Merry's Book Club
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“Tea with Hezbollah” by Carl Medearis and Ted Dekker
It is almost impossible to talk about the relationship between America and the Middle East without bringing politics or religion into the conversation. And it is even more difficult, it seems, for members of various religious practices to discuss relationships between the Muslim and Christian worlds without tensions–and tempers–rising.
Because of this, it would be easy for anyone–no matter your political, religious or cultural standing–to dismiss “Tea with Hezbollah” as just another book with a religious or political agenda. After all, the title itself is pretty loaded, considering the Hezbollah are widely considered one of the leading terrorist groups in the world today. Why would anyone even consider having tea with them?
New York Times best-selling authors, Ted Dekker and Carl Medearis, did just that, actually. “Tea with Hezbollah” is a sort of travel journal, kept mainly by Dekker, who traveled to some of the most dangerous and hostile regions of the Middle East alongside his co-author, Medearis. As the reader travels with the initially nervous–perhaps even terrified–Dekker through the course of his journey, one will discover a new understanding of the Middle East and its peoples. The two men set out to meet with some of the most influential and powerful men of the Muslim world, and discover surprising connections of friendship, understanding and humanity between them as they ask some unexpected, even shocking, questions of these Muslim leaders. Throughout the book, the transcripts of these conversations are including, wisely providing readers the opportunity for their own interpretation of each encounter.
“Tea with Hezbollah” magnificently succeeds where so many other books about the relationship between America and the Middle East fail. Despite the fact that the authors are Christians, the book successfully avoids taking a stance in either politics or religion as it chronicles one man’s (Dekker) tremendous growth in cultural understanding. Dekker honestly voices the fears many Americans feel toward Muslims and the Middle East, but his fears do not overwhelm his ability to recognize the humanity of those whom he encounters. This book is a powerful testament of courage, love, and ultimately, friendship; and will push any reader to reconsider her own perspective on the tumultuous relationship between the peoples of the Middle East and the West.
