In spite of threats, says she won't leave impoverished areas

"I'm a Muslim, but I also like Jesus. I also like Karen," she said. "Everybody here in Jericho loves her. We want her to stay here. Even though we are Muslim, we believe in Jesus as one of the prophets. When I am reading from the Gospels, I feel power in my heart from Jesus. It makes me feel free and happy."

But Muslims in Jericho who object to the spread of Christianity have made no secret of their opposition.

Conversion to Christianity is forbidden by Islam and means a public break with one's family. Dunham and her colleagues prefer not to discuss how many people are actually being baptized as a result of their work.

"This is a very sensitive subject, and if we talk about it too much, we're just inviting more Molotov cocktails," she said. "Let's just say that Muslim men with two wives and 15 kids have come up to me after the services and asked if there's room for all of them in God's kingdom. There is room. We are adding to the church all the time, helping to fill the kingdom."

Services in the chapel and her home have always passed off peacefully, but Dunham has moved four times after her homes were firebombed. Last summer, her house and her car were torched, forcing her to leave the refugee camp for a more secure area in town, where a discreet local handyman and guard keeps an eye on her.

"Now I know what they mean by a 'chariot of fire,' like the one in which Elijah ascended to heaven," she said with a laugh.

Every Tuesday, her chapel is packed. Local volunteers lead the congregation in music and prayer, reading from the Gospels in Arabic and translating the sermons of visiting preachers.

Rania Ahed, a young mother of three from the Aqabat Jaber refugee camp on the other side of town, said she comes to learn about Jesus and to receive help from Dunham.

"I am a Muslim but I want to learn about Jesus. It is good to learn about other religions," she said. "To us, she is like Mother Teresa. She has helped my family and paid school fees for my children. We would never be able to afford it without her. We are hungry, and we have no food. I am pregnant, and I have nothing to feed my children or the baby when it will come."

Ahed's family, like many others, has been trapped by the international boycott of the Hamas-led government. "My husband is a policeman, but he has received no wages for months. I don't know how we would survive without Karen," she said.

Zohra Jeraiteh is an elderly widow who says she also comes every week. "Karen has helped me with medicine, which I badly need," said Jeraiteh. "I believe this help has come from God. Karen is a very good woman who helps many people here in Jericho. I'm very happy she has come to us."

Reproduced with permission. First published in the San Francisco Chronicle, Friday March 30, 2007. Written by Matthew Kalman