Antisemitism and Genocide

Photo by Nils Uenerfuerst

I indicated a few blogs ago that because of the United States and Israel’s War in Iran that we would have to be vigilant in fighting against antisemitism. There isn’t a better example of what I meant and unfortunately what will grow in our nation as a virus, antisemitism. In essence, it is the horrible treatment of the Palestinians in Gaza and the financial support of Israel by America. You only need to look at the New York elections yesterday that people are unable to separate Jewish people in America from the work of Netanyahu and the right wing of the Israeli government ‘s destruction of the Palestinians in Gaza and in Iran.

There are several aspects of the attached interview of Representative Daniel Goldman that highlight the issue. First, is his location of where he and his daughter were asked to leave a coffee shop in New York. It was really the most normal exchange that one could imagine. They knew that Goldman was Jewish because he ran for political office in New York City.

Having watched Dan Goldman on CNN, he is very bright, and he doesn’t support the government of Israel’s actions and is not a fan of Netanyahu. This caused great confusion in Goldman. Goldman is a very intelligent guy who attempts to make sense of difficult things that he regularly must do in Congress. But antisemitism is not a rational process. It is based in emotion. The adage holds true that we remember how people make us feel more that what they say.  Jews no matter what they believe or are connected to Netanyahu and the military actions of Israel have been referred to as agents of genocide.

C.S. Lewis, the Christian apologist, would put it this way: “When passion enters a moment, reason leaves.” No matter what Goldman says which is reasonable, passion will dominate emotion in the process of the New York election. Add to that that the latent antisemitism in the culture just waits to say, “I told you so.” Unfortunately, human beings tend to gravitate to the more high-risk accusations like a voyeur.   Stephen King, the horror story author, indicated that people read so many of his books for the same reason they slow down at a car accident. They are drawn to the horror. Few things are more horrible than Israel and its leadership being accused of genocide.

But Goldman continues to try make sense of all this as most people would, but it doesn’t make sense as he highlights his credentials as being for a two -state solution.

Vicki and I learned a lot when we were taking a course on places mentioned in the Bible and visiting them as well at St. George’s College in Jerusalem. Its architecture is modeled after Oxford and sits on the line dividing the Israeli Section from the Palestinian Section.

When we were there the college had over-subscribed housing for a group so we were housed in a hotel in the Palestinian Section. The Israeli Section looked like the Mainline and the Palestinian Section looked like a ghetto, but we learned as much living there as we did in the course. We were informed that it would be safe, but I was looking at barbed wire across the top of all the walls of the college, and one could leave by just one large gate of iron powered by a motor. The Palestinians had few rights, were overpopulated, and you could feel the anger if you walked through the streets. I have often commented that Israel’s treatment of Palestinians after the tragedy of October 7 was raising the Palestinian kids to become future terrorists.

Netanyahu has been accused of war crimes which I think is appropriate. But something happened to me that was reminiscent to Goldman’s experience in the coffee shop. I went out for a run dressed like any other American runner would be when I was attacked by some adolescent boys. I was faster than they were, so they hurled bottles and rocks at me. I managed to get back to the hotel lobby with the kids in hot pursuit. My first thought was the same as Goldman’s. “I did nothing wrong. In fact, I was living with them and learning first-hand about the Israeli/Palestinian division.” I noticed as I watched out the lobby window when I was safe that a group of older adolescents were berating the behavior of my assailants.

There is a great deal of revenge between the two groups. Trump isn’t the only one to have that at their core because it arises when you feel that you have been unjustly punished. That is what Goldman and I felt. It doesn’t mean to blind someone in one eye by punishing with the removal of the other. It is why we have in the book of Exodus 21:23-27, “the ends should justify the means, which is called the Lex talionis, the punishment should fit the crime to guard against extreme revenge.”

I always want to say to those who are “holier than thou”, you better consider that   phrase, “there but the grace of God go I.” Goldman refused to have the federal authorities go after the coffee shop but to  go after people who are antisemitic and who do not have the platform that he has.

America’s support of Israel with funds and bombs will fuel antisemitism.  CNN’s coverage shows the bombs of Israel bombing the Palestinians so there was no place to hide as well as the pictures of the Palestinian children and adults with their outstretched hands to get food and the failure of Israel to allow food trucks to enter as people died of starvation are seen by Americans, and like Goldman and me feel “I did nothing wrong.” He and I became “the other” who must be punished.

Daniel Goldman's Response to Antisemitism