9-11 was just another day in September for 37 years of my life, until Jihadi terrorists flew hijacked passenger planes into the World Trade Center Towers, into the Pentagon, and even attempted to do the same to the White House. For my parents’ generation, the date December 7, 1941 was forever “infamized” when the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service bombed our naval base in Pearl Harbor. Even the dates of President Kennedy’s assassination, November 22, 1963 or the killing of Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968 still bring a wince and a bad memory to some who can remember those fateful days.
Today, one year ago, the world changed again because of the horrific events that took place on October 7, 2023. Over 1200 people were massacred, and nearly 300 people taken hostage, many of them raped, tortured, with nearly a third remaining in captivity to this day.
And yet within hours of these disgusting events, which represent the greatest attack on Jewish people since the Holocaust, there were groups of protesters and individuals who reflexively mobilized and began to march in their streets, celebrating these crimes against humanity and calling for the violent subjugation of all Jews. One "pro Palestinian" group gathering outside the iconic Sydney Opera house in Australia were heard to chant "gas the Jews!" Although, after "experts" examined footage of the gleeful celebration that took place a mere 48 hours after the horrific events of October 7, they determined that the crowd was only chanting "where's the Jews?" Then everyone in the West was gaslit by talking heads in the media representing the "peaceful protesters", shaming all of us for daring to believe the visibly "ravenous" crowd was saying anything anti semitic. How could we have all been so racist and Islamaphobic to assume that a gleeful mob celebrating at the same time the massacred bodies of Jewish women who had been violently raped were still splayed on the blood soaked ground in Israel were doing anything other than voicing solidarity with those same victims?
“Useful idiots”, and I am using that phrase intentionally and correctly, here in the West began to join in these peaceful protests, heartily chanting the demonic chorus on scores of American college campuses; “From the River to the Sea, Palestine shall be free”, most not knowing the “river” nor the “sea” about which they were mindlessly shrieking or that they were, in effect, calling for the extermination/deportation of all the Jews in Israel.
The Jewish Anti Defamation League reported within the last few days that over 10,000 instances of antisemitism have been documented since the events of October 7, 2024, 1200 of them on college campuses. Jewish students attending Cooper Union University in New York city had to barricade themselves inside the seventh floor of the library on their own campus to remain safe from marauding mobs of “pro-Palestinian” protesters.
United States Congressional representatives like Minnesota’s Michigan’s Rashida Tlaib refused to vote to condemn the acts of rape and sexual violence perpetrated by the Hamas terrorists on October 7. And of course, closer to home, Minnesota’s own Ilhan Omar, while condemning the attacks by Hamas, has a track record of spouting anti semitic remarks and calling for unrealistic cease-fires while Israeli and even American hostages are still languishing or dead in Gaza.
But the antisemitism regularly seen on the political Left is even less hidden on the extreme Right, and worse, even some supposed evangelical Christians are carrying the torch of Jew-hatred proudly and loudly echoing some of the same tropes.
Candace Owens, a very popular Black Christian Conservative influencer, has gone so far down the antisemitic rabbit hole that her own Christian Father-in-law, Lord Michael Farmer, has had to publicly oppose her disgusting statements. How painful that must be for him, his son and the entire family. Candace was once a feisty, articulate shining star for Christian Conservative values, but she has lost her way sadly and has chosen to amplify vile statements from equally vile individuals.
Hitting even closer to home for the tribe I am affiliated with, people like Steve Shultz of the Elijah List regularly platforms supposed prophetic voices like Johnny Enlow who spouts the most idiotic anti-Israel, anti-Jewish conspiracy theories, even claiming that wealthy Jewish families actually funded Hitler and his holocaust of the Jews!
That garbage is being pushed out by charismatic/prophetic Christian voices, but is not limited to them. One of the brightest stars in the Reformed Christian tradition in the past ten years, Pastor Jeff Durbin of Apologia Church in Mesa AZ, preaches “Replacement Theology” (that the Church has replaced Israel) and recently showed cherry-picked videos of ultra orthodox Jews in Israel spitting on the road in front of nuns or other Christians on his podcast, and then generalized that this kind of intolerance towards Christians is the default setting of all Jews. It’s especially hurtful because I love Pastor Jeff and I appreciate so much of his teaching and ministry.
But what is really astonishing to me is how many “Jewish” groups spout lies about Israel and encourage boycotts of Jewish products, divestment in foreign aid from the US government and even sanctions against the nation of Israel for supposedly being an apartheid state!
In another story that strains credulity, South African officials brought a “case” against Israel in the international Court of Justice less than three months after the indisputable war crimes of October 7th were perpetrated against the people of Israel. They alleged the IDF was carrying out a genocide in Gaza and that it had created an apartheid state in Gaza that had precipitated the attacks. And other countries signed on to this case in this order;
South Africa: filed the case on December 29
Nicaragua: applied to join on February 8
Belgium: declared intention to join on March 11
Colombia: applied to join on April 5
Turkey: declared intention to join on May 1
Libya: applied to join on May 10
Egypt: declared intention to join on May 12
Maldives: declared intention to join on May 13
Mexico: applied to join on May 24
Ireland: declared intention to join on May 28
Chile: declared intention to join on June 2
Palestine: applied to join on June 3
Spain: declared intention to join on June 6
It is an especially rich irony to see Libya and Egypt sign on that dotted line, knowing their stellar record with regard to basic human rights violations. But this same “tune” has been sung by tone- deaf representatives of countries at the United Nations for years, "straining out Israel’s gnats and swallowing their own camels."
For students of the Bible I know this is not supposed to be a surprise, but I must confess, the universality of antisemitism never fails to astound me. If there is one thing that unites the far Left and the far Right, it’s hatred of Jews. And there are even Jews who hate Jews, which seems to be some sort of deep seated defense mechanism gone awry, as if they are saying; “before you hate me for being a Jew, I want you to know that I’m on your side, and I hate them too.”
So, what can possibly overcome the pervasive darkness of antisemitism?
Darkness is only overcome by Light.
The light, in this instance, comes by speaking the truth in love, as the Scriptures instruct us. This means we must prepare to engage in conversation with loved ones and friends who are understandably confused about this controversial topic. It will necessitate us studying a bit, reading some books and articles, and listening to informative podcasts, lectures and sermons. In short, we need to embrace our Christian calling to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth.
There was a German Pastor named Martin Niemoller who, during Hitler’s rise to power, initially supported him and his policies. Hitler made impressive promises to the leaders of the protestant churches. I found this quote from an article by an anonymous author posted on the official website of the United States Holocaust museum in Washington, DC.
"In keeping with his right-wing, antisemitic outlook, Niemöller enthusiastically welcomed the Nazi regime in 1933. He voted for the Nazi Party in March of that year.
Niemöller’s enthusiasm for the new government led by Adolf Hitler quickly waned, however, when the Nazi regime began to interfere in church policy. In 1933, Hitler threw his support behind a radical faction within the Protestant churches known as the Deutsche Christen (in English, the German Christians). The German Christians portrayed Jesus as an Aryan and denied that he was Jewish. They rejected the authority of the Old Testament and sought to alter parts of the New Testament. Their goal was to remove what they called “Jewish elements” from Christianity. This included prohibiting pastors with Jewish ancestry from serving in the Protestant church. Niemöller led the opposition to the German Christians and Hitler’s church policy.”
Pastor Niemoller was arrested by the Gestapo and jailed as a political prisoner for eight years. But after the war when he was released, he publicly repented for his antisemitism and the following quote is attributed to him. These words are inscribed on an important monument in the Holocaust museum:
"First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me."
These sobering words from Pastor Niemoller should stir us to action. And the words of Elie Wiesel are also appropriate on a day like today:
"'Never again' becomes more than a slogan: It's a prayer, a promise, a vow ... never again the glorification of base, ugly, dark violence."
On this one year anniversary of the worst acts of violence against Jewish people since the Holocaust, may we as Christians stand in solidarity with Jewish people here and abroad, and make this our prayer.
Never again.
Never. Again.
PRN: God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we recognize our Jewish Messiah, Jesus Christ and pray that Jewish people everywhere will do the same. Please bring peace to the war ravaged Middle East and may all the hostages that are still held in captivity be released now. May antisemitism be shown for what it is, and may we as Bible believing Christians light the way to peace with You and peace with others. In the name of Jesus we pray, amen.
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