On a most solemn yet hopeful day, Good Friday, local Christians found a part of their hearts drifting thousands of miles to Arabs and Jews.

Jessica Lankheit, 6, of Edgewood, Ky., rides on the shoulders of her grandfather, Dick Maile, along West 8th Street downtown Friday during the Way of the Cross/Way of Justice procession, a Good Friday tradition. (Gary Landers photo) | ZOOM |

        The escalation of violence between Israelis and Palestinians in the Mideast left the hope for peace fading with each news update.

        Holding a 3-foot-high wooden cross during the Way of the Cross/Way of Justice procession downtown, Art Sleeman spoke of the price of giving up.

        The 35-year-old Clifton man's faith is Catholic. His education is in political science, at Western Michigan University.

        “It just makes me want to find common ground, to open their minds and hearts,” he said. “Never give up hope. As Winston Churchill said, never ever ever give up.”

        At Fountain Square, tourist Tom Fromholz, 57, of Anderson, Ind., noted the connection between Sept. 11 and the current turmoil in the Mideast.

        “You don't realize how much terrorism can affect you,” he said.

        “Sept. 11, I think, gave us a greater appreciation for what people in the Mideast go through every day.”
       

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