Once more the popular selection du jour from the historically expansive menu of humanity’s prejudices appears to favor anti-Semitism. The contemporary iteration of this ancient pathology appears to be the dual result of the devastating results of the Israeli retaliation against Gaza for the Hamas attack and brutal massacre on October 7, 2023, and, the all-to-convenient, reductive conflation of the entirety of the World’s widely dispersed Jewish population, with criticized Israel. As reported in the media, the tragic impact upon the civilian population of Gaza was, in fact, tactically enabled by Hamas which, as planned, after the barbaric assault, retreated with its hostages, to its well-supplied tunnels, constructed under hospitals and places of public assembly. Per Hamas’ plan, the predictable retaliation for its attack and cruel medieval, barbarism would by necessity, be visited upon the innocent civilians residing on the surface, thus, insidiously, inviting World condemnation against Israel.
The invidious and pathologically, inhuman plan, was tragically successful. The innocent Gaza civilians, to the public view, unjustly, as evilly construed by Hamas, are bearing the tragic impact of the predictable retaliation, as Hamas designated, “human shields.” As a further, concomitant bonus, the always-reliable alliteration of traditional anti-Semitism has been energetically re-articulated. In the United States alone, anti-Semitism has been seen to have increased by approximately 400%, including, notably, at college campuses. Rational or not, the eternal knee-jerk reflex reaction, i.e., the historic hatred of Jews, has been patently, evident. Whether it be the bubonic plague of the Dark Ages, the falsely alleged poisoning of wells, poor crops, or, whatever may be the extant, calamity, it has been, summarily and universally, attributed to the “evil existence” of the Jews.
In his scholarly, well-documented, book, “Constantine’s Sword,” the author, James Carroll, an ordained, Catholic priest, targets and documents the role of the Roman Catholic Church (4th Century, C.E.) in the long history of religious anti-Semitism, as the precursor to “racial anti-Semitism.” Carroll reveals that the primary source of anti-Jewish sentiment and resulting violence is the perennial obsession with converting Jews to Christianity. Such Christian anti-Jewish sentiment, Carroll maintains, inevitably led to the Holocaust, committed by Nazi Germany. The author declared that it was the 4th Century hatred that laid the foundation for Hitler’s crimes and subsequent hatred of Jews.
In our view, the stated origins of the subject prejudice might, conceivably, be somewhat forgotten; or less impactful if not for an empirically human, neurotic need for a “pecking order” or the need for participation in a (perverted) “groupthink,” to assuage uncomfortable feelings of insecurity. Whatever the relevant cause, the practice of this lethal species of hatred has been timeless. Our parents, as did millions of surviving European Jews came to America, in response to the horrific events of universal societal “pogroms” against European Jews. We need only mention the place names, “Auschvich” and “Babyn Yar” to illustrate the extent of racial detestation of the Jewish people.
When we were in the 4th Grade in Public school, our teacher (who happened to be Christian) with the finest of intentions, this season of the year, drew a straight line on the blackboard, and, with the best of motives, listed in two columns, the celebratory features of both Christmas and of Hanukah. We appreciated the effort to include all of the class in the holiday celebration. In later thought, we felt that the effort was, undoubtedly, commendable, [but, based on our lifelong (annoying) pristine sense of rectitude] we thought that the teacher, while thoughtful, was, at the same time, patronizingly, in error in equalizing the major Christian holiday with (we then felt), a minor historical event in Jewish History, viz., the victory of the Maccabean led Hebrews over the Hellenizing aggressors in 167 B.C.E. Subsequently, (and, no doubt, not apprehended by the kind teacher) we reasoned that, since the Christian religion, evolved from Judaism, had the Hebrews been eliminated, in 167 B.C.E., there would be no Christianity, and, ipso facto, no Christmas.
When we were young children, our immature perception of Christian hatred against Jews, was confused by the perceived conundrum of having been instructed that Jesus, himself, was Jewish; as were his parents, Joseph and Mary. We, later on, somewhat wondered, relative to those pious people who faithfully believe in the religious miracle of the “Immaculate Conception,” wasn’t the (Omniscient) Deity aware that Mary was Jewish?
-p.
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