From the Hanitizer, who is currently in Gaza:

I headed to the neighborhood mosque for Friday prayer here in Beit Lahia last week. For being in a small farmers’ town, the mosque was unusually packed. I sat down just as the sermon began. I couldn’t help but to take a moment to look around at the mosque congregation surrounding me. It was at that moment that I realized that I was sitting next to a funeral casket with a dead person actually in it. I jumped in shock the moment I realized that it wasn’t just a decoration in the prayer hall.

Obviously, living in the States for as long as I have, Americans don’t have much interaction with dead bodies, at least not so close-up and definitely not when you’re in a religious place and you’re about to pray. Maybe in Baltimore, where street violence is rampant, it would be less unusual.

I wanted to get up and to move somewhere else, but I was stuck right there. The mosque had gotten packed in the last few minutes. Few of people know that I am just here visiting and I didn’t want to disturb them.

The family of the deceased had brought her in for a brief janazah prayer. Since Friday prayer is the largest gathering, they sure made use of it.

When I shared my “horror story” with friends after the Friday sermon, the first thing one of them said was, “At least she was in once piece!” referring to the many deaths due to Israel’s recent assault. Then, body parts had to be collected to properly bury the dead.

A second friend noted, “it’s only one person that we had to conduct such a prayer for today.”

A third one was even gloomier: “This woman lived her life . . . not like the children we had to bury.” I wasn’t sure what to say to them, so I joined them in the prayer where the imam confused the prayer for a deceased individual and forgot how to properly conduct it (I know this because my father told me so).

It’s amazing how the Israeli offensive has changed the mentality of everyday Gazan society, where events are now perceived with regards to the most recent attacks. In short, the most recent attacks are somewhat of a Palestinian 9/11, where things can only fit within pre-9/11 and post-9/11 mindsets.

I can’t wait to get back to the States, where I don’t have to worry about death and destruction all around or gruesome tales (expect for the ones Rob Zombie wants to share with us on the silver screen).

Making fun of a Gaza Friday sermon

I’m going on week 3 of my visit to Gaza Strip, where my family lives. Here’s a sample of some of the things I have heard in recent Friday sermons:

1. Women should not dress in a revealing manner at home—siblings might get seduced by their own sisters

2. Dish satellites ruin society—because young men and women stay up late watching morally objectionable entertainment

3. Women should not beautify themselves for their husbands—they are role models for their children and they should be very private about it

4. Women should not answer the phone and should only answers the numbers they know—weak hearted men might want to “chat” them up. Instead, have the males at home answer the phone

5. Women should not dance in front of video cameras at weddings—it’s not what nice women do

Related posts:

1. Gaza: No More Room to Bury the Dead
2. Killing the Dead
3. Inauguration Day: Burying the Gaza Dead
4. Fuzzy Math: Israel’s Dead Soldiers Numbers Don’t Add Up
5. Al-Jazeera Twitter Page: Quick, Short and Unspun News