Is ‘Jewish supremacy’ translating into anti-Christian violence in Jerusalem?

[yankeedoodle]

Is 'Jewish supremacy' translating into anti-Christian violence in Jerusalem?
https://religionnews.com/2023/02/03/is-jewish-supremacy-translating-into-anti-christian-violence-in-jerusalem/

The Palestinian-Israeli conflict is seen by many as largely a conflict between Israeli Jews and Arab Muslims. But the events of the last month in Jerusalem suggest a new element has emerged for those closely watching the situation. In the past few weeks, five anti-Christian violent incidents took place in Jerusalem at the hands of Jewish radicals, provoking the Franciscans who are custodians of the Christian holy sites in the city to issue a statement detailing some of these acts.

In one incident described by the Franciscans, a man entered a church along the Via Dolorosa, the route Jesus is believed to have been forced to walk to his crucifixion, "tore down the statue of Jesus and defaced the face of the statue." Two weeks before, the Protestant Mount Zion cemetery in Jerusalem was vandalized, with headstones smashed. The two teens arrested "wore Jewish skullcaps and tzitzit, the knotted ritual fringes worn by observant Jews," according to the Times of Israel. In addition, graffiti reading "Death to Christians" appeared on the walls of a monastery in the Armenian quarter.

On Jan. 26, a group of Israeli settlers set upon American Christian tourists at an Armenian restaurant, "transforming the Christian quarter into a battlefield," the Franciscans said. Local Catholics, Orthodox and Episcopal leaders condemned the violence, urged greater protection for minority groups and warned of "radical aggression" by forces determined to impose an exclusively "Jewish character" on the city.

The Franciscans' statement chronicled five attacks in all within a few weeks, concluding that "the legitimization of discrimination and violence in public opinion and in the current Israeli political environment also translates into acts of hatred and violence against the Christian community."

Some of these incidents may be attributable to hoodish behavior on the part of adolescents, but it would be a mistake to blame them only on bad apples. Something deeper is going on that needs to be confronted. The efforts to separate Jewish citizens from the rest of those living between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean are creating a toxic atmosphere of racism and discrimination that must be addressed firmly.

When the current Israeli government was formed, 27 Israeli human rights organizations issued a joint statement expressing concern about the direction of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's new governing coalition. "The occupation and apartheid in the occupied Palestinian territories have made Jewish supremacy the de facto law of the land. This new government seeks to make it official policy," their statement said.

The signers, which include such mainstream organizations as Peace Now, Rabbis for Human Rights, and Association for Civil Rights in Israel, unashamedly used the term "Jewish supremacy," reflecting their deep worry about the turn taken in the goals of the recent attacks, which are not over land or security but the presence of different faiths in the Holy Land.

While these groups are concerned about the ruling party at the national level, the situation in Jerusalem, where religious nationalist leaders are in power, is perhaps more dangerous. These leaders are working hard to change the city's demographics.

Jerusalem, the cradle of the Abrahamic faiths, should be a safe place where all three religions should feel at home. Its 330,000 Palestinian Arabs, both Muslim and Christian, have a strong political as well as spiritual bond to the city. While Christians' numbers are small, the fact is that Christians have been present in the city where Christianity began for two millennia.

It is no longer acceptable for Israel to pay lip service to freedom of religion and worship when it fails to support its citizens who are not Jewish. The current government is allowing an atmosphere of hate to grow, leaving Christians in Jerusalem and elsewhere to live in fear of Jewish bullies to whom the government is largely turning a blind eye.

It may be a stretch to hope for a strict separation of religion and politics in a country where the two are so tightly intertwined. However, the Israeli government and its officials must ensure that the now-5-year-old legislation that encourages the supremacy of Judaism be rescinded. In addition, the Israeli government must rein in the radicals in its own ranks, whose words and actions amount to hate speech.

The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is a political one; it must stay as such. Introducing the highly emotional religious elements in a highly sensitive religious area is tantamount to turning the region into a ticking bomb. Level-headed people must work hard to ensure that such a scenario is rooted out.

[yankeedoodle]

Catholic leaders in Holy Land decry escalating Jewish attacks against Christians, shrines
https://www.lifesitenews.com/analysis/catholic-leaders-in-holy-land-decry-escalating-jewish-attacks-against-christians-shrines/?utm_source=top_news&utm_campaign=usa

An American Jewish tourist was arrested in Jerusalem on Wednesday for vandalizing a statue of Jesus Christ at the Church of the Flagellation, the first station along the Via Dolorosa, the Way of the Cross.

As explained in a statement from the Franciscan Friars of the Custody of the Holy Land, a "radical Jew entered the Church" and proceeded to tear down the statue of Christ and then "defaced the face of the statue" before being "immobilized by the shrine's door keeper" until the police arrived.

The Franciscans go on to decry how such incidents have been escalating in recent weeks including "a group of religious Jews who entered the New Gate" near their headquarters and attacked tourists while committing acts of vandalism, "throwing chairs, tables and glasses, and transforming the Christian quarter into a battlefield." According to the Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land, the police didn't arrive for an hour, when they finally "took the attackers away."

Other incidents mentioned include the desecration of a Christian cemetery in Jerusalem two weeks ago, "Death to Christians" graffiti being written on the walls of a monastery in the Armenian quarter, and vandalism to a Maronite center.

"We follow with concern and strongly condemn this growing succession of serious acts of hatred and violence against the Christian community in Israel," the Franciscans continued.

"It is no coincidence that the legitimization of discrimination and violence in public opinion and in the current Israeli political environment also translates into acts of hatred and violence against the Christian community," they added.

In December, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn into office for the sixth time with "the most right-wing government" in the nation's history, including powerful minsters who espouse "racist and Jewish supremacist" views, according to Axios.

While concern over escalating violence against Christians and their shrines is heightened in the region, such attacks are not a new phenomenon. In fact, Israeli authorities adopted a deliberate policy of destroying, looting, and desecrating churches in Palestine during and after the 1948 war when the nation was founded.

Even today, there have been reports of radical Jewish individuals and groups in Jerusalem spitting on Christians, disrupting their prayer and likely firebombing their property, which Church authorities have routinely condemned.

In 2015, Jewish terrorists made international news when they torched the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes at Tabgha in Galilee, where Jesus Christ performed one of these two miracles recorded in the Gospels.

And similar to the lack of investigation and prosecution when it comes to the crimes of leftist terrorists in the United States — whether they be part of the Black Lives Matter terrorist crimes of 2020, or the proabortion terrorist acts in 2022 — crimes against Christians in Israel and Palestinian territories under Israeli military occupation are virtually never solved.

According to a 2017 report, within an eight-year timeframe, 53 churches and mosques were vandalized in these regions.  Tag Meir, a local organization that "monitors hate crimes," said it could only verify two cases that were actually solved, one being the arson case at Tabgha.

Tag Meir Chairman Gadi Gvaryahu said, "Without a doubt, they aren't looking hard enough," and added that "some crimes remain unsolved despite security camera footage that included images of the suspected vandals' cars."

Even in recent years, Jewish religious leaders in Israel preached support for Jewish terrorist groups who burn Christian churches and usually desecrate these targets with graffiti, even threatening to kill Christians in the region.

In December 2021, Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant leaders in the Holy Land sounded an alarm with a formal letter addressing "countless incidents of physical and verbal assaults against priests and other clergy, attacks on Christian churches, with holy sites regularly vandalized and desecrated, and ongoing intimidation of local Christians."

They called these terrorist tactics "a systematic attempt to drive" Christians "out of Jerusalem and other parts of the Holy Land" while lamenting with "grave concern" how "the declared commitment of the Israeli government to uphold a safe and secure home for Christians in the Holy Land ... is betrayed by the failure of local politicians, officials and law enforcement agencies to curb the [violent] activities of radical groups."

Following the arrest of the Jewish man who desecrated the statue of Jesus Christ on Thursday, the Israel Police released a statement affirming they take "damage to religious institutions and sites very seriously," their force remains "unwavering in its efforts against lawbreakers wherever they may be, including those who harm holy places and religious sentiments."

Also, according to OSV News, the police reported "the man, in his 40s, had been taken in for questioning and was undergoing mental health evaluation."

While back in the United States, the number of adults who self-identify as Christian has been declining, it is still a high majority at 69%. Yet, as described by best-selling authors John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt (The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, 2007), American taxpayers provide "Israel with a level of support dwarfing the amounts provided to any other state," currently including, but not limited to, $3.8 billion annually, despite polls in the U.S. finding such "largess" to be unpopular.