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Galatians 3:28-29 says “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.” The Promise that Verse 29 refers to is the promise that God made to Abraham and his Jewish offspring. So, we are all one in our standing before God, whether by lineage or by the choice of our forefathers past and recent, and ourselves. And speaking of lineage, Matthew 1:1-17 shows that Jesus descended from David, who in turn descended from Abraham.
Why the animosity by many Europeans throughout the centuries toward the Jews? Were the pagans jealous that Jesus was born among Jewish people instead of among people like themselves? Did they wonder why Jesus’ lineage was from Abraham instead of, say, Atilla the Hun?
Throughout history, the Jews have absorbed the wrath of other people, and for various reasons. Some motivations include jealousy, envy, and raw anger. Even today, there is anger against the Jews of Israel who are defending themselves against enemies at their border. Not a word is mentioned about the Israeli, ne Jewish civilians killed by those enemies; only when the Jews took action do we hear criticism. And that criticism is leveled against the Jews. Reminds me of the crooked wrestling matches you sometimes see on TV, in which the villain fights dirty, but it is only when the good guy fights dirty in kind that the referee steps in. Those who are critical of the Jews in Israel defending themselves are like that referee.
And that criticism has made its way to America, where people, including college students who supposedly hold knowledge in their hands, are engaged in antisemitism, threatening American Jews. I guess, when you’ve seen one piñata you’ve seen them all.
But even before what is going on now, for centuries many in Europe made the Jews their piñata. The Jews seem to have fared better in Asia, where they were prominent in trade and commerce. And countries like Japan took in Jewish refugees, saving them from the Holocaust going on in Europe in the 30’s and 40’s.
And it wasn’t everyone in Europe who disdained the Jews. Those with business relationships with them, and who borrowed money from them, including the nobility and the countries’ leadership, held them in much higher regard than everyone else who didn’t have such dealings with them. What Europeans were against the Jews? It included the Christian clergy and the pagans whom the clergy were making into Christians. The Christian clergy had to do something to draw the pagans away from the Jews, so as a result the clergy demonized the Jews, literally as well as figuratively. The Christian clergy ostensibly held all Jews responsible for killing Jesus, despite the fact that many Jews, including many of Jesus’ original disciples, converted to Christianity. And the Crusades apparently took their cue from the Christian clergy and engaged in wholesale massacres of Jews throughout Europe.
Yes, there were other people who were persecuted. But, for instance, were the forefathers of the slaves in America persecuted for centuries? Were the Irish, who were initially treated harshly by Americans who were already here, persecuted for centuries? Some may argue that Christians are being persecuted in Moslem countries. But are they prone to being persecuted in America and in Europe like the Jews are?
Apparently, amidst calls of ‘Never again’ after the Holocaust, antisemitism didn’t die, it was just lying dormant. And now, in places like America, the piñata has arisen once again in the form of Israel’s war against its bordering enemies, accentuating antisemitism in Europe and the U.S.
The only analogy to this antisemitism among those who refer to themselves as Christians may be the sons of Adam and Eve. There, Cain, despite being Abel’s brother, kills him, perhaps out of jealousy. They were part of one family, inasmuch as Galatians 3:28-29 holds us as part of one family, yet that hasn’t stopped one sector of the family from persecuting and killing the other sector.
What is ironic is that even if some Jews were involved in killing Jesus, is Jesus not in God’s Kingdom, waiting for us when our souls are called? And is there any recorded history in which Jews systematically marginalized, disenfranchised and killed Christians for centuries? If so, at any time, it was when the Jews were attacked. And if instead of Cain killing Abel, Abel killed Cain in self-defense, would anyone hold it against Abel?
We see that the idea of “Never again” has turned out to be just a hope instead of a reality. From what we’ve seen in America and Europe, we can be sure that, even if the Middle East situation is eventually resolved, the piñata will rise once again, goading people in America and Europe into attacking the Jews. They say that those who don’t learn from history will repeat it. When will we ever learn?
Why the animosity by many Europeans throughout the centuries toward the Jews? Were the pagans jealous that Jesus was born among Jewish people instead of among people like themselves? Did they wonder why Jesus’ lineage was from Abraham instead of, say, Atilla the Hun?
Throughout history, the Jews have absorbed the wrath of other people, and for various reasons. Some motivations include jealousy, envy, and raw anger. Even today, there is anger against the Jews of Israel who are defending themselves against enemies at their border. Not a word is mentioned about the Israeli, ne Jewish civilians killed by those enemies; only when the Jews took action do we hear criticism. And that criticism is leveled against the Jews. Reminds me of the crooked wrestling matches you sometimes see on TV, in which the villain fights dirty, but it is only when the good guy fights dirty in kind that the referee steps in. Those who are critical of the Jews in Israel defending themselves are like that referee.
And that criticism has made its way to America, where people, including college students who supposedly hold knowledge in their hands, are engaged in antisemitism, threatening American Jews. I guess, when you’ve seen one piñata you’ve seen them all.
But even before what is going on now, for centuries many in Europe made the Jews their piñata. The Jews seem to have fared better in Asia, where they were prominent in trade and commerce. And countries like Japan took in Jewish refugees, saving them from the Holocaust going on in Europe in the 30’s and 40’s.
And it wasn’t everyone in Europe who disdained the Jews. Those with business relationships with them, and who borrowed money from them, including the nobility and the countries’ leadership, held them in much higher regard than everyone else who didn’t have such dealings with them. What Europeans were against the Jews? It included the Christian clergy and the pagans whom the clergy were making into Christians. The Christian clergy had to do something to draw the pagans away from the Jews, so as a result the clergy demonized the Jews, literally as well as figuratively. The Christian clergy ostensibly held all Jews responsible for killing Jesus, despite the fact that many Jews, including many of Jesus’ original disciples, converted to Christianity. And the Crusades apparently took their cue from the Christian clergy and engaged in wholesale massacres of Jews throughout Europe.
Yes, there were other people who were persecuted. But, for instance, were the forefathers of the slaves in America persecuted for centuries? Were the Irish, who were initially treated harshly by Americans who were already here, persecuted for centuries? Some may argue that Christians are being persecuted in Moslem countries. But are they prone to being persecuted in America and in Europe like the Jews are?
Apparently, amidst calls of ‘Never again’ after the Holocaust, antisemitism didn’t die, it was just lying dormant. And now, in places like America, the piñata has arisen once again in the form of Israel’s war against its bordering enemies, accentuating antisemitism in Europe and the U.S.
The only analogy to this antisemitism among those who refer to themselves as Christians may be the sons of Adam and Eve. There, Cain, despite being Abel’s brother, kills him, perhaps out of jealousy. They were part of one family, inasmuch as Galatians 3:28-29 holds us as part of one family, yet that hasn’t stopped one sector of the family from persecuting and killing the other sector.
What is ironic is that even if some Jews were involved in killing Jesus, is Jesus not in God’s Kingdom, waiting for us when our souls are called? And is there any recorded history in which Jews systematically marginalized, disenfranchised and killed Christians for centuries? If so, at any time, it was when the Jews were attacked. And if instead of Cain killing Abel, Abel killed Cain in self-defense, would anyone hold it against Abel?
We see that the idea of “Never again” has turned out to be just a hope instead of a reality. From what we’ve seen in America and Europe, we can be sure that, even if the Middle East situation is eventually resolved, the piñata will rise once again, goading people in America and Europe into attacking the Jews. They say that those who don’t learn from history will repeat it. When will we ever learn?
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