By EARL COX
Anti-Semitism is spreading around the world at an alarming speed. In case you don’t know what anti-Semitism is, it is a Jew-hating attitude of discrimination against, or hostility towards, Jewish people. Some might conjure up images of goose-stepping Nazis, Germany and the Holocaust, but these images cause us to miss today’s subtle, new anti-Semitic messages that are cropping up everywhere. Hating people because they are Jewish is diametrically opposed to Christian principles and teachings.When we as decent, law-abiding westerners, particularly church-going Christians, only see “anti-Semitism” as associated with Nazis, Germany and the Holocaust, it becomes difficult for us to see that, collectively, we might be guilty ourselves of being anti-Semitic. There is a rising tide of anti-Semitism flooding our own local communities, churches, families, and even inside our own hearts and minds. “When good men do nothing, evil prevails.”As an ancient evil found in writings as far back as 270 B.C., anti-Semitism is nevertheless based in religion. Modern day anti-Semitism stems from those who point to a concern for social or moral justice; it does not show the religious element.You know and I know that countless Jews were slaughtered in recent history. In truth, only a handful of Christians participated in Jewish pogroms (massacres). Christians were caught up in these pogroms because a huge portion of society had become convinced the pogroms were valid because Jews were deemed to be guilty. “When good men do nothing, evil prevails.” This phrase cannot be repeated too often, because history is repeating itself right now.Right now, today, anti-Semitism has a new face and is gaining steam inside our Christian churches. Under the radar, the Muslim Brotherhood has been stealthily and patiently proselytizing while embedding themselves into positions of influence inside Middle East countries, Europe and, yes, even in America! Under the umbrella of the Christian faith, they and other nefarious groups have been working to persuade the Christian Church in America, and around the world, to adopt a pro-Palestinian/pro-Muslim stance. By adopting the pro-Palestinian stance, the result is anti-Semitic bias. While universities and others are also targets, Christians are necessary and primary targets because, historically, Christians have been pro-Israel.How are infiltrators being so successful? They are sly and patient. Americans are generally ignorant of history and innocently desire to favor the “underdog.” They fail to recognize they are being manipulated. God’s Holy Word warns us to beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing. Nefarious Muslim groups have attached themselves to self proclaimed Arab Christians and thereby gain access to speaking circuits in order to address congregations and university students. While speaking, they gain attention and confidence by talking about how we should love one another. A subtle shift in the monologue soon takes place moving listeners to think about the poor Palestinians who are suffering in refugee camps and all because of Israel. While these people claim to be Christians, the truth is their nationalism has been placed above their faith which makes them imposters. Am I guilty of judging? No. I am just a simple fruit inspector and the Lord says we will know our Christian brothers and sisters by their fruits. Hearing a message of Arab suffering delivered by an Arab Christian, Christian audiences naturally become emotionally filled with righteous indignation. The audience then begins to sympathize with the Palestinian story and to feel hate towards Israel and Jews. Voila! Righteous anti-Semitism. What do the speakers leave out? It is fact that the Palestinian leaders use the Palestinian people as pawns enslaving them in squalor as refugees. This results in keeping them stirred up so as to keep pressure on Israel.Arab-Israeli tour guides also influence tourists. Many devout Christians who care deeply about our world and desire to make a positive contribution to the Arab-Israeli conflict visit Israel and the Palestinian territories regularly. Believing all tour guides are created equal and that they serve without a personal, social or political agenda, Christians tend to believe the information disseminated by their guides. What innocent visitors to Israel don’t know is that, even though legal tour guides are licensed by the State of Israel, some Arab guides, including those who profess the Christian faith, do have an agenda. They purposefully strive to slant visitors’ against Israel and towards the Palestinians. If visitors do not have their antennae up and ready to detect manipulation, they can be easily duped. After all, they expect an Israeli-licensed guide to give just the facts.To be clear, not all Arab Christians are cut from the anti-Israel/anti-Jewish cloth. Many, many Arab Christians know and understand the Bible and the significance of Israel and the Jews. Yes, they, too, suffer severe persecution for their faith. They may suffer discrimination, income loss, physical attack and even death. Yet, these Arab Christians collectively remain faithful. Who persecuted them? Not Israel. Not the Jewish people. The perpetrators were their own people: Arab Palestinians.Then there is the issue of “Replacement Theology” which has pulled the wool over many Christian eyes. Simply stated, this faulty but popular theology embraced by many mainstream Christian denominations, teaches that where the Bible talks about Israel and the Jews, in today’s world it is actually referring to Christians and the Church. Thus Replacement Theology says that God is through with the Jews. They are no longer his chosen people. “After all,” some say, “Didn’t the Jews kill Jesus?” The answer to that question is, “NO!” According to the New Testament Book of Romans, the Bible emphatically teaches that Christians are branches from a wild olive tree; we have been grafted onto the natural olive tree--which is the Jew, and together we are partakers of “The Root.”“Those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it,” is a famous quotation by George Santayana. God promised to bless those who bless Israel. I know from first hand experience that this is true. We cannot afford to be ignorant of foundational truth and it is important for each of us to possess a working knowledge of history. Otherwise, we leave the door wide open for the enemy to manipulate hearts, minds, souls and spirits of all--especially those who claim to be Christians.
Be vigilant, my brothers and sisters. See what is happening right before our eyes. Anti-Semitism is indeed spreading at an alarming rate. The Bible states that the Jews are God’s chosen people and Israel is His special land. It is the only land in the world whose surveyor was God Himself. Heed the Bible’s warning about touching the “apple of His eye.” We must not take this lightly.