FOTONNA Newsletter Oct 2025

Update from Daoud Nassar

Dear Friends:

Greetings of steadfast hope from the Tent of Nations.

I write to you at a time of deep challenge in our land. The situation around us continues to be tense and uncertain. Our mission and faith remain firm, it is our daily choice to live differently by transforming fear into faith, hatred into love, and despair into hope.

In recent months, we have faced ongoing pressures. Legal struggles continue in the Israeli courts as we work to protect our family farm, and restrictions around the area have made access and daily work more difficult. Yet despite these hardships, the Tent of Nations continues to stand as a sign of justice, and steadfast nonviolent resistance.

This season, the olive harvest carries even deeper meaning. Our olive trees remind us that life can take root even in rocky soil. Every olive we pick tells a story of resilience. The harvest is smaller this year due to dry weather conditions, but every drop of oil pressed from our trees is a testament to faith that bears fruit through perseverance.

We continue to welcome international volunteers. Those who come, whether for days or weeks, experience the spirit of the Tent of Nations by working and feeling the land, planting trees, and harvesting the fruits. Together, we share the conviction that transformation begins from the ground up, from the heart outward.

It is a difficult time, but we will not give up. Our hope is not a feeling; it is a decision. Every morning, we rise, we choose again to believe that light is stronger than darkness. As the Apostle Paul writes, “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair… struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:8–9).

Your friendship and solidarity remind us that we are not alone. Together we form a global family that believes in and act for justice. Your prayers, advocacy, and support are like water to the roots of our olive trees that are giving life.

Let us continue walking together, sowing seeds of hope even in rocky soil, and believing that one day these seeds will grow into a harvest of justice.

With gratitude and steadfast hope,

Daoud Nassar
Director, Tent of Nations
-People Building Bridges-
https://tentofnations.com/
www.fotonna.org
https://www.facebook.com/tentofnations

A Message from the FOTONNA Board of Directors

Ten years ago, I took my first trip to the Tent of Nations with the Pilgrims of Ibillin and met the Nassar family, having met Daoud in the Seattle area two years before that. And four years ago, my good friend, Bill Plitt, passed his baton to me as the chair of the FOTONNA board. I’m a humble latecomer to the good work many of you have been doing for a long time. And while we are all inspired by the faith and witness of Daoud and his family, I am inspired as well by each of you, stirred by the spirit of sumud (Arabic for steadfastness, perseverance) in you.

At a time when injustice seems to be roaring louder than compassion, and destructive behavior drowns out the whispers of peace, there are still those who rise each day, as you do, to take a stand against the wrongs in our world. Quietly, steadfastly, and against great odds, you will not allow hatred to push out love, evil to vanquish the good, darkness to extinguish the light.

When others are absorbed in their own personal matters or are silent, you are the ones standing up to demonstrate your concern, care and compassion. As you defend the innocent, protect the vulnerable, and stand in solidarity with the Nassars and, through them, the Palestinian people — you are doing a work that matters. It matters deeply. Even when the steps forward are small and any progress painfully slow, your support of TON speaks a truth louder than fear: that justice matters and is not forgotten.

When you – especially those who have been at it far longer than I – have times of feeling weary, it does us all well to remember William Sloane Coffin’s wisdom: “keep the faith despite the evidence, knowing that only in so doing has the evidence any chance of changing.” Yes, keep believing because history is full of stories where light prevailed, not because it was the strongest, but because it refused to be extinguished. The arc of our moral universe is not a straight line but bends toward justice through every act of compassion, every stand for truth, every prayer for the dignity and respect of each human life. These are the seeds that, when planted, are able to grow even in hard soil.

The Nassars – and the world – need our courage. The Nassars – and the world – need our heart. And most of all what’s needed is our hope — because hope is essential for the good to prevail. So, thank you for standing up, speaking up, acting up, and making a difference. Thank you for being people of hope.

Keep the faith, good friends,

Charlie Lewis
Chair of the FOTONNA Board of Directors

My Experiences at Tent of Nations

By Muis Luijten of the Netherlands

I am a teacher at a nursing school in the Netherlands. From mid-April to mid-June, I took unpaid leave to stay at Tent of Nations (ToN). This was the second time for me.  It is always nice to be with the Nassar family and work on the farm.

I was asked to take care of raising two delightful puppies and train them to watch over the farm. In April, I think they were 4 or 5 months old. The female was willing to work for you; the male was more of a cuddler. After a week they became ill. To our great sorrow the female died and Ringo, the male, remained alone and cried at nights. Things got better and I bonded with him. He became a great dog, barking to his echo at night on the side of Neve Daniel. I worried about his pen; it was very hot and out of the wind. They now have moved him I heard. When I think of him, I miss him and long to return.

I found the threat from the settlers has increased over the past year–they were often present on the other side of the fence and rode nearby in their jeep, as I walked Ringo on the soccer field. Their bright lamp (soccer stadium quality) is aimed at the showers and compost toilets in the evening and night. Big Brother is watching you. All the time. Very intimidating.

I had a fine time with a group of PhD students from New York who worked hard on the farm for ten days. We had conversations about the differences between our lives and those of the Palestinians. All were deeply impressed by the Nassars and wanted to see more of the West Bank. Daoud arranged wonderful tours of Bethlehem and Hebron for us. Daoud’s wife Jihan spent an afternoon with us, making soap with natural ingredients grown on the farm. We all had excellent experiences and would like to come back next year.

Best regards to you — perhaps we will meet you next year at Tent of Nations. Let us all pray that the farm may continue to exist.

For Gaza: A Re-Imagining of Psalm 83

by Rabbi Brant Rosen

Psalm 83 begins with a plea asking God not to remain silent in the face of attacks by enemies who seek to “wipe out (Israel) as a nation.” In my reimagining of this Psalm, I was struck by the theme of silence in the face of atrocity. As I understand it theologically, we are the conduits by which God’s actions are manifest on earth. In this regard, our silence in the face of genocide is tantamount to God’s silence. Unlike the original Psalm, I imagined this version as less a passive plea than a call to action. If we truly believe that God is the source of liberation, who stands with the oppressed, then it is up to us to make God’s liberative power manifest in the world. The first step in this process, of course, is to refuse to remain silent.

For Gaza: Psalm 83

Now is the time to break our silence
to let go of our fear
to face up to the truths
we’ve known to be true all along.

Now is the time to face down
the cynical uproar of those
who justify the unjustifiable
who explain away the massacre of innocents,
the destruction of families
the abject dehumanization
of an entire people.

Now is the time to say out loud
and without apology
that our place is with the oppressed
and not the oppressor
to call out those who worship
the false gods of vengeance and cruelty.

Now is the time to call out
those who wield this terrible power
who profit from the blood of others
to proclaim our unabashed solidarity
with those who dwell in tents that offer no shelter
who travel to safe zones that offer no safety
from the incessant rain of fire from above.

Now is the time
it’s still not too late
to find the words we are willing to say
to determine who we truly are
and where we truly belong.

Rabbi Brant Rosen 
Tzedek Chicago
FOTONNA Advisory Council Member

From the Ground and UP: Help the Garden Grow

The first year of the Tent of Nations children’s interactive book, From the Ground and UP, has been one of planting seeds in TON’s international garden. Thanks go to all who worked with Daoud to create the book, raise funds, purchase, promote, and use the book. Readers are joining in the Palestinian children’s summer camp empowerment activities — art, writing, recreation, music, environmental explorations, and other learning experiences.

Throughout the country, parents and grandparents are reading the book with their families. Camps and children’s activities at organizational meetings – from Pax Christi’s Little Friends for Peace in the D.C. area to a Friends regional meeting in Iowa – are including the book in their programming. Books have been placed in church, school, and public libraries. They have been sold at church-sponsored “fair trade markets” and other events. Copies were donated for a Voices for Palestine Night of Solidarity fundraiser. The book has been presented at church gatherings and incorporated into interfaith speaking engagements. One person featured the book at his retirement party, and it was shared at a 65th high school reunion.

The book has appeared in France, a linguistics conference in Tokyo, and an international school in Bangkok. Most significantly, Laura Munaro and her team in Italy have produced an Italian translation, Dalla terra verso L’ALTO, now available in paperback and eBook versions from Amazon with proceeds going to TON projects and priorities. In Accra, Ghana, Ruth Awontemi Afoko has shared the book with 200 children and holds weekly readings with different children in the community. She writes, “I can’t express how much I’m happy that the book is influencing kids positively to want to live and practice peaceful coexistence.”

Now, the garden needs to be cultivated to develop broader dissemination of the book so that TON’s story and message of peace, justice, freedom, faith, hope, love, and sumud can be more widely proclaimed. Thus, you and/or your organization are invited to share your ideas, promote distribution, and use the book in your own creative ways. Please contact Virginia Wadsley if you would like to discuss gardening coordination – or just go ahead and garden by ordering and using the book! Then share it with others. Click this link for a full description of the TON Book Project, an order form, and information for making donations to the Project for continuing translations and distribution of the book.

Finally, if you are able to visit TON as a protective presence and to help with work at the farm, please consider carrying a few copies in your luggage (the only way we can get books to TON for their distribution). Just let Virginia know when and how many books you can accommodate and they will be sent to you. Thank you!

Virginia Wadsley 
TON of Hope Children’s Book Project
FOTONNA Advisory Council
vrwadsley@gmail.com
515-255-5296

Your Generous Gifts Truly make a difference!

Thank you for your generous support, spiritually and financially, for the Nassar family. Financial gifts can be made securely online by credit card: open the “Make a Contribution” page on Fotonna’s website, then click on the “Click to Contribute” button. If you prefer to give by a check, download the donation form here and mail to 3436 East Ave S, La Crosse, WI 54601.

Gifts for Trees: gifts are especially welcomed to support the purchase and care of new trees for the Tent of Nations Farm. Each $30 gift supplies a new tree that will be lovingly watered, fertilized, and tended by the Nassars and guests on the farm over the following two years, until it has grown enough to thrive on its own.

Note that donations given directly to FOTONNA for Tent of Nations are not tax deductible under US tax law. However, tax deductible donations of $250 or more can be made through our fiscal sponsor, Tree of Life Educational Fund: click here. For more information about donating, please visit our FOTONNA website Donations page.

Questions? Contact: Beth Moore, FOTONNA’s Finance Co-Director, ebmoore1@live.com.

Accompany the Nassar Family at Tent of Nations

You are invited to participate in life at Tent of Nations: the Nassar family farm. The family continues to live its mission: cultivating the land, creating community, and standing true to their commitment of refusing to be enemies. Your presence is sorely needed and will be an encouragement.

Spending time at the ToN is a unique opportunity to experience life on a Palestinian farm, enjoy the hospitality of the Nassar family, participate in caring for the land, and engage with people from all over the world who are committed to a just peace in the Holy Land. Learn more here.

For more information about how you can spend time on the farm you can also contact FOTONNA (Friends of Tent of Nations North America) by emailing info@fotonna.org.

Looking for Meaningful Travel to Israel/Palestine?

Pilgrims of Ibillin is offering a Living Stones Pilgrimage to Israel & Palestine
April 12-23 or 25, 2026.*

Full information about this tour is on the Pilgrims of Ibillin website here.

*Option to add two days in Jordan to include Petra and the Dead Sea

We are Grateful to be on the FOTONNA road with you!

Thank you for all the ways that you are leaning into the wind, walking with the Nassars on their “journey for justice with faith, love, and hope in action.” Your prayers, advocacy work, financial gifts, and presence on the farm as visitors and volunteers are deeply appreciated by Daoud and his family.

Heidi Saikaly and Joan Deming
FOTONNA Board of Directors Communications Team