Purim and Anti-Semitism
Christians, especially religious Christians who are involved in their church,
have a tendency to see anti-Semitism as a Christian phenomenon. While that's
the most recent experience, it's not the only one. The Book of Esther was
written before the Church, so its events concern the Zoroastrian rulers of a
huge multi-ethnic empire. The Romans pagans may have tried to be tolerant,
but couldn't abide Jewish sovereignty, so ended up in the same pattern. And
Muslim anti-Semites have recently adopted quite easily much of the European
anti-semitic symbolism and charicatures.
From a Christian point of view, of course, the relevant issue is how the
church relates to Jews. But from a Jewish point of view, it's about how we
relate to the world.
Posted by joshuasharf at March 25, 2005 02:58 PM