Matthew Harrison שָׁלוֹם

🚨🇵🇱 Today, I stand as an Arab Muslim in Poland for the March of the Living to express my solidarity with the Jewish people and to affirm that Jews have non-Jewish allies from the Arab and Muslim world. Why do I stand with the Jewish people? Because I love the Prophets, kings, and heroes of Israel, names carried by 1.8 billion Muslims, often without recognizing their deep connection to the Jewish people of today and to the State of Israel. My soul was with Jacob when he wrestled with the angel and was named Israel at dawn. My soul was with Moses and the Children of Israel as they left Egypt for the land of milk and honey through their wandering and their arrival under Joshua ben Nun. My soul was there when the ancestors of today’s Jews asked Samuel for a king, when Saul was chosen, and when David established Jerusalem as the capital. I carry within me the memory of the united kingdom, its division, the Assyrian and Babylonian exiles, the days of Judah Maccabee and Mattathias who rose against the Greeks and restored independence, and the revolt of Bar Kokhba until the long exile, and the return in 1948. Jewish history is part of my heritage as a Muslim. I defend it because I honor the men of God from Israel who brought monotheism to the world. My love for the Bible drives me to stand even when it means standing against prevailing views in the Muslim world to educate, to correct, and to challenge. I was once in that darkness of hatred toward Jews, but I confronted it, dismantled it, and left it behind 16 years ago. This is why I strive to be known as a champion of the Abraham Accords. I believe they represent one of the greatest breakthroughs in modern diplomacy. God bless Donald J. Trump and his team for bringing them forward. I will continue to work for their expansion, inshallah. I will always strive to stand on the right side of history. This is why I am proud to be a friend of the Jewish people and of the great people of Iran, the descendants of Cyrus the Great. I will continue to fight misinformation with knowledge, facts, and truth until the day I meet my Creator, the one and only true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, and Jacob. To my Jewish friends around the world: We will never forget. And we will thrive together. This is the vision of God.

My parents & grandmother survived the Holocaust. 80 of my family members, men women, & babies, were murdered by the Nazis. Yet, these survivors were inspiring optimists who rebuilt their lives. But they never forgot. Nor will I. Lft: Ann Shalmoni, Helen Lautenberg, Abe Kreiner