Radical Joy for Hard Times is known for finding and making beauty in the natural places of the world. But the practice of going to wounded places, facing what's uncomfortable, looking for what's beautiful there, and pulling from ourselves reserves of love, compassion, and creativity also helps us respond to other kinds of crises. 

Recently, the shift from old, sometimes meaningless, often inherited concepts into new demonstrations of love and compassion has entered promising new territory among Jews and Arabs on the internet.

On July 10 two students at Hunter College in New York, Dania Darwish, originally from Syria, and Abraham Gutman, an Israeli, started a Facebook page, #JewsandArabsRefuseToBeEnemies. Less than a month later the page has more than 57,000 "likes." Families, friends, colleagues, and loving couples are posting photos, many of which include handwritten signs that identify the ethnic or religious backgrounds of the people pictured. These moving declarations put the lie to politicians' assertions that Israel and Palestine can never solve their difficulties.    

The group is planning a silent protest for Friday, August 6, in New York City.