About 5 years ago, I was visiting the Holocaust museum in St. Louis, Missouri with a group of fellow hospital chaplains. I’d been to this Holocaust museum before, as well as to Yad Vashem in Jerusalem and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. But this was the first time I ever went to a Holocaust museum as the only Jewish member of the group.
It had been a difficult spring for me – personally and professionally. A depraved man with a semiautomatic rifle had shot up the Jewish Community Center in Overland Park, Kansas, on the other side of the state. A small town Missouri mayor had expressed support.
For the gunman.
And even though I’d been happy to accept the job, it had been difficult, even painful trying to find my place in this particular group of colleagues. I felt lonely, isolated, unwelcome.
In the St. Louis Holocaust museum, there is a poster advertising Nazi Germany’s famous exhibition of so-called “Degenerate Art.” The poster shows a crude caricature of someone who, in those days, would have been called a Negro, playing a saxophone. Oddly, the caricature is also wearing a Star of David identifying him as a Jew. A museum docent pointed out he is also wearing a large hoop earring, which would have marked him as a Gypsy. in Nazi Germany, there was no difference among Negro, Jew, or Gypsy. They were all “subhumans.”
Without a word, Deborah, who was one of the members of our group, and who is African-American, walked over and hugged me close. She and I had not been particularly friendly, and our working relationship was tense. But her wordless embrace said it all: “I know. I know you get it. You know I get it. There’s no difference between you and me, not when it comes to this stuff.”
I am grateful to have no memories of Antisemitism in my childhood. I’ve always felt safe enough to wear my Kippah on the street without harassment or threats. I do get curious questions from friendly non-Jews sometimes about what it means but more often about how it stays on my hair. (hair clips)
I’ve always understood myself to be a part of a religious minority. I’ve never thought of myself as being part of a racial one. Yet on this Rosh Hashanah, 5780, I’ve never felt less white than I do right now. I had believed that real, dangerous systemic Antisemitism – not just nasty jokes or tinpot kooks in Nazi cosplay, and not just directed against individual Jews, a Jewish family or a small Jewish group — but the institutional kind of antisemitism that could threaten our whole community – was a demon confined to a bottle, or one of those samples of smallpox virus they keep for experimental purposes under very tightly controlled conditions.
If so, then that demon has escaped from its bottle. The sample virus is epidemic. Antisemitism is haunting our nation in a way I never expected.
This Rosh Hashanah morning we read in Torah Portion Va-Yera, Genesis 22:1-19, how, at the very last second, just as Abraham reaches for his knife, an Angel calls out to Abraham from Heaven not to slay his son Isaac nor offer him up as a burnt-offering after all. This angel promises Abraham that God will greatly increase the numbers of Abraham’s descendants,
כִּֽי־בָרֵ֣ךְ אֲבָרֶכְךָ֗ וְהַרְבָּ֨ה אַרְבֶּ֤ה אֶֽת־זַרְעֲךָ֙ כְּכוֹכְבֵ֣י הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם וְכַח֕וֹל אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־שְׂפַ֣ת הַיָּ֑ם וְיִרַ֣שׁ זַרְעֲךָ֔ אֵ֖ת שַׁ֥עַר אֹיְבָֽיו׃
“Until they are like the stars of the heavens or like grains of sand on the beach.” What’s more, the angel promises,
וְהִתְבָּרֲכ֣וּ בְזַרְעֲךָ֔ כֹּ֖ל גּוֹיֵ֣י הָאָ֑רֶץ עֵ֕קֶב אֲשֶׁ֥ר שָׁמַ֖עְתָּ בְּקֹלִֽי׃
“All the nations of the earth shall be blessed by your descendants, because you have obeyed My command.”
This promise of blessing all the nations of the earth through Abraham’s descendants is repeated no less than four times throughout the book of Genesis. This promise to Abraham also comes with a companion: “I will bless those that bless you, and curse those that curse you.”
As Abraham’s descendants, we are supposed to be a blessing to all the nations of the earth. But the other side of God’s promise, to curse those who curse us, reminds us that we can expect to be cursed by some of those around us as well.
And so, on this Rosh Hashanah morning, let the clarion call of the Shofar rouse us from complacency about the strange state of our affairs. This shofar calls us to be ready to recognize, confront, and defeat Antisemitism wherever it appears: on the left, on the right, and even within.
What is Antisemitism? I always find it helpful to remember that the word was coined in Germany in the 19th century as a genteel alternative to the term they used to use: Jew-hatred. Antisemitism is also a systemic ideology that considers the Jew to be less than human and a central villain in the drama of the downfall of civilization.
One of the very first Antisemitic statements in history is in the Torah. In the book of Esther chapter 3, verse 8, the Bad Guy of the Purim story, tells King Ahasuerus very concisely:
“…There is a certain people, scattered and dispersed among the other peoples in all the provinces of your realm, whose laws are different from those of any other people and who do not obey the king’s laws; and it is not in Your Majesty’s interest to tolerate them. If it please Your Majesty, let an edict be drawn for their destruction…”
In other words, ‘These people, the Jews, dwell among us but they aren’t part of us; they don’t obey our laws but only their own; they’re up to no good; they’re dangerous: we must kill them before their evil plans are complete!’
You see: At its ugly little heart, Antisemitism is a conspiracy theory.
We should all be ready to learn and recognize the classic tropes of Antisemitism so that we can point them out and explain what’s Antisemitic about them.
I have said that we must confront Antisemitism on the left; on the right; and within. It can be much harder to stand up to our friends than to our enemies. But we can’t afford to ignore Antisemitism on our own side when it’s so dangerous. So, let’s skip the ecstatic sanctimony of calling out Antisemitism by the other guys. Forget the cable news talking points. Put down the dopamine drip of social media. Let each of us hold our own side, left or right, especially our elected officials, accountable!
First, we must recognize, confront, and defeat Antisemitism on the left.
Last spring, in response to comments on Twitter by Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota implying that Jews nefariously used money to seize power and about having to pledge allegiance to a foreign power, the House of Representatives passed a resolution condemning not only antisemitism, but hate in all its forms.
Rep. Ted Deutch of Florida got it exactly right when he said, “The House of Representatives voted to condemn anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, bigotry, racism, and hatred of all kinds. All are worthy of condemnation. I joined my colleagues in condemning them all. But I feel let down by some colleagues who seem to have questioned those of us who feel the weight of history when we hear classic Antisemitic language – history that has led to targeting Jews, expelling Jews from their countries, violence against Jews, and attempts to exterminate the Jewish people. Anti-Semitism is worthy of being condemned, singularly. I hope this painful week is never repeated in this Congress.”
More recently, Rep. Betty McCollum of Minnesota sponsored House Resolution 2407, “The promoting Human Rights for Palestinian Children Living Under Israeli Military Ocuupation Act.” The bill’s stated purpose is to require that U.S. funds do not support military detention, abuse, or ill-treatment of Palestinian children.” Its preamble accuses Israel of applying coercive interrogation techniques against children and holding minors for days without trial. A number of liberal Democrats, including Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, have cosponsored the legislation.
Israel’s security situation is complicated, and its approach to underage people suspected of unlawful activity or seeking to undermine its security isn’t easy. A law like this one is unlikely to promote peace with justice in the Middle East.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York tweeted her support for the bill, stating, “I don’t believe in caging kids…I don’t care if it’s American kids, Mexican kids, or Palestinian kids.”
No, that’s a left wing version of saying, “I don’t care if you’re black, brown, yellow, green, or purple.” If it were about protecting children, the bill could apply everywhere. Instead, it only applies to Israel. There’s a nasty Antisemitic trope with a long history to the effect that Jews are especially dangerous to other people’s children.
Now that I’ve name checked 75% of The Squad, I should say that I consider Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts a personal friend. (Ever since she was the volunteer manage of for John Kerry’s 1996 campaign for reelection to the US Senate.) Ayanna will be getting a copy of this sermon in the mail, with a heartfelt plea to withdraw her co-sponsorship of the bill.
Failure to call out and uproot Antisemitism on the left allowed the British Labor Party to be tainted with it. We must not allow that to happen to the American Democratic Party.
Second, we must recognize, confront, and defeat Antisemitism on the right.
Critique of Israeli policy isn’t necessarily antisemitic. And unconditional support for Israeli policy, particularly when it takes a hard-line, nationalistic, militaristic stance, does not buy the Republican Party a free pass from Antisemitism.
Nor does the fact that the President’s daughter converted to Judaism and that he has Jewish grandchildren necessarily inoculate him from Antisemitism — any more than someone who claims to have Black friends can be excused from racism.
A certain Republican real estate mogul turned entertainer turned politician, responding to outrages by Reps. Omar and Tlaib, stated, “Jews who vote for democrats show total lack of knowledge or great disloyalty.” His recent rallies have featured chants of “Send them back!” We might remember that once upon a time, “Jews to Palestine!” was a featured slogan of right-wing political rallies.
New York Times Editor and Opinion writer Bari Weiss, put it well: “the former host of The Apprentice looks at the whole world just as he did at those contestants — either a winner or a loser, either with him or a turncoat. If you’re on Team Jew, vote for him and his party because the Republicans are Pro-Israel. If you’re on Team Antisemite, vote for the other guys.”
I also like the analysis of Carly Pildis, writing in Tablet magazine: “I can hold all the horrors of American slavery, Japanese internment, Jim Crow, the genocide of Native Americans and so much more…yet still love the America that gave my family a future; that created generations of Jews freer than we ever dreamed possible… We Jews fight hatred in America because we are loyal to America.”
Which brings me to my 3rd point: we must recognize, confront, and defeat Antisemitism within — by loving and being loyal to one another.
Antisemites and other politically opportunistic chaos agents seek to divide us into ‘good Jews’ and ‘bad Jews’ because a divided and embittered community is a weakened one. Let’s not fall for it by turning on one another. We’re not stupid and we’re not disloyal, either. It’s a false choice to think that calling out Antisemitism on one side means accepting what we don’t like about the other side. We need both — and therefore we need one another. Carly Pildis also points out that ‘True loyalty is not blind obedience, but demands clarity and vision.”
Please, please, fellow Jews, and fellow members of our community who have thrown your lot in with ours, let’s be good to one another, let’s look out for one another, let’s speak respectfully and kindly to one another. Even when, especially when, we disagree. We are the heirs of the Talmud, a mind-bendingly rich encyclopedia of debate and disagreement over how exactly to live according to the Torah. If the Talmud could teach us a single meta-lesson, it would be that disputes for the sake of heaven are never personal. Talmudic sages never, ever threaten to get up and walk out of the house of study if they don’t get their way.
Speaking of looking out for one another: this year, our congregation’s board and its facilities, religious school, and worship committees are discussing our congregation’s security. Please hold us accountable, and please pay attention to our recommendations. Let’s prepare for emergencies, and let’s be ready for an attack on our community – whether it’s verbal or physical.
From Charlottesville to Squirrel Hill to Poway, white nationalists with malice in their hearts and semiautomatic rifles in their hands have proven that no Jewish community is exempt from antisemitic terror. God willing, that day should never come. But if it must, I pray we’ll have done the hard work of preparation so that we’ll be ready.
While we’re at it, let’s remember the lesson of the degenerate art poster: Antisemitism is racism. So let’s be a blessing by being good allies to other vulnerable targets of racists — African Americans, Latinos, Muslims, LGBT people, Immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and many, many others.
As Wasi Mohammed, the head of the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh, said after the attack on the Tree of Life congregation, “Negative rhetoric against the Jewish community is poison. It’s poison for our democracy, it’s poison for our country, it’s poison for everybody, not just that community.” He wasn’t just doing the Jewish community a favor. He was recognizing that the attack on the Pittsburgh Jewish community was an attack on all of Pittsburgh. That is why the front cover of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pittsburgh’s major daily newspaper was dominated the morning after that terrible day by 2 words: Yitgadal v’yitkadash. In other words, We are all Jewish in Pittsburgh today; we are all in mourning.
This is what’s right with America. Yes, there are those who would curse us, but there are so many more who would bless us. Let’s be grateful for their blessing and make the blessing mutual.
And so, May the clarion call of the Shofar rouse us to recognize, confront, and defeat the curse of Antisemitism on the right, on the left, and within.
And so we will.
My nechemta, my word of consolation, this morning is that the best way of confronting Antisemitism from within is to embrace what’s special about being Jewish! Living in fear will not protect us. But being proud of who we are and standing up courageously in the face of harassment might. We should not be ashamed to be Jews, nor ashamed of choosing the Jewish community as our home. In Judaism, we have a magnificent tradition of learning and scholarship, a prophetic calling for justice, a deep commitment to the rule of law, a marvelous culture, a unique language and and a stirring history. It doesn’t have to be religious — there are so many ways to be Jewish. So I would invite you to embrace what’s Jewish about you. We descendants of Abraham are ancient yet modern; committed to our tradition and mindful of our history yet focused on our future. In some religions they look forward to experiencing eternity in the afterlife; In Judaism, I’m already part of something eternal. I would not trade being Jewish for anything. So many have chosen to become Jewish themselves or to take up residence in Abraham and Sarah’s tent as Gerei Toshav, those who dwell among us. Even as we prepare for verbal or physical assault, we can still be open and inclusive. Maybe more than ever before. Let’s practice saying, “I love being Jewish. Maybe you would, too.”
In this new year of 5780, may Antisemitism, racism, and terrorist violence wither away like uprooted weeds. May our blessings exceed our curses by such an order of magnitude as the stars in the sky or the grains of sand on the beach. May we be a blessing to all the inhabitants of this land; may they be a blessing to us. May the State of Israel be a blessing to the world. And may we all be inscribed in the Book of Life for a sweet, joyous and healthy new year.
Keyn y’hi ratzon! So may it be G-D’s will.
Copyright 2019 by Rabbi Justin Kerber. All Rights Reserved.
