Mankind’s Sins

They are and were the smallest group of people in this world, numbering to a total of only 13 million – less than .5% of the total world population. They are the most hated group with the oldest of man’s sins – Anti-Semitism. Major global powers tried to eliminate them over 29 times in major genocides and programs and they were attacked, pillaged and wronged in every nation and corner of the Earth. Yet these people so few in numbers still continue to live – as prosperous as ever. This is an attempt to list some of the worst of mankind’s sins against these people.

The Beginning of the Hate

The first known recorded instance and the beginning of the Anti-Semitic movement can be traced back to Ancient Egypt, from around 1300 BCE to 1100 BCE (between the 18th to the 20th Egyptian dynasty) where the people of Israel was enslaved by an ever expanding Egyptian empire. The people were numerous in number and made up a large portion of the forced labor in Egypt. During the period between 19th and 20th century, the Egyptian monarchy collapsed and much of the country went into Chaos – a result of the exodus of the Jewish people (sons of Israel) from Egypt. Roughly the same time, the Egyptian empire experienced the invasions by the “sea people”, later called the Philistines (ancestors of modern day Palestinians) whose name means invaders.

After the Jews settled in Eretz Israel (the original land of the Israeli – present day Israel, Jordan and a few regions of Syria and Egypt), they were invaded and ridiculed by numerous empires. Such actions are recorded by various ancient historians including Agatharchides of Cnidus. During this time period, the Israelis and the Philistines remained in high tension with each other due to open hostilities and wars over each other’s territories but the Philistines only had control over 5 large cities and a few land while Israel controlled the majority of the land. This ancient hostility between the forefathers sparked off hatred of Israel over the land of Israel that continues to this modern day – the land being named Palestine by the Romans as punishment for the Jews for rebelling against their rule.

The Greeks take up the mantle

Soon afterwards, the hatred of the Jews began to spread into Greek culture as they gathered up more lost knowledge from Egyptian texts and writings. Many reasons and speculations have been made as to why the Greeks were involved in early anti-Semitic movements but the most accepted ones include the fact that the Greeks adopted this ancient Egyptian prejudice. Others say that Greeks hated anyone they considered “barbarians” or foreigners to their culture – thus the reason for the hate. Whatever the reason, they did not like the Jews. Jewish temples were desecrated, Jewish laws were suspended, and traditions could not be fulfilled. Circumcision, observance of Sabbath and study of Jewish texts were all considered illegal under various Greek rulers. Numerous anti-Jewish riots took place, one such famous attack was in Alexandria where, according to ancient writer Philo of Alexandria, thousands of Jews were murdered and pillaged.

The Roman yoke of Oppression

During the early years of Roman conquest and rule of Israel, the Jewish people accounted for over 10% of the empire Roman Empire. However, the Jewish spirit was hard to crush and the people impossible to tame. The Jews recognized no other God than the one and only God of their fathers – thus while the rest of the empire worshiped the emperor as God, the Jews did not. Thus the Jews were placed with a heavy tax that crippled the economy of Israel and lead to various uprisings due to rising costs, low wages, civil discontent, strife, political crisis and poverty levels. In 19 CE, Roman Emperor Tiberius expelled all Jews from Rome and assigned all Jewish soldiers serving in Roman legions to the most hostile and unhealthy places on purpose to eliminate their kind from the military. Thus discontent over Roman rule grew as Rome taxed the Jews heavily for their religious observance privileges. Until about 161 CE the Jews were heavily persecuted under the Roman rule.

In CE 70, Romans attacked Jerusalem after a failed Jewish uprising and proceeded to kill one million Jews (wiping out the zealots, Sadducees and other minor sects & branches of Jewish religion… leaving only the Pharisees who are today’s Rabbis or teachers of the law). The Romans also took over 100,000 unarmed people into slavery while countless women were raped, Jewish homes pillaged, the Jewish Temple razed, and the city defenses by Herod the Great was destroyed. The Jewish Diaspora officially began during this year and as even greater Punishment, the Romans renamed the land from Judea (the Land of Israel) to “Syria Palestinia” or Palestine as we call it today. When Jews asked the Emperor to rebuild the temple, it was not allowed and they were taxed even more heavily to pay for the armies Rome had to use in the rebellion and to build roman projects throughout the empire. After the destruction of the temple and after 161 CE, the Jews experienced relatively calm atmosphere in the Roman empire marred by small few isolated events and tragedies.

All roads lead to Rome

After the rise of Christianity as a major power in the Roman world and the beginning of the papal authority, it is speculated that the European Catholics (before the great schism) adopted much of the Roman hatred for the Jews. Some say it happened because of the belief the Jews crucified Jesus or that the European merchants and royalties did not like the powerful and rich Jewish people in their societies. But whatever the motive or reason, wide spread persecution of the Jews exploded throughout Europe and the Byzantine Empire that continued for several hundred years. In 315, Emperor Constantine forced Jews to leave Jerusalem and they lost many rights in the Edict of Milan. Much theological discussions and dissensions over the laws of the Bible and its meanings ensued between Jews and Christians. Even in Byzantine Empire and the Western Roman Empire (soon to be Europe) the Jews experienced growing hatred and troubles. In 613 AD (CE), the Jews were told to either convert to Christianity or leave Spain. In 855, Jews were exiled from Italy and in 1078, the Pope of that time, Pope Gregory VII proclaimed the Jews inferior to Christianity. During the First crusade against the Muslims, the Jews were killed in Jerusalem along with the Muslims as invading armies entered Jerusalem. As the Christians under the Papal authority of the Catholic and Orthodox churches were persecuting the Jews, the Muslims also began their campaign around 600 CE (AD).

Muhammad the Prophet gave clear instructions to consider Christians and Jews as second class citizens and at times, his armies (along with him) were involved in attacks over synagogues, rapes of Jewish women and destruction of Jewish establishments. Dhimmi Laws were issued on the Jews and Christians by the Muslims in early 9th century and by the 11th century, Jews and Christians were facing mass forced conversions and attacks. Iberian Peninsula saw large scale anti- Jewish riots, mob action and communal strife as Muslims persecuted the Jews. Jewish Synagogues were ordered to be destroyed by Muslims through Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Morocco and Yemen. Meanwhile, when the black plague hit Europe, fear and confusion gripped the continent. Rumors emerged that the Jews poisoned the wells, thus the reason why the disease was spreading. Mob action quickly lead to violence were thousands of Jews were killed and burned at the stake. Pope Clement VI tried to protect the Jews during this time by issuing decrees in 1348 but such edicts were largely powerless to protect Jews from a mob driven to insanity by madness, fear, panic and hatred. During the second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church issued the statements it was wrong to accuse the Jews for the death of Jesus and their persecution under the name of Christianity is not theologically supported nor morally allowed.

To this day, many modern Christians see Jews as God’s chosen people who are fulfilling the purpose that God sees in their lives. Meanwhile, Muslims and Jews at times lived in peace but as time progressed, clear divisions and strife began to emerge. Unlike Christianity, the Muslims did not issue Fatwa or religious rulings forbidding attacks against Jews or Christians but actually encourage people to follow the example set by the prophet by attacking the unbelievers wherever they may be found. To this day, the Jews are demonized by many Arabs and Muslims around the world and persecuted. Killing of Jews are celebrated on national levels and their murderers elevated to heroic levels throughout many Arab and Muslim nations around the world.

The Modern Persecution

The Jews were persecuted and expelled from almost every country in Europe while in Middle East, their rights were severely blocked, forced conversions and destruction of religious sites occurred. In 1894, Journalist Theodor Herzl wrote a book that set the addressed the need for a Jewish homeland where they can be safe from persecution. This book was made after scandals in the French government over their anti-Jewish activities were revealed to the world. During the 1900s, Russian Czars began mass programs to exterminate the Jews from Russia. Many fled while others were killed or made to work in labor sites. This lead to an exodus of Jews from Russia within a short time. In 1920, after a failed World War I, Germany’s harsh economic conditions were blamed on the Jews.

One reason for Hitler’s rise to power was his ability to capitalize on this idea that the Jews were the cause of all German woes. While this was happening in Germany during the 1920s and 1930s, countries like Greece, Hungary, Mexico, Poland, Romania, Russia and many others were implementing Anti-Jewish programs and the Jews were facing rising social tensions. Meanwhile Hitler took power and within a short time, the Jews were treated worse than animals as their humanity was stripped from them and they were led like lambs to slaughter. In 1939, the official Holocaust or the systematic killing of Jews began (known as the great Shoah) in Germany under Nazi leadership. The Jewish hair from dead bodies served as pillow stuffing or made into mattresses while their property was looted and given to people. The Jewish bodies were boiled in water and the resulting “fat” was used to make soap bars for people to shower in. Jewish people’s teeth, ornaments, values, clothes, property and even their bodies were defiled and used by the Germans. In 1940, France helped Germany freeze the bank accounts of the Jews and even helped with the deportation of the Jews to the labor camps or the death camps. In 1945, this atrocity and inhumane act came to an end with the allied victory over Germany. After the World War II, one major Anti-Semitic attack happened in 1991 during the Crown Heights Riots in New York where Jews were assaulted and killed. One banner that was hung up during the riots read “Hitler did not finish the Job.”

Post 9/11 Hatred

Now following the establishment of the Jewish State of Israel, the Second Intifada, failures of numerous peace deals between Jews and Arabs, attacks of 9/11 and the growing Arab hatred & killing of Jewish people, many scholars agree there is a new wave of anti-Semitism growing in the western nations. This new attack on the Jewish people is seen in the increasing demonization of the Jewish State of Israel among world bodies, international media and various individuals. Altogether figures show there has been a resurgence of attacks against Jews, Jewish symbols, the Jewish state and Jewish beliefs. This wave of new hatred was partially derived from the previous hatred but mainly came into the modern day after the Six-Day war of 1967. This new wave of anti-Semitism rooted in anti-Zionism emerged in the Arab-Muslim world and in the Soviet Russia after this war and has seen an unchecked growth during the past years. Many identify this new wave of hatred as the “third wave” of Anti-Semitism – the Anti-Semitism based on Ideology.

The first two waves were based on religion and racial tensions. Before the Jews established their own state, the Muslims treated the Jews with an attitude of amused, tolerant superiority while considered the Jews as weak, pliable and pathetic race of people. The new level of Hatred began to spawn against the Jews in Middle East among Arabs during the colonial era of the European powers and the Third Reich in Germany. After the establishment of Israel and the consecutive victories Israel achieved in numerous wars, the Arabs and the Muslims are inflamed with a cosmic satanic hatred of the Jews. A historian named Bernard Lewis argues that argues that the United Nations’ handling of the 1948 refugee situation convinced the Arab world that discrimination against Jews was acceptable. When the ancient Jewish community in East Jerusalem was evicted and its monuments desecrated or destroyed, they were offered no help. Similarly, when Jewish refugees fled or were driven out of Arab countries, no help was offered, but elaborate arrangements were made for Arabs who fled or were driven out of the area that became Israel. All the Arab governments involved in the conflict announced that they would not admit Israelis of any religion into their territories, and that they would not give visas to Jews, no matter which country they were citizens of.

Lewis argues that the failure of the United Nations to protest sent a clear message to the Arab world. Even to this day, the United Nations and the international powers have failed to address this Jewish hatred. When Jews are killed, attacked or murdered by Islamic or Arab gunmen and organizations (supported by various governments) the international community does nothing and offers no protests. But as soon as Israel retaliates against the enemies or the people responsible for those attacks, Israel is condemned by International community and demonized by the world. This was evident with the UN’s Human Rights Commission who spend all its time during its sessions handing out resolution after resolution condemning Israel while real genocides were happening in Sudan, Burma and human rights violations in China, Nepal, Tibet, Sri Lanka and other parts of the world.

The Future Solution

As of right now, not enough people are anything about it. International organizations are not speaking out or raising awareness to the growing issue. Arabs and Muslims are on a campaign to eradicate the Jewish state and kill the Jews. There are more and more Jihadist groups in this world each year and Europe is experiencing an unprecedented growth of Muslim population who want Sharia implemented in their respective nations. What the world needs to do is to do something other than to sit back and watch. Education systems must be modeled to teach tolerance and understanding of religions. Arab textbooks in schools throughout the Middle East and in Islamic nations have to be edited and printed with correct facts and figures. Islamic propaganda by governments and religious teachers must stop. Institutions have to stop teaching the ideologies of hate, intolerance and war. If the problems are not rectified within a short time, the world is going to face yet another war – but this time the Jews are not defenseless people.

They will not go like lambs to slaughter. They will take this world with them… that is correct. The Jewish state of Israel has nuclear weapons and will not hesitate to use them as needed if the Jewish people are threatened with continued persecutions and extermination. Recently the Iranian president promised to wipe Israel from the map of the world… really easy to say and totally out of arrogance. Jews, Christians and Muslims have shared a rich history and share a common theological perspective to an extend. And based on this relationship, these grows up preach peace. For God said, blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the Children of God. So the ultimate solution to the problem is all sides must stop pushing their own agendas and shift their focus on understanding, tolerance and peace.