Why do so many, historically, hate Jews?

Status
Not open for further replies.

Stope

Puritan Board Sophomore
Hitler hated Jews, skinheads, King Richard, Luther (or so I have heard), etc etc etc... Im kind of confused, what is the reasoning/justification for all these peoples hatred of Jews?
 
Before this thread gets off the ground it is important to make a distinction: modern antisemitism and ancient antisemitism are categorically different. The former is race-based, i.e., hating someone simply because of their genetics, such hatred is a merely modern phenomenon. The latter had more to do with a religio-cultural antisemitism; a lot of Christians were really bitter about the Jews rejection of Christ. Thus, if a Jew "converted" to Christianity, they usually had no ill feelings toward the person because of their race (again, race is a modern phenomenon).
 
I think a lot of it has to do with the reality that, as Justified says above, the rejection of Christ made the Jews the ever-present "not one of us".

Moreover, in their attempts to satisfy Levitical principles of cultural isolation (as well as avoid the bloody, relentless persecution that was known to come from Gentiles), they were known to be curt and secluded.

A certain aspect of their unjust persecution has to do with what I think is envy. The Jews were brilliant financiers, and the bankers of the earliest Popes. It's only natural that farm-handling, agrarian Christendom marveled at their ability to make money multiply with significantly less physical work.

Couple all of this with the perhaps-unbalanced belief that the peoples that rejected Christ were accursed and would only be followed by ruin and one can fathom (though never exonerate or mitigate) their aggression.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Any time unassimilated minorities persist in both minority status, and unique separatist markers, it is a recipe for bullying and scapegoating.

So, on the one hand I'm saying there's nothing special about "Jewish" hatred--hatred of them, or hatred by them. The hatred of them by numerous groupings is not much different from (to use USA history, because it's convenient) some American's hatred of the Irish, or hatred of the Chinese. And some Jews have hated and persecuted Arabs, blacks, and Christians. It's a power-dynamic.

Because the Jewish ethno-religious identity markers have persisted for ages, and because there has been a degree of resistance to assimilation within the group for all that time, maintenance of minority-status has, perhaps, been uniquely possible for this group over centuries. This makes for a two-sided coin: in-group benefits; and targeting. If a body sticks around long enough, so will the hatreds associated with that body. It's that simple.

As for "justification," people excuse their bad behavior all the time. They have even been known to use (gasp!) religion, and being-on-the-side-of-God, to clothe wickedness in a veneer of piety. Just look at the trial of Jesus of Nazareth. But even this is not unique to religion or reactionaries. Political-correctness will produce the same excuses for disgusting behavior in the name of "the greater good."

C.S.Lewis, in The Abolition of Man, commented on the tragedy of the sanctimonious cultural revolutionist, whose brutality cannot be checked by conscience because he does the harm he does out of "necessity," believing there's something "redeeming" in the torture he inflicts. Behold, the modern Inquisition.

As a "class," many people of Jewish heritage continue to succeed in worldly terms, both in money and influence. Historically, survival of some/any members of the class has depended on a substantial cache kept in store, by which to ride out the storm. And anyone or any group that has, is inevitably envied by the have-nots.

Again, you see a case of "live by the identity; die by it." To compare, historically USAmericans have loved to go abroad and tell people who they are as USAmericans. That's a habit, and it can open doors. And today, it can also get you kidnapped and beheaded for a YouTube video. Yay.

At various times in history, Jews who own and maintain that identity have made being so a public privilege. Certainly in the USA today, its a great time to be Jewish. There are strongholds of Jewish presence, money, and influence. And most of America is pleased in some sense to glean the residue of Jewish glory.

And, at the same time there are people who trade on envy, who want someone to pin their feelings of inadequacy upon, who think quite highly of themselves and their intelligence and desserts--and they don't have "their due." So, they reason, THOSE GUYS have what's theirs. If in the USA there was not this identifiable "class" of ethno-religious connection on which to focus hatred; another one would be invented.

Parting shot: as USA grows more addicted to evil, Christians-in-truth who stand apart from the flood of dissipation will yet again find their unique moral-stance at the base of the ostracism and violence laid against them. And as in the first-century, the coalition against them will be Gentiles and Jews, in combination, as one, because there is actually no difference between them. "All have sinned, and fallen short of the glory of God."
 
Any time unassimilated minorities persist in both minority status, and unique separatist markers, it is a recipe for bullying and scapegoating.

As usually, a very helpful post. Thank you brother.

I had a follow up question in regards to the quote above:
Indeed I have heard of early Americans hating Irish and Chinese, but can you think of any examples in modern American that this is view-able? That is, I can think of Native Americans as the fringe but we dont blame anything on them, in fact I think many feel a sense of "pity". Or even other fringe groups like maybe Satan worshipers or Polygamists, these are on the fringe but I dont see all sins being added until them (as they were to Billy the Kid as told to us by Mary Robbins).

I absolutely believe and see what your saying, but I really have no context or something like this that I have seen and so its hard for me to have it resonate.

Thanks
 
Any time unassimilated minorities persist in both minority status, and unique separatist markers, it is a recipe for bullying and scapegoating.

As usually, a very helpful post. Thank you brother.

I had a follow up question in regards to the quote above:
Indeed I have heard of early Americans hating Irish and Chinese, but can you think of any examples in modern American that this is view-able? That is, I can think of Native Americans as the fringe but we dont blame anything on them, in fact I think many feel a sense of "pity". Or even other fringe groups like maybe Satan worshipers or Polygamists, these are on the fringe but I dont see all sins being added until them (as they were to Billy the Kid as told to us by Mary Robbins).

I absolutely believe and see what your saying, but I really have no context or something like this that I have seen and so its hard for me to have it resonate.

Thanks

What about Arabs, or those who look like Arabs? While it is far from PC, its accepted widely that all Muslims have the capability to be terrorists and its reasoned that if they aren't its just because they're inconsistent.
 
A clever person can use the ridicule that is garnered against them to draw a sympathy vote. In this way they can deflect any criticism away from themselves. We see this happening a lot in the LGBT community, where they use a persecution complex to further their own interests. Planned Parenthood does the same with their "Don't Offend Mothers" policies. Even the Salem Witch trials are still used by the modern day Wiccans. We need to take this into account before falling into the anti Semitism hole. The human heart is deceitful and desperately wicked and this includes nations and groups of people who are not above manipulation.

I think Reverend Bruce's parting shot really says it all though.
 
Any time unassimilated minorities persist in both minority status, and unique separatist markers, it is a recipe for bullying and scapegoating.

As usually, a very helpful post. Thank you brother.

I had a follow up question in regards to the quote above:
Indeed I have heard of early Americans hating Irish and Chinese, but can you think of any examples in modern American that this is view-able? That is, I can think of Native Americans as the fringe but we dont blame anything on them, in fact I think many feel a sense of "pity". Or even other fringe groups like maybe Satan worshipers or Polygamists, these are on the fringe but I dont see all sins being added until them (as they were to Billy the Kid as told to us by Mary Robbins).

I absolutely believe and see what your saying, but I really have no context or something like this that I have seen and so its hard for me to have it resonate.

Thanks

What about Arabs, or those who look like Arabs? While it is far from PC, its accepted widely that all Muslims have the capability to be terrorists and its reasoned that if they aren't its just because they're inconsistent.
---I dont think this is a working example only because in some instances a physical/warfare Jihad is PART OF THE IDENTITY/PRACTICE of the group. Whereas the Jewish people, as far as I know, dont have any sort of codified rule/call to action that says it wants to cause danger/death/similar to folks that are different..
 
In Romans 11 the Apostle to the Gentiles explicitly warns Gentile Christians not to despise the Jews because they are following an apostate religion. It is only of grace that Gentile and Jewish Christians are in Christ.

Sent from my C6903 using Tapatalk
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top