Religious antisemitism in Iowa

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird’s Antisemitism Task Force was formed to address antisemitism in Iowa. I would recommend Christian churches as the first stop on their investigative journey. Readers of the New Testament will find countless examples of antisemitism in early Christianity’s struggles to separate itself from Judaism. James Carroll’s “Constantine’s Sword: The Church and the Jews, A History“ clearly establishes how antisemitism culminated in the Holocaust of World War II, which prompted the Second Vatican Council to issue “Nostra Aetate” in 1965. This document finally rebutted the claim that Jews were responsible for killing Jesus Christ.

Ninety Jewish faculty, staff, students and alumni in Iowa recently condemned the Trump administration for using the charge of antisemitism to attack free speech. I couldn’t agree more. The countless charges of antisemitism being lodged all over the country are merely a cover to suppress the speech of those who disagree with Israel’s conduct in the Gaza war.

If you belong to a church that continuously reads the New Testament without examining the anti-Judaism which often accompanies it, you need to look more closely. There are many Scriptures which should raise your hackles. If your preacher does not explain the historical context of these texts, occasionally “preaching against” those that are plainly antisemitic, then you need to speak up. Christianity is not superior to Judaism and has not supplanted it. Judaism is one of many important religions we need to understand and defend in our multireligious democracy.

Charles R. Crawley

Cedar Rapids