ANTISEMITISM & PROTEST

Because of protests on college campuses, ongoing war and violence in Palestine, and political debate around the world, the specter of antisemitism finds its way into our news, and our public and private conversations. Antisemitism is an evil that never seems to fade. In each generation, it seems, hateful voices and violent acts rise against the Jewish people because of who they are. From the Crusades to the Inquisition, to the Holocaust, Jews have been treated to the grossest acts of inhumanity. Shamefully, the inhuman behavior has been at the hands of those who claimed to be followers of Jesus – a Jew himself.

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Hating someone for being Jewish is impossible for the Christian – we are adopted (grafted, Paul says) into the children of Abraham. They are our brothers and sisters! Paul writes: “For in the first place, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. What if some were unfaithful? Will their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? By no means!” (Romans 3:2-4) 

Every Christian must reject antisemitic speech and behavior. Martin Luther himself stands rebuked by Lutherans around the world for the antisemitic tone of his late writings. Those words were used by those who plotted the Holocaust. We must own our complicity in hate. When you live in a hate-filled world, you can’t get out of it without getting some on you. 

There is no doubt that antisemitism is on the upswing. “According to the Anti-Defamation League, 2021 was the highest year on record for documented reports of harassment, vandalism and violence directed against Jews. The current streak includes the 2018 attack on the Pittsburgh Tree of Life synagogue - where a gunman killed 11 Jewish worshippers, as well as the deadly "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Va. two years earlier where extremist demonstrators chanted "Jews will not replace us" during a torchlit march but also thousands of smaller incidents like vandalizing Jewish schools and community centers, or extremist flyering campaigns.” (From NPR). 

The question of the day: Is it antisemitic to protest against the Israeli military action in Gaza and occupied territories? As an article from the AP stated, “Not every criticism against Israel is antisemitic,” said Tom Segev, an Israeli historian. “The moment you say it is antisemitic hate ... you take away all legitimacy from the criticism and try to crush the debate.” The article continued: “(T)he war, which has killed 35,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between fighters and noncombatants. The fighting has sparked a humanitarian catastrophe, and ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan has accused Netanyahu and his defense minister of using starvation as a “method of warfare,” among other crimes.” 

There is a strong Lutheran presence in Palestine. The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land is part of the Lutheran World Federation. Its members are suffering in this war. The Augusta Victoria Hospital, a leading medical center and cancer hospital in East Jerusalem serves the Palestinian population. The hospital is a ministry of the Lutheran World Federation. According to its CEO, Dr. Fadi Atrash, the hospital has been neutralized as a source of care for the wounded and sick victims. “The hospitals are overwhelmed with injured and casualties. Lightly injured people die because there is no medicine, there are no blood products, or they cannot get to the hospital in time.”  

Is it antisemitic to criticize the government of Israel? Antisemitism can lead to the criticism of the government of Israel for sure. If you hate Jews, it follows that you hate all things Jewish, including their leaders. That is, however, too simple.  Every prophet recorded in the Old Testament spoke passionately, against the government of Israel when it pursued injustice, oppression, and faithlessness. This was especially true when the victims of their crimes were the “widows, orphans, and resident aliens in the land.” The 35,000 Palestinian casualties include just such people. The government of Israel may be largely Jewish, but the Jewish people are not the Israeli government.  
Christians can, and should, speak up and protest for peace. We should all pray for an end to this madness. Removing the Palestinian people from the borders of Israel is no solution. It trades one hate for another. As Christians, we cannot be antisemites, nor can we be anti-Palestinian. We are to be the “blessed peacemakers” as Jesus taught (Matthew 6).  

Our presiding Bishop, Elizabeth Eaton received some of the most hateful insults and rebukes for her letter last October where she advocated for peace and humanity. The fact is, she stated things rightly and clearly. “Thus the ELCA denounces the egregious acts of Hamas, acts that have led to unspeakable loss of life and hope. At the same time the ELCA denounces the indiscriminate retaliation of Israel against the Palestinian people, both Christian and Muslim.” 

If you protest the actions of Israel because you hate and mistrust the Jewish people and seek their destruction, you are an antisemite. Yet, calling every word spoken against what is happening in Palestine “antisemitic” is often a tactic for stifling the legitimate voices of dissent. Protesting the actions of any government because it creates death and destruction and threatens to snuff out the existence of a people is not antisemitic. It is the speech of grace, love, and peace. Love your neighbors, my friends – all of them. And work for their safety and peace that Shalom may belong to all.  
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Pax Christi,  
Tim Olson – Lead Pastor ​