The Religious Roots of Anti-Semitism: Judaism and Israel are Not One Thing

Nearly everyone in the world holds a strong opinion—often a deep, visceral attitude—about Jews and the state of Israel. These attitudes are largely rooted in religious thinking.

What Is Antisemitism?

According to Antisemitism.org:

“Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”

It’s important to recognize that not all expressions of antisemitism are the same.

To begin to understand this topic, we also need to understand what we mean by the term Jew.  This term has religious, ethnic, and national aspects to it.

Understanding Israel as a Nation

According to WorldPopulationReview.com, there are approximately 15.2 million Jews in the world today. This is a relatively small number, especially considering that the Nazis murdered 6 million Jews during World War II—about 40% of today’s global Jewish population, nearly equivalent to the current population of Israel.

Jewish Population Distribution

7.5 million Jews live in the United States. 7.4 million live in Israel.  And of course, there are Jews living all over the world as well, but the vast majority live in the US and Israel.

Israel is a diverse nation, home to Jews, Palestinians, and many other religious and ethnic groups. The actions of the Israeli state do not always reflect the views of Jews worldwide—or even of all Israeli citizens. Viewing Jews or Israelis as a monolithic group is a mistake. Israel is politically and religiously diverse, with numerous competing factions, both secular and religious.

Judaism as a Religion

Between 40% and 64% of Israel’s population is secular or non-religious. Within Judaism itself, there are four major branches:

• Orthodox: This groups commits to strict Jewish laws and practice and views the Torah as inspired by God and revealed to Moses. These laws should form the foundation of Jewish life.
• Conservative: This group tries to balance traditional Judaism with modern living. There is an importance place on Jewish community life.
• Reconstructionist: Following the teaching of Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan, this group focuses on the importance of embracing societal partnerships in order to bring Jewish values to the greater world.
• Reform: This is also known as Liberal Judaism and is focused on not the traditions of Judaism but rather its ethical values.

Each of these branches contains various subgroups. These various groups, including the secular Jews make up numerous political factions in Israel’s parliamentary structure.  When you add these varied groups to a country that operates without a constitution, the internal political conflict can be greatly divided and religiously passionate.

Jews as an Ethnic Group

Beyond religion and nationality, Jews are often considered an identifiable ethnic group, though this too is complex.

Major Jewish Ethnic Groups

• Ashkenazi Jews: Settled primarily in Germany and Eastern Europe.
• Sephardic Jews: Tracing roots from Israel through Spain (My own surname may be linked to this group, despite my family’s German Lutheran history dating back to the 1600s).  The Sephardic Jews enjoyed great success in the Iberian Peninsula for hundreds of years but were expelled from Spain in 1492 under the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella.  They generally migrated north and west into France and southern Germany.
• Oriental Jews: Migrated through Iraq, Iran, and Yemen—regions with significant Jewish populations during Jesus’ time.
• African Jews: Communities have existed in Ethiopia and Uganda for over a thousand years.

These groups exist around the world and coexist under one flag in modern Israel.

Theological Attitudes Toward Israel

Islam

The relationship between Islam and the Jews was complicated early. Muhammad even married a Jewish woman who converted. However, a hadith (Prophecy of Mohammed) often quoted in radical circles, including in Hamas’s founding documents, states:

“The Day of Judgment will not come until Muslims fight the Jews. The Jew will hide behind stones and trees, and the stones and trees will say, ‘O Muslim, O servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.’ Only the Gharqad tree (Boxthorn tree) will not say this, for it is the tree of the Jews.”

This hadith underpins the ideology of groups like Hamas and the Ayatollahs in Iran.  Their eschatology requires them to fight with and kill the Jews. This is why any Israel/Iranian ceasefire is only a temporary submission.  The hostility will re-emerge because their faith demands it.

Catholicism

Historically, Catholic antisemitism was rooted in the belief that Jews were collectively responsible for Jesus’ crucifixion. The Crusades led to massacres of Jews, and they were repeatedly expelled from European countries for religious and economic reasons. Jews were also targeted during the Spanish Inquisition. Interestingly, Jews fared better under early Muslim rule in Spain than under later Catholic rule.

In modern times, Catholicism has moderated. Pope John Paul II apologized for the Church’s role in persecuting Jews—from the Crusades to its inaction during the Holocaust. Still, remnants of this thinking persist in some Catholic and Protestant circles.

Modern Christian Theological Antisemitism

A form of 21st-century antisemitism has theological roots that trace back to the Church Fathers. A theologian’s view of Israel’s role in biblical prophecy often shapes their stance on modern Israel. This can lead to two extremes: harsh criticism, bordering on (and sometimes crossing over into) antisemitism or uncritical support, excusing injustice.

This is a complex topic worth exploring further in future discussions.

So, How Should Christians View Israel Today?

We will need to go to the scripture for the answer to that question. That’s a question we’ll delve into more deeply a future post.

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Audio version of the post is here: The Religious Roots of Anti-Semitism: Judaism and Israel are Not One Thing