BY AVELLINA BALESTRI

I have seen the faith of Ibrahim
Smashing the idols of distraction
Amidst Gaza’s desecration,
Confronting a world consumed with comfort,
Stained by apostasy, and stunted by apathy,
Eager to bury its head in the sand.
Yet we cannot turn our eyes away
From the mettle of the afflicted
Who yet bless the One.
If there is any greatness left in our race,
They are the keepers of its keys.
Let our privileged tongues fall silent
When we dare to raise complaint
Or dispute with the divine!
I watched a man moaning death prayers,
“Ya Rahman, Ya Raheem, Ya Raab,”
As he returned to his Lord,
His blood mixing with flour
When the soldiers opened fire.
I have seen a woman, veiled like the Virgin,
Shrieking over the corpse of her child,
“Inna Lillahi wa inna Ilayhi rajioon,”
Another Pieta, marble made flesh.
I watched a man declare God’s sovereignty
As explosions sounded around him,
Insisting that an ant cannot move a limb
Save by the Almighty’s will.
“I entrust you to God
Who does not lose His deposits,”
He said, and so his life ended.
I have seen a boy pulled from the wreckage,
Blood splattered on his face
And running down his nose,
Placed, unnumbed, beneath the knife
Of a weary physician,
Reciting the Quran to ease the pain.
“Do not think Allah is unaware
Of what the oppressors do!”
I have seen a man laid out on a stretcher,
Kissing a patriarch’s crucifix,
Outstretched, emptied of strength,
An icon of the Redeemer.
“Christ is not absent from Gaza;
He is crucified in the wounded.”
I have seen children, sheltering in a sanctuary,
Their homes reduced to rubble,
Telling their beads in their melodic tongue
Alongside their stalwart Shepherd.
I have seen mosques and churches
Blasphemed by bombing,
Yet the worshippers return
Every Friday, every Sunday,
Proving they are a Mighty People.
Yes, they have Ibrahim’s faith
As their children are sacrificed,
Still waiting on the resurrection.
This is beyond reason;
This is love.
“Allah tests those He loves.”
I tell you, if any may claim to pass the test,
It is the martyrs, bearing witness
By climbing the mountain
And setting a fire there!