Despite the fact that Jesus and his first followers
were all Jews, the history of the self-proclaimed religion
of love, Christianity, is full of vicious attacks against
Judaism and the Jews. Christian rhetoric of contempt and hatred
for Judaism has plagued the relationship between Christianity
and Judaism for centuries, resulting in persecution and pogroms.
It culminated in the Holocaust during the Second World War
in one of history’s worst atrocities committed against
an ethnic and religious group.
How and why did this happen? What mechanisms
lay behind this violence? Is there a connection between early
Christian teaching, the New Testament, and this development?
If so, can Christianity exist without anti-Judaism, or is
Christianity an inherently anti-Jewish religion?
This lecture will trace the development of Christian
anti-Judaism, from the first century onward, and show how
New Testament texts have – almost consistently –
been used by the churches in ways contrary to the intentions
of their authors. It will also suggest strategies for change,
taking the relationship from contempt to mutual understanding
and respect between these sibling-religions.
