization that they started last year, called Moms in the Galilee. Seminars focus on a topic that one of the moms specializes in. Two women gave a seminar on family finances, another taught how to cook with local herbs.

Nada, a Druze woman, says, "Someone who wants to make peace has to start from home."