The Plague: Anti-Semitism

"Repentance Not To Be Repented Of"

by Alan C. Lazerte B.A.,LL.B.
Executive Director, Canadian Friends, ICEJ

Part 1

We have been "bridge building" in Canada between Christians and Jews since 1982. During that time we have established some excellent relationships with Jewish people and synagogues. Strange and somewhat disappointing, however, is the fact that while we have positively influenced thousands of Christians at the grass-roots level, we have not been very successful to date in breaking down theological barriers.

Some of this is due to busy church schedules, and lack of time within church programs. While some denominations regard the whole subject of "Israel" as purely political; others are "theologically friendly", but reluctant to get involved in such controversy in our pluralistic society. Many denominations have taken positions hostile to Israel, in spite of scriptures like Psalm 89:20-37 which proclaim God's faithfulness to Israel; purely by reason of His oath and covenants with the Jewish Patriarchs. Part of our task is to ask questions and hopefully, find some answers. This is not easy when you are "swimming upstream" against the current; and coming against anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism, whether secular or religious in origin.

Some place the blame solely on "Christendom", but fail to realize that there was vicious anti-Semitism in pre-Christian times; under Greek and then Roman pagan culture. Going back further in time, anti-Semitism is rooted in the "call" of Abraham and the misunderstanding of the "election" of the "chosen people". Properly understood that call was to increased responsibility, not favoritism; in order that "all the families of the earth be blessed".

But after all is said and done, we do have to face Christian sources of anti-Semitism squarely, trace its sources, recognize it, and repent of it; if not for ourselves as individuals, then for the sins of our fathers, and for present hatred of Jews, Judaism and Israel within professing Christendom. It is a painful process; but not as painful to us as it was, and is, to the Jewish victims!

Where do we start? With the Church fathers; who were pagan anti-Semites before being grafted into the spiritual commonwealth of Israel through the Gospel. These root sources steered Christian theology, and even "Christology", into anti-Semitic channels. I mention here only a few, including the heretic Marcion who attempted to destroy all our Jewish roots by banning the entire Old Testament revelation; Orlgen the "golden-tongued" orator and anti-Semite; and Augustine who so spiritualized Jerusalem that nothing except the "new heavenly Jerusalem" mattered any more.

Regardless of where we start our quest we will run aground at the same monstrous, hideous, unthinkable event: the Holocaust. How could it happen? Who did it? Who allowed it? How was it possible in a Europe that had been exposed to Christianity for over a thousand years?

After the event, and the end of the war, it took decades to sift the evidence, and then decades to analyze it, and even more time for scholars to make sense of the nightmare. But we no longer have any excuse for failing to face the issue; the jury, in fact many juries, have brought in verdicts. The very year that "Canadian Friends" was founded, there was held in Jerusalem a symposium of Christian and Jewish scholars; each seeking to explain their findings and research. The theme was "the relationship between National Socialism (Nazi), Judaism and Christianity". The results were published by the Historical Society of Israel, and those results are shocking, and stand unanswered as a monumental condemnation of apostate Christianity in Europe.

The Book entitled "Judaism and Christianity Under the Impact of National Socialism: 1919-1945" was published in 1987 by The Historical Society of Israel and The Zalman Shazar Center for Jewish History; Editors Otto Dov Kulka & Paul R.Mended-Flohr.

As far as the Jewish people worldwide are concerned, Christianity proved itself morally bankrupt and therefore now irrelevant and without credibility; and that is where it stands today in their considered opinion. It is essential that today's legitimate Christians and the true Church face up to the horror because, to sum it up, "the Holocaust was a Jewish disaster, but is now a Christian problem". Put another way, we must prove the credibility of the Christian faith to the Jewish people. And that is going to take more than theology and words.

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Part 2

Preamble: This is Part Two of a four part series.
Part 1 dealt with the fact that the occurrence of the Holocaust in a Europe that had been "Christian" for a thousand years has, for the Jewish people as a whole, destroyed the credibility of the Christian faith.

How can the true Christian faith be made credible to those outside the faith once again? Only by demonstrable change and the deepest repentance possible; including a repentance that corrects historically false Christian theological assumptions and teachings that go back as far as the Church fathers.

Israel's faith was "particular"; God's covenant was with this one nation. At Calvary God made Israel's faith "universal"; the covenant relationship with God was opened to all nations. Paul describes this as the wild olive branches (Gentiles) being grafted into the good olive tree (Israel) and nourished by its rich root. Theologians who were converted Gentiles, in developing the "universal" covenant relationship for all men, threw out this "particular" covenant relationship of Israel. Paul foresaw the danger of the Gentiles doing so, and wrote Romans (Chapters 9 to 11) to guard against it: "hardening in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in...concerning the Gospel they are enemies for your sakes, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the (covenant made with) the fathers (patriarchs)".

Time, and error, caught up with the theologians in this century when two events occurred which have changed the world forever: The Holocaust and the restoration of the state of Israel.

The negative event, the Holocaust, is in no small part attributable to this theological triumphalism which attempted to make the wild Gentile "branches" the root of the spiritual, universal household of faith. Going further than the "better covenant" through Jesus the Christ, they discarded the Jewish people collectively, denying their covenant, consigning them theologically to "the curses", and to the historical scrap heap. Further, this began "the teaching of contempt" without which the Holocaust could not have been successfully implemented.

Neither true Christians nor the collective church plotted the Holocaust, but their ambiguity about the Jewish people prevented the vast majority of professing Christians from being concerned for the Jewish people outside the Church. The painful answer to the Christian factor lies in what Christians generally did not do. Being double-minded concerning the Jewish people, they were paralyzed, and unable to stand collectively against the Nazi monstrosity. Recognizing this vulnerability Hitler's evil genius found it easy to "divide and conquer" the only collective group that could have stopped this monstrous crime.

True, a small minority stood individually; and that because they had conviction according to Scripture, but they were only a few thousand out of tens of millions.

It is historically fitting therefore that in the post-war world the most important official action of a Christian denomination has come from the German Federal Republic, namely the 1980 DECLARATION OF THE RHEINLAND SYNOD OF THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH:

The provincial Synod accepts the historical necessity of attaining a new relationship of the Church to the Jewish people.

The Church is brought to this by four factors:

1. The recognition of Christian co-responsibility and guilt for the Holocaust
2. The new biblical insights concerning the continuing significance of the Jewish people for salvation history (eg. Rom. 9-11), which have been attained in connection with the Church Struggle
3. The insight that the continuing existence of the Jewish people, its return to the Land of Promise, and also the creation of the State of Israel are signs of the faithfulness of God toward God's people
4. The readiness of Jews, in spite of the Holocaust, to (engage in) encounter, common study, and cooperation

The Jewish people have survived the Holocaust, and moved onward towards their spiritual destiny, through their return physically to the Promised Land. Christendom, however, has not yet faced up to the Holocaust and its implications for the faith. Unless and until we do, we shall remain ineffective outside our self-centred group.

And there is another more contemporary imperative also. Islam today, like the Nazi antichrist spirit, intends to eradicate both root and branch (all things Jewish and Christian).

We Jews and Christians have more in common than we often realize. The "god of this world" hates us both with a vengeance:

"Many a time they have afflicted me from my youth;
yet they have not prevailed against me.
The plowers ploughed upon my back:
They made long their furrows.
Yet the Lord is righteous:
He has cut asunder the cords of the wicked.
Let them all be confounded and turned back that hate Zion!
(Psalm 129:2-5)

The Jewish faith believes Messiah is coming; we believe He has come (and is coming again). Instead of being "divided and conquered", let us get on with real dialogue.

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Part 3

Part 1 dealt with the "credibility problem" now facing Christianity, due to the Holocaust in "Christian" Europe.
Part 2 dealt with an analysis of Christian failure to face up to the theological implications of the Holocaust, and lack of serious repentance throughout most of Christendom.

Part 3: The Rebirth of the State of Israel

The Scriptures are true; "Scriptures" meaning God's covenant with Israel, and the newer "testament" through Jesus the Christ.

But men often attempt to make the Word of God void by "the traditions of men"; a good description of what we call "theology".

The Scriptures are not anti-Semitic; but much Christian theology is, and has been, for centuries. The early "church" theologians, in their religious zeal against Judaism (including Jewish-Christianity) wrongly turned the New Testament into teaching and preaching against the Jewish people.

Even Luther in his latter years became totally frustrated over the lack of Jewish converts, and called Jews generally "the children of the devil", urging that their children be taken away to be raised as good Christians, and that the Jews be assigned to live in specially designated areas. No one can doubt that this theological attitude finally produced the "ghettos" of Western Europe, and the "Pale" in Russia. For centuries the Church said: "You shall not live among us". Hitler took it one stage further: "You shall not live"!

Politicized Christianity said of the Jews, "You shall not live among us". The Nazis said, "You shall not live". The latter would not have been possible without the former!

The Holocaust ended in 1945; but Christian theological anti-Semitism did not, because most of Christendom still believes that the God of Israel abandoned Israel, and left them as the cursed "wandering Jew" to forever testify against them; while Christianity took Israel's blessings.

Accordingly most Christians today do not believe that the reemergence of the State of Israel in 1948 is a continuation of God's covenant, and faithfulness to His first chosen people, the Jews.

We have totally ignored the plain truth of Scripture, including Paul's specific teaching about "the mystery of Israel" in Romans, chapters 9 - 11, including "concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election they are beloved for the fathers' sakes".

The Gentile "branches" have attempted to make themselves "the root", and instead of returning God's grace and mercy to Israel by "provoking Israel to jealousy" have become high and mighty; not only "superior" but supercessionist as well; declaring the Church to be the new "Israel of God"; all of which implies that Israel has been "cut off".

Christian theologians and leaders have been responsible, and their present day counterparts are refusing to face the issues, to the detriment not only of the Jews and Israel, but of the Gospel also.

Though we have traditions that may be 1500 years old, being old does not make them right, if they were wrong at the beginning.

The God of Israel is One, and the same God as the God of true Christians; and He is the covenant-keeping God "Who keepeth covenant forever". His promise to Israel is still:

"and I will settle you after your old estates, and I will do better unto you than at your beginnings and you shall know that I am the Lord." (Ez.36:11)

Most Protestant denominations, being liberal theologically, are identifying with the Palestinian Arab cause, which suits their "Liberation theology" and their abandonment of the Gospel; a few Protestant denominations are "theologically friendly" to Israel but unwilling to stand up for Israel.

Instead we need heartfelt repentance, not to be repented of, for the religious crimes committed for centuries against Jews, even in the name of Jesus Christ.

Will Christianity, as in the Holocaust, again fail to successfully overcome the spirits, and their human agents, which hate Jews with a vengeance, and in the end hate the real Jesus Christ and His true followers as well?

Or can we, by the grace of God, recognize and change our erroneous teachings; thus cleansing our faith from all anti-Semitism?

Paul told us what to do as grateful Gentiles:

"For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of Jewish spiritual things, their duty is also to minister to them in carnal things." (Rom.15:27)

In this our own generation grass-roots Christians are doing so; but in all honesty it must be asked, "Where do the denominations and the leaders of the Christian establishment stand today in respect to Jews and Israel?"

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Part 4

Previous articles dealt with the tragic fact that the majority of Christendom deserted their Jewish neighbours during the Holocaust; thus leaving them defenseless against the Nazi wolves. This is followed historically again, in this generation, by the current desertion of Israel by most of Christendom in respect to the Jewish return to the "Promised Land".

Our thesis has been that Biblical Christianity was not "originally anti-Semitic, and need not now be, but that Christian theologians have made it so, and further that many leaders of Christendom have reinforced this "teaching of contempt" for all things "Jewish" from generation to generation. Their "replacement" and "supercessionist" theologies culminated in the heresy that God has broken covenant with Israel.

Part 4: How Can The Church Restore Its Witness?

Just as Israel is seen as the Jewish people collectively, the Church is seen by the world as Christians collectively. Jesus said that within the Church there would be "tares" (false professors). He also said we remain on earth to be His witnesses; salt (a preservative) and light (which makes darkness impossible). These results are the real measurements of true faith in any generation: "You shall know the tree by its fruit." The performance by God of His promised return of the Jews from captivity, before the very eyes of our generation is provoking Israel to seek G-d. Its effect upon Gentile nations, and predominately Gentile Christianity is just the opposite.

Nations that consider themselves "Christian" have hardened their hearts against the Gospel, and against the Jewish people collectively (Israel).

The two phenomenon, the Holocaust and rejection of Israel are, in spiritual terms, both attributable to anti-Semitism; this time masked as "anti-Zionism". While there is a blowing of the Spirit in the lowly places of Christendom, the upper echelons (with some notable exceptions) do not hear "the still small voice"; or if they do hear it they refuse to respond. Of course a great revival could accomplish much; and we all hope and pray for such. However it will not come without God-given, heart-sought, Christian repentance. And this is only possible collectively through "the Church". The "Behold I stand at the door and knock" is addressed not to the unbeliever, but to the Church. A sobering fact! We ought to tremble.

The living God will no more let the Gentiles profane His Holy Name than He did ancient Israel. He finally sent ungodly forces to chastise and purify them. We must soberly ask: "Why has Islam risen up, and spread to nearly one billion followers; particularly in this decade? More Muslims than professing Christians on the planet? And not only this, but on a huge billboard outside Cairo's Muslim university a new goal: "2,000,000,000 by 2000". In the final analysis we must recognize that our God has allowed it.

Meanwhile, Western man is abandoning not only the Church, but even "cultural Christianity" in droves. Is this not God further "hardening the heart" already hardened?

God has only one alternative to true Christian repentance towards the Jewish people and Israel:

HEAR THE WORD OF THE LORD:

"When I shall turn the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for My people and My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted My land." (Joel 3:1-2) and...

"Thus says thy Lord the LORD, and the God that pleased the cause of His people, behold I have taken out of thy hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of My fury; THOU SHALL NO more drink IT AGAIN: BUT I will put it in the hand of them that afflict thee; which have said to thy soul, BOW DOWN THAT WE MAY GO OVER: and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to them that went over." (Isaiah 51:22-23)

The Gentile nations that persecuted Jews, continue to persecute Israel, are collapsing from within. Their only hope is in repentance; and only true Christians within those Gentile nations, through intercession, are able to repent for them.

God's ways in this matter are found in His dealings with Israel's enemies; one example being Assyria which God used to chastise the northern ten tribes about 750 BC. The cruel Assyrians did it with glee, and without mercy, so God turned on Assyria, but not without first giving opportunity for repentance. The Jewish Scriptures record that Jonah was sent to Assyrian Nineveh to preach repentance towards God. The leaders in Nineveh heard, and led the people to repentance in the fear of God; and God spared Nineveh. The same happened later to Babylon; but it did not repent and was destroyed.

This reveals the way of our God Who changes not. Believers, true believers must make "effectual fervent prayer". There is no other way of escape.

"Oh God of Israel, our God, grant us the grace of repentance for all our ungodliness and impurity, and for lording it over your still chosen people Israel; not only for our own sins but also for those of our forefathers; forgive us Father, for in the Name of Jesus our Messiah we earnestly cry unto Thee."