Antisemitism in the New Testament

A number of Christian scholars have concluded that the root of antisemitism in the Christian community is ultimately found within the New Testament. Some Christian theologians such as Rosemary Ruether and A. Roy Eckardt claim that the entire New Testemant is antisemitic whereas others such as Gregory Baum claim that it is not antisemitic at all.

There are some verses in the New Testament that describe Jews in a positive way, attributing to them salvation .

The New Testament as the source of Christian antisemitism

A. Roy Eckardt asserted that the foundation of anti-Semitism, and the responsibility for the Holocaust, lies ultimately in the New Testament. [).

Most commentators consider that Jesus' statements refer to the specific group of Pharisees he was addressing, or possibly the Pharisaical movement as a whole, but not to the entire Jewish race, which would have included Jesus and all his followers. Some would contend that since Rabbinic Judaism is the heir of the Pharisees the verse should still be considered an attack on Judaism as a whole. However this was not likely to have been the original intent.

"His blood be on us, and on our children"

Perhaps the harshest verse in the New Testament used for antisemitic purposes is

Some biblical scholars point out that Jesus and Stephen are presented as Jews speaking to other Jews, and that their use of broad accusation against Israel is borrowed from Moses and the later Jewish prophets (e.g. , ; ). Other scholars hold that verses like these reflect the Jewish-Christian tensions that were emerging in the late first or early second century, and do not originate with Jesus. Today, nearly all Christian denominations de-emphasize verses such as these, and reject their use and misuse by antisemites.). Observance of the earlier covenant traditionally characterizes Judaism. This New Testament teaching, and later variations to it, are part of what is called supersessionism. However, the early Jewish followers of Jesus continued to practice circumcision and observe dietary laws, which is why the failure to observe these laws by the first Gentile Christians became a matter of controversy and dispute some years after Jesus' death (). ) and Jewish leaders and people of Jerusalem were (to varying degrees) responsible for the death of Jesus (). Before his conversion, Saul puts followers of Jesus in prison (). After his conversion, Saul is whipped at various times by Jewish authorities (ff; ff; ; ] Beck identifies what he deems to be offensive passages in the New Testament and indicates the instances in which these texts or portions thereof are included in major lectionary series. He is however rare amongst Christians in arguing for this.

Biblical scholarship

Most of the verses in question are attributed not to Jesus but to the authors of the New Testament. Jesus' disciples, Paul, and the first Christians were Jews, including most of the authors of the New Testament. By the time the New Testament was finished Christians had already begun to view themselves as a separate religion.

Judaism itself was also undergoing significant change following the destruction of the Second Temple and the end of sacrifices, see also Council of Jamnia. During the time the New Testament was written, a number of Christians shifted their emphasis from seeking Jewish converts to seeking gentile converts. Many biblical scholars observe that different books appear to be aimed at different audiences, and suggest that the intended audience may have influenced the writers. For example, see , see also New Covenant.

ee also

* Christianity and antisemitism
* Persecution of Christians
* Nostra Aetate
* Christianity and Judaism
* Origins of Christianity

Further reading

*Eckhardt, A. Roy. Elder and Younger Brothers: The Encounter of Jews and Christians, Schocken Books (1973)
*Eckhardt, A. Roy. Your People, My People: The Meeting of Christians & Jews, Crown Publishing Group (1974); ISBN 0-81290-4125
*Freudmann, Lillian C. Antisemitism in the New Testament, University Press of America (1994); ISBN 0819192953
*Kee, Howard Clark and Borowsky, Irvin J., Removing the Anti-Judaism from the New Testament, American Interfaith Institute, Philadelphia, PA

Here are some references where scholars have gone through parts of the New Testament in an attempt to discern the writer's (or writers') original message on Jews and Judaism:
* [http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/research/cjl/CBA_Seminar/townsend.htm The Gospel of John and the Jews] , by Alan T. Davies
* [http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com/int/long.html Intolerance in the Bible] from the Skeptic's Annotated Bible
* - article in the meta-Wikipedia

External links

* [http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_decl_19651028_nostra-aetate_en.html Nostra Aetate]

References