Jew Hatred: Are We, as Jews, In Any Way Responsible?
There was another post, which I will put back for another time, but for the moment there is something on my mind that I must write about for all in blogsville.
Jew hatred has been around for more than 2,000 years. In fact, ever since I can remember, in each and every story from the Torah, there is some moment in time when Jews are shunned, hated, and expelled from a country. Think about it: we have been expelled from every country, in the history of the world, with the exception of the United States and Israel. Still, today, in 2006, many in the world hate Jews, and it is abundantly clear from the disturbing messages from the current President of Iran, that if it were up to him, the State of Israel would be eliminated.
But has hatred among Jews, to any degree, been caused by our own definitions of Jewishness, whatever they may be? Often, I see religious Jews shunning non-religious ones, and vice-versa thereby creating an even bigger distance between a population of only 14 million world-wide. Similarly, I have had experiences in blogsville where other Jews, who would not discuss subjects in their 'real lives' go to great lengths to participate in forbidden behavior on-line under the veil of the internet. A case in point: I was visiting a blog that was full of four letter words, discussion about sex, heterosexual and homosexual, and when I posted these mitzvahs and commandments, I was told to stay away, never come back, and post on this person, supposedly another Jew's blog ever again. Are we, as Jews beginning to hate each other? Is this the image that the world is getting of us? I will say, that I had a person send me a comment, that I did not post, who made this very statement, wondering why we treat one another with such adversity.
As far as I know, and please correct me if I am wrong, the Torah says that the life of any Jew must be sacred. There are no distinctions between those who are more religious than others, or less so. A Jewish life, standing alone, is valuable, and must be saved and respected.
With the rise of anti-Semetism in the world, I think that we, as Jews, have a responsibility to keep our images and behaviors up to par. We have enough people in the world hating us, is it necessary for us to create situations where we begin to mock, hate and criticize one another? Do we, in any way by presentation of images, even here in blogsville, do ourselves any favors when we call ourselves Jews, for all the world to see?
Thank you for your minds.
Jew hatred has been around for more than 2,000 years. In fact, ever since I can remember, in each and every story from the Torah, there is some moment in time when Jews are shunned, hated, and expelled from a country. Think about it: we have been expelled from every country, in the history of the world, with the exception of the United States and Israel. Still, today, in 2006, many in the world hate Jews, and it is abundantly clear from the disturbing messages from the current President of Iran, that if it were up to him, the State of Israel would be eliminated.
But has hatred among Jews, to any degree, been caused by our own definitions of Jewishness, whatever they may be? Often, I see religious Jews shunning non-religious ones, and vice-versa thereby creating an even bigger distance between a population of only 14 million world-wide. Similarly, I have had experiences in blogsville where other Jews, who would not discuss subjects in their 'real lives' go to great lengths to participate in forbidden behavior on-line under the veil of the internet. A case in point: I was visiting a blog that was full of four letter words, discussion about sex, heterosexual and homosexual, and when I posted these mitzvahs and commandments, I was told to stay away, never come back, and post on this person, supposedly another Jew's blog ever again. Are we, as Jews beginning to hate each other? Is this the image that the world is getting of us? I will say, that I had a person send me a comment, that I did not post, who made this very statement, wondering why we treat one another with such adversity.
As far as I know, and please correct me if I am wrong, the Torah says that the life of any Jew must be sacred. There are no distinctions between those who are more religious than others, or less so. A Jewish life, standing alone, is valuable, and must be saved and respected.
With the rise of anti-Semetism in the world, I think that we, as Jews, have a responsibility to keep our images and behaviors up to par. We have enough people in the world hating us, is it necessary for us to create situations where we begin to mock, hate and criticize one another? Do we, in any way by presentation of images, even here in blogsville, do ourselves any favors when we call ourselves Jews, for all the world to see?
Thank you for your minds.
17 Comments:
correct
a jewish life is sacred doesnt matter religous to unreligious
however if there is a choice in saving a huge torah scholar or a non religious jew which one is first?
we were kicked out of israel twice
although the reason was that we sinned
we were hated as a nation since the first jew was born that is our father abraham, nimrod threw him in the fire.
it is a grave sin for a jew to hate another this is the reason the second temple was destroyed
sinas chinom
Thank you, YY. You know I respect your knowledge.
Is there a choice in saving a huge Torah scholar or a non-religious Jew, interesting question.
Do you agree that of this hatred is taking place in blogsville?
Barbara, i understand your concerns, i am not Jewish... But similiar things go on in my comunnity as well.I can't speak from the point of a jew. But i can share some of the things i have heard about jews since i was a kid. Of course you have Jesus, the jew, who was hated by people acording to christianity.. Who was not recognized until his death. I have only heard good things about Jews.. Moral, priniples, the sense of community amoung jews has always been talked about as a good thing.... I have always heard that the jews own everything, including the media and lots of other things here in the U.S. which if true is good for the Jewish community... Religious wars have been going on long before you and i were born and will continue to go on when we are gone. As long as the evil entities have a tool to divide people no matter if they are Jew or not it will. Barbara i used to be a person who only looked at the good in all people, i still do. But now when i see the evil in people i accept it and deal with them accordingly. This not just a Jewish or Black issue. This sort of things go on in all races.... Hate is a tool of evil. As long as humans discrimate against each other or hate each other, our world will continue to be as it is. You have to remember that the some people are who they are and unfortunately evil does not discrimate it shows up any where anytime and it simply does not care, wheter you are jewish, christian, muslim, black, white, asian, or even purple. I don't think it is a person al attack on you as a person... when people make post that are not pleasant. Somethings are just in a person's nature.... Some people have a problem with the mountain even it protects them from harm. Some people have a problem with the sun, even thought it warms us and helps sustain life.... As long as evil is accepted into our lives, people will always have a problem with something, because if we unite as humankind than we would simply be too powerful as a species to be influenced by outside entities whose intent is to do harm.
This may be splitting hairs, but we have never been kicked out of the State of Israel. Palestine, yes.
Thank you both, Mr. Baiter and soulsista for your kind and insightful remarks. I am happy to hear that some people in blogsville, are put into proper perspective, but if the truth be spoken, these Jews are doing us no favors.
yea there is hate in blogsville stemming from jealousy in my opinion
there is a larger issue too
i found that communicating electronicaly sometime brings forth more misunderstandings as opposed to talking live
people seem to get offended at sentences that would sound totaly different when you listen to the tone of it being said
i think this needs a seperate post
Just a note: I have received a couple of mean, disparaging, and simple minded comments, that I will not post here, from my fellow Jews. It pains me deeply to see such division and simple-mindeness among these lost souls. Nevertheless, they are my people, so rather than be critical of them, I accept them for who they are, with the hope that they can become more enlightened and accepting themselves.
The hatred among Jews goes back to the time in the desert, and yes, beyond. The Torah relates these incidents to us not simply to remind us that our forebears weren't paragons, but men and women, and also to remind us that there are consequences to hatred.
I'm sorry to say that you missed a couple of small points...
You said Jews had never been refused by the US, wrong. A ship carrying some eighty percent Jews fled Germany asadolf was getting to the throne, but, it was refused port. I believe it ended up going back, but don't know for sure because the history of white people books don't show any more detail of the Jews than they do of blacks, or chinese, irish, mexican, indian, whatever.
And, Israel.
Jeruselum fell to the muslims at an unusual time in history, and sparked what we call the crusades today. Then it was only the getting back of the holy land.
My guess is, and that's all any man has because GOD's purpose and direction is so beyond us we couldn't understand it if it was written in a book in front of us, but the CREATOR wouldn't exactly like what is being done in that land, now.
All life is sacred.
Now, as for while the muslims held the land, all religions were allowed to go freely about the whole region. Now?
I think not.
You have asked a difficult question. Does strife within a particular group cause those outside the group to hate the group itself?
I would have to say no. I was raised in the Lutheran church (lapsed long ago...actually have considered the idea of converting to Judaism). If there were strife amongst the various synods of the Lutheran church, would that be a reason that, say, Buddhists or Muslims hate Lutherans? I think not.
If a "Jew hater" had no Jew to hate, that person would find some other target.
Perhaps it is this: the Jewish religion and people refuse to be destroyed and die out, despite hatred, attempted genocide, and being evicted from every country. I would say the evil end of the spectrum of life finds that tenacity tp be a threat. And all evil can do is hate the Jews for it.
WW
Sadly, anti semitism is not on the rise. It is more correct to state that it is still with us.
Are Jews to blame? Tough question, but certainly the insular nature of some groups make them stand out. We had Jewish neighbors for 15 years (moved to florida last month) and got along well with them. We could always tell when their more orhodox relatives were coming to visit though because they became very "distant". (I struggle here to really describe this) and they did not care to interact with the neighborhood. The relatives would leave and they would loosen up again.
I think anytime we continualluy exhibit behaviours that distinguish us from our neighbors we mark ourselves.
As far as jews being harder on jews? I think that goes on in most faiths at various times, Christians on christians, muslims on muslims. Religion seems to be not only the number 1 reason for wars but the worst and most violent.
It is indeed a tough question, and one that I have been pondering, especially since encountering other Jews in blogsville.
That being said, like any group, we too have our 'bad apples.' I must say that for the most part, many of my own people, do raise up to the plate, and are kind, giving and wonderful souls, for the most part.
WW, if you are serious about converting, read the book of Ruth in the Bible. I think any group can benefit from open-minded, positive, and caring individuals.
What I have learned, however, is that there are indee some very angry, disturbed and mean people here in blogsville. Since I would not mix with them in my 'real' life, I am tuning them off here as well.
In the end, I love being a Jew, and would not have it otherwise for anything. I feel a great privledge and honor to have been born into this religion, and try to be the best model as possible, towards my people and towards others.
I think that we really have to be careful not to take a blame the victim stance/
Barbara, while I cannot speak specifically to Jewish culture, I can say this: as humans, we all make our own individual choices about how we treat others, and how we conduct our own lives. If your blog accomplishes anything, it sets an example of how a Jewish woman (or any person, really) can be respectful, open-minded, and interested in learning from others, regardless of who they are, what they believe, or how they choose to live.
I find that people across cultures are all capable of the same strengths and triumphs, the same weaknesses and failures... We as individuals can only truly control our own actions, and hope that others will return the respect that we offer.
By the by, I am so pleased that the comments moderation tool is working for you. You set a tone of open, honest discussion in which visitors are free to disagree – provided that it is done respectfully. Those who cannot respect such a basic concept have a lot of learning ahead of them!
Jack,
Your point is well taken.
However, how do you account for the lack of tolerance that, we, as Jews, may exhibit towards one another? I have seen out there in the real world, and especially here in blogsville.
For example, if someone does not exhibit the Commandments to the letter of the law, he/she is criticized, and in some situations ostersized from the community. Similiarly, those who do practice such observation are, at times shunned as well, with the conclusion being that these people live in the 12th century.
What I am saying, is I think that we have to be careful not to start hating each other too much, so that our numbers become even smaller and smaller.
Barbara,
I think that we are people. I see people exhibit stupid junior high behavior all the time.
It doesn't matter what group you are involved in, it exists. It is like Dr. Seuss and his story about the Sneetches.
I'd like to see more unity among Jews, but I don't expect it any more than I expect to see it in other groups.
I know evangelicals who consider Catholics to be idol worhshippers and Catholics who look down upon the evangelicals.
People judge.
"Jew hatred has been around for more than 2,000 years. In fact, ever since I can remember... "
Guess you are somewhat older than me?
I think this is an important issue that should be examined by Jews. Here are my personal observations, from the perspective of a non-religious American Jew:
1) Many Jews (including Reform Jews) who grow up in Christian communities tend to be a little defensive. They may be tired of their Christian friends wishing them a Merry Christmas--because it seems like the friend is being purposely ignorant--or having to explain why they can't go out for pizza during Passover, on top of the usual issues that come with being a minority group--not fitting in, inferiority complex, whatever. But defensiveness in itself is a problem. No one reacts well to it; think of people you know who seem to carry chips on their shoulders. This kind of attitude can push the opinion of a neutral party towards anti-semitism.
2) Secretiveness. Judaism is a mysterious religion to most outsiders. Here in 21st century America, most people don't know the difference between Judaism and Christianity. No one talks about it much. While many Christian sects actively reveal the intricate details of their religion (in the form of proselytizing), Judaism doesn't bother. Historically, this is a bad strategy. People get suspicious of what they don't understand. Other religions (and Christian sects) who make no effort to educate the public about themselves also end up being persecuted. Look at Armenians, Mormons, Masons, etc.
3) Along the same lines as the above, there's the issue of integration. Jews tend to stick together. This seems like a safety strategy, or it may just be that Jews feel they have more in common with Jewish friends ... but when you step outside this mentality and look at it from the POV of an outsider, it can play on other people's fears. An insecure outsider might feel as if they can't break into the Jewish clique, and therefore feel resentful. A paranoid outsider might see this clique-behavior as a threat. Many Americans who grew up on the fringes of a group (survivors of Christian cliques, for instance) will resent clique behavior in general. They see Jews doing it and get a bad impression.
4) Reverse racism. Jews like to think they're above this, but what is the term "gentile"? I think this ties into the problem of being defensive. Centuries of persection will do that, but as you've pointed out, anti-semitism may be a cycle that can be broken.
Thanks for the thought-provoking entry!
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