Melia Art and Training Center

St. Paul's Bookstore offers beautiful hand-embroidered items from the Melia (may-LEE-ah) Art & Training Center in Jerusalem. The artists who do the traditional embroidery are Orthodox Christian and Muslim women who are earning a living and building new confidence through their work. Each embroidered piece is unique, reflecting colors and patterns of the different villages in the Holy Land. Women from the Melia Center travel among the villages at some risk to their lives, distributing the work and providing opportunity to those who live in extreme poverty and danger.

A recent article in the Jerusalem Post explains that when a young Arab woman produces an income, her chances of postponing marriage improve; her chances of studying longer are better. Hala Jahshan of the Melia Center states, "We have to fight for our rights with love - not force - and to shout with words - not violence - for peace, and our children will learn from this example. When a woman has separate economic power, she will have more power in her family and community."

The Melia Center is a longtime partner of International Orthodox Christian Charities located in the Old City of Jerusalem. At St. Paul's Bookstore, we invite you to purchase these wonderful hand-embroidered items from the Melia Center as gifts or for your own enjoyment. By our purchases, we stand in solidarity with oppressed people everywhere and with women who empower themselves and their families through their faith and work. Come see their exquisite handcrafts and join us as supporters of the Melia Center women.