This Kansas church group was headed to Israel. A day before they docked, the war began

When Johnson County Rev. Adam Hamilton heard about the war in Israel, he was standing on a ship in front of nearly 500 people, preparing them for a pilgrimage into the Holy Land planned for the next day.

The pastor at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood said his heart immediately went out to the Israelis and Palestinians suffering. He prayed.

On Sunday, the ship filled with 480 members of the United Methodist Church, including 30 from Hamilton’s congregation, was supposed to dock in Ashdod, a port city between Gaza and Tel Aviv.

But on Saturday, Hamas led a major attack on Israeli civilians in areas surrounding the Gaza Strip, killing and kidnapping hundreds of civilians, including in settlements and at a music festival.

Israel declared war on Hamas as a result, sending a barrage of rockets into the densely populated Palestinian territory. In the days since, more than 1,200 Israelis and more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed.

Back on the ship, Hamilton said he’s grateful everyone is safe.

“The folks who are here, some of them are older adults who saved up for years to go to the Holy Land,” he said. “This is their trip of their lifetime ... but their primary concern was not that they don’t get to do those things, but for the people who were on the ground in Israel and Palestine.”

Hamilton spoke to reporters over Zoom on Tuesday afternoon as he floated somewhere near the Aegean Sea. They re-routed to Cyprus Saturday, with plans to head to Egypt next. But following an attack on Israeli tourists in Alexandria, they again changed their plans, heading instead for Turkey.

As the grim news continues, Hamilton worries for his friends in Israel. He said he’s reached out to many of them, including a Palestinian Christian friend in Bethlehem. He’s not heard back yet.

While Hamilton’s focus is on serving those on the ship, he’s also thinking about the message he will bring home to his larger congregation in Johnson County.

Hamilton, who has traveled to Israel dozens of times, knows the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is nuanced.

“It’s a complex story and soundbites don’t do it justice on either side,” he said.

Every time he visits the Holy Land, Hamilton said he takes his pilgrimage group to meet with both Israelis and Palestinians. Often he finds Americans without ties to Israel or Palestine don’t understand the complexity of the struggle. They are surprised to see Palestinians and Jews living in co-existence. They are shocked by the security wall, and the checkpoints, around the West Bank.

“It has to be really clear that what Hamas has done is unacceptable and immoral. It’s criminal, it’s wrong, no matter what the underlying causes are for what’s happening,” he said.

But Hamilton said he’s also trying to teach about the Palestinian struggle. After receiving news of the war, he read aloud to the hundreds of people on the ship the poem “Harlem” by Langston Hughes, which begins “What happens to a dream deferred?”

“There has to be security for Israelis, but there also has to be a future for Palestinians,” he said.