Shalom, this is Rabbi Jonathan Ginsburg of the Ezra-Habonim, Niles Township Jewish Congregation. This video is about anti Semitisms. Well the term Anti-Semitism is really a problematic term in some ways because Semi’s do not only include Jews but when we talk about the anti Semitism we are really talking about Jew persecution and hatred that Israel they had the term is relatively late and it was a term coined by in Germany not that long ago. However, the idea of Jew hatred goes way back in early history. For example, in the book of Ester, which occurs during the 4 century B.C.E. of the Jews living in Persia, the number 2 important guy in Persian dynasty at that time named Hamin. According to the book of Ester, tells the king that there is this people disperse in your land who do not follow the kings ways and he suggest that the king exterminate those people, the Jews.
The story of Ester is about how that did not happened but it almost did. Whether that bull cast historical or significance or not still the idea of hatred of Jews and desire to kill Jews is been prevail with us for since very beginning of Jewish history. To think about the enslave of the Israelites in Egypt for 400 years between about 1700 and 1300 B.C.E. and the effort are Pharaoh to desire to commit genocide and kill the Jewish baby boys. Move to more modern time off course we have Christianity and there said legacy of Anti-Semitism which we pray and is ended now, we believe it has. The beginning of Jesus of course was off course who was Jewish and was killed. The killing of Jesus is on the Jews by the New Testament. Now we know that is because the writers of the New Testament were concerned that if they tell the real truth about the murder of Jesus by the Romans the Romans will get more upset and so they blame the Jews, it was an easy target and they were trying to present themselves as the super secessionist over the Jews the new true Israel.
Thank goodness the last Pope in Vatican 2, 2 Popes ago repudiated the doctor and the Jews killing Jesus and many Christians denominations had repudiated that. Lucifer example at the end of the later wittings was violently and viciously Anti-Semantic and some are denominations are repudiated that aspect the of Luther’s theology. Well off course that are many persecutions of Jews in the early church, Hitler file copied some of those.
We move to the Middle Ages we think about the crusades. The Pope initiated effort to free the land of Israel for Muslim domination but the Jewish involvement came because as the masses of Christian marched to Jerusalem along the way and all through Europe and they massacre Jews in huge numbers. They also have the situation in Bubonic plague which wake on a chunk of the European population but Jews died the last of scenes during that plague probably because Jews were segregated, probably because Jews had special hygiene procedures like washing their hands before meal and taking a bath weekly and clearing out their grain once a year that other communities did not have and so the Jews have healthier situation and died last but were blamed then for the Bubonic Plague.
They also have the inquisition in Spain where the church decided to figure out who are good Christians and of course their solution to the Jewish situation was force Jews to convert with some did many converted secretly stage Jewish. Expel a third and kill a third and so the Jews are massacred in Spain. The Spanish expulsion which happened on the same day Columbus left the same week Columbus left certainly is an example of the anti Semitism. Jews are expelled from every European country at some point, England, in France and the predecessors to Germany and slowly find the way back for many centuries. We have in the later times in Europe the Pilgrims, the massacre and the destruction of Jewish towns and villages and many of the Jews who came to America as young teenagers left because of those Pilgrims like my Grand parents.
One of those brutal situations occurred actually in 17th century, 1648 Helbenenski and his Kasich horde massacred thousand and thousand of Jews but we can not say anything about anti Semitism really without about talking the holocaust, the brutal murder of 6 a quarter million Jews by the Natzi’s and with the tassel support and the active support of much of Europe. Even the United States did not allow Jews who are trying to flee now to Germany to come here. The whole world could have done much more to after the intervene just like Nauseously the world totality by other people being brutalized around the world. It is 6 and a quarter million of Jews died and you have people like the President who Hooray who said first of all it did not happened at is a complete lie and second of all he like it to do again as soon as he gets a nuclear rod. He loves to see Israel off the face of the earth.
He also says said that by the way about America. Today the Jewish people then are experiencing the most direct anti Semitism from not all Muslim but Muslim fanatics who openly talk about killing Jews and wiping Israel off and people just hear that in do not even complain about it. It is just as if it is okay to say kill every Jew. A guy can say I really like Israel off the face of the map and still allowed to be a member United Nation, the president of Iraq. It is unbelievable. There are also positive examples of what is happened to the Jews lately for example the magnificent acceptance of Jews into the United States but we must come to terms with the fact that throughout history for the last 2000 years there have been these brutalized efforts.
It is a miracle that the Jewish people are still here. It is amazing what we can contribute to the world that an on going basis. Over 15 % of the novel prize winners have been Jewish is just one example. Guess pull pulls us for a minute and think of all the contributions that the Jews had made to the world, just think about Einstein’s for example. How many Einstein’s where killed among the 6 and a quarter million Jews not that any single life is less important than are more important than any other but it is amazing what the world has done. So all we can do is hope and pray that the feeling of xenophobia patriot of strangers and in the particular persecutions the Jewish people ends and that we all learn to live together that we love our neighbor as our self. We all live and learn to live under a binding victory no one makes us afraid and no one let us sort any other nations but work together to build the kingdom of God.
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