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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Elias feel about what happens?

2. What is the biggest reason Michael Chacour is willing to work for someone else in his own orchards?

3. What happens when the British withdraw from an area?

4. How does Elias feel about school?

5. What does Michael realize about Elias?

Short Essay Questions

1. Where and when did Elias Chacour grow up and what did his family do for a living?

2. What did the Zionist soldiers tell the people in Elias's hometown and how did they respond?

3. How did the other seminarians in Paris where Elias went to farther his education view the Palestinian situation and Palestinians in general?

4. Who was taken out of Gish from Elias's family and who was left?

5. What would a current student of the Middle East find strange about Palestine in the late 1940's?

6. What type of journal did Elias begin when he was at school? How long did this journal last?

7. What did a second Supreme Court rule about the town of Biram and what happened after that ruling?

8. Who are the Zionist soldiers battling in Palestine in the late 1940's and what is the result of those battles?

9. What type of study did Elias and his friend study at the seminary and how did Elias feel about it?

10. How did Elias's teachers view him at the seminary and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Elias found himself seeking out longer periods of solitude, talking to Jesus and praying for the safe return of the village men and boys. It was during this time that he began to feel that the message from Jesus was peace, and he offered himself to that end, if he could be of use. Discuss the following:

1. Most governments and individuals profess to desire peace, yet it seems almost impossible to obtain. What is the reason for the discrepancy between wanting peace and it not happening?

2. Are there some people who really do not want peace? Discuss fully both with examples from the book and other situations.

3. If the world were totally peaceful, would it be as interesting? Why or why not? Discuss fully both with examples from the book and other situations.

Essay Topic 2

A second Supreme Court ruling returns Biram to its original residents. This time, the soldiers gave the villagers the date of December 25 for return. On Christmas morning, the villagers of Gish walked to Biram, only to find the village still surrounded by soldiers and tanks. Then, as the returning residents watched, the Zionists destroyed the village. Elias is devastated but, even more, experiences a rage that cannot be reconciled with the teachings of Jesus to love and pray for one's enemies. Discuss the following:

1. Is Elias' rage understandable? Do you think he expects too much of himself to want to love and pray for the soldiers as he watches them destroy his village?

2. How does Elias eventually release the rage he experiences at the Zionist? Does it seem he is sincerely healed of the anger?

3. One of Jesus' teachings says that if someone smite you on one cheek, turn the other cheek. Is this realistic in a situation such as the one with the Zionist destroying Biram? Why or why not? What kind of person would be able to follow such a teaching? Could you?

Essay Topic 3

In Chapter one, Elias reveals that his father insisted their family would prepare a feast for Jewish soldiers who would be arriving in the village, and that the family would welcome them into their home. Discuss the following:

1. Does it seem odd that the first people to arrive are soldiers rather than civilians? What message does that send to the Palestinians?

2. How might things have been different had families of immigrants came to Biram rather than soldiers?

3. Do you think the Zionist actually believe that Palestine is uninhabited land? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

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