Derek Prince: A Biography by Stephen Mansfield

Author:Stephen Mansfield
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2009-07-30T10:31:00+00:00

In the latter part of 1946, the Prince family was living a largely Arab life in the little village of Ramallah. To their credit, they had refused to isolate themselves from the surrounding culture, as missionaries sometimes do, and instead felt a strong connection to their neighbors and to the traditions of the local people. This was not only because Lydia and her girls had lived in Ramallah for more than a decade, but also because the people of Ramallah were largely Greek Orthodox Christians. The Princes and their neighbors, then, shared a common faith, celebrated the same holy days, and believed many of the same doctrines. They also shared an admiration for the beautiful cathedral that stood in the center of Ramallah, a symbol of the ancient faith of the land. Kirsten remembered sitting in this cathedral for hours, rapt in admiration of the beautiful stained glass windows, particularly the one depicting Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac.

The Prince family felt very much at peace in their Arab world. The girls played with Arab children, Lydia shopped in the Arab market, and Derek did his best to pass time with the neighboring Arab men. Gifts were exchanged with their Arab neighbors on holy days, and the gracious rules of Arab hospitality were observed. Derek even delighted throughout his life to recall the very simple Middle Eastern diet that the family enjoyed in those early days: "coarse bread, olive oil, powdered hyssop, milk, eggs, and, for a treat, a sack of oranges which could be had for two shillings." On special occasions and when money allowed, there might even be a meal of lamb. Clearly, the Prince family felt very much at home both in Arab culture and with their friends in the Christian village of Ramallah.

It was not long after Derek and Lydia married, though, that they began to notice a change. Ramallah began to feel less friendly. The once welcoming smiles were harder to find. Groups of men who had once greeted Derek warmly on the street remained closed and gave him little more than an over-the-shoulder glance. Shopkeepers Lydia had known for years seemed chilly and businesslike at best. Derek and Lydia discussed this change and quickly realized what was happening. It was the same thing that was happening all throughout Palestine. Arabs were beginning to resent the Jews, sensing that world events might mean a Jewish homeland where Arabs had lived for centuries. And here were the Princes, a family with six Jewish girls, living in an Arab village.

Just as Derek and Lydia were pondering how to respond, a near tragedy made their direction clear. On July 22, 1946, Tikva tried to board a crowded bus that was bound for Jerusalem. The driver turned her away because there was no room. A few hours later, she and her family learned that this same bus was sitting in front of the King David Hotel, headquarters of the British forces in Jerusalem, when a bomb exploded. A guerrilla faction known

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