Babies Receive Heart Surgery in Israel

By Erica Whate

CBN News Guest Writer

May 15, 2007

CBNNews.com - JERUSALEM, Israel - Shevet Achim, a non-profit Christian organization based in Israel, has been saving the lives of babies and children who would otherwise die without critical heart surgery.

Since its founding in 1994 by Jonathan Miles, Shevet Achim (Brothers United) has provided medical care for Palestinian children. In more recent years they've been able to transport children with critical heart conditions from Iraq to hospitals in Israel, as Iraqi medical centers aren't equipped to perform these complex procedures.

Reading profile after profile and seeing photos of the children evoke a profound sense of humility. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then the life-giving ministry of Shevet Achim is a portrait of true humility and authentic Christian love.

There is nothing about this work that is subtle. It is a statement. When an Iraqi parent hears there's one last hope for their dying child and this hope is an Israeli doctor, there can be nothing but a wide-eyed response. Yet when calamity strikes, it seems to be in the nature of all of us to lay ourselves bare for the sake of hope. "I don't care about politics," said one Iraqi father about his tiny infant girl. "Please, save my baby."

Each of the families who've received care from an Israeli doctor, at least for a time, aren't concerned with who is Muslim or who is Jewish. For this rallying moment, there are only brothers together.

I'm reminded of a car accident I witnessed not long ago in East Jerusalem. An Arab mini-bus hit an elderly Arab man pushing a large cart of produce across the street. More like a film than reality -- vegetables flew through the air, seemingly in slow motion… then his body lay on the asphalt in a graceful pose, as if a director had placed him there.

Within minutes, kippa-clad Israeli paramedics were lifting the still-breathing man onto a stretcher. Then just as quickly, they were gone. It was as if the scene had never happened. But I knew I'd witnessed something that transcended the moment -- a little bit of peace. Even if just for that moment, it was a picture of humility and peace.

And while this incident was a small portrait of peace, the work of Shevet Achim paints a much bigger one. The work requires humility from all parties involved.

Jewish doctors volunteer their time, expertise and compassion to perform these surgeries. Muslims vulnerably place the life of their own child in the hands of people they've perceived as a generational enemy. And Shevet Achim's Christian volunteers dedicate their time to raise funds and do hands-on facilitation of this bridge-building healing.

Alex Pettett is the co-ordinator of Shevet Achim Jerusalem. In a recent interview I asked him what his most potent experience has been since he accepted the position in January of this year.

"Already there are so many," he said. And then he told me the kind of stories that make you hold your breath and release a deep sigh for all of the ungrateful moments in your life.

One case in particular undid me. Pettett recently welcomed a father and his small daughter for heart surgery. The daughter recovered well, but the difficult part was the father's reluctance to return to Iraq. He was from a volatile area where thousands had been murdered. Women were abandoning their newborns after giving birth to flee for their lives.

When Pettett told him that trying to remain in Israel would jeopardize Shevet Achim's work, the man knew he wouldn't do anything to put the organization that saved his daughter's life in harm's way. He would willingly return to his country.

Alex Pettett's eyes were glassy as he related the story, but as he spoke I could see that this ministry is turning strangers into friends of the deepest kind.

Shevet Achim volunteers realize that their work isn't going to change policy or politics. Knowing that Jesus healed bodies and souls, they feel they're doing their part to facilitate healing, "one heart at a time."

Yes, it's true that a picture is worth a thousand words. For all of the special little people who are still alive because their hearts were healed in Israel, there will never be words enough to describe the hope for the future that beats inside their little bodies.

They are walking portraits of the peace that can be.

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