“Antisemitism is wrong, but I will not be voting for the Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023 (H.R. 6090) today that could convict Christians of antisemitism for believing the Gospel that Jesus was handed over to Herod to be crucified by the Jews,” said Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Green. This happened last week, and she was not alone in her NO vote; 20 Republicans and 70 Democrats joined her to oppose this law that is directly related to pro-Palestinian protests that are happening all over the country, mostly on college campuses. Today’s thought isn’t about this horrific situation in Israel and Gaza or the protests. This is about bad theology.
New Testament scholars overwhelmingly agree that anti-Semitism as we know it comes largely from 2000 years of bad theology about who killed Jesus. This is today’s truth-telling – the Jews did not kill Jesus. A couple of leaders in different Jewish sects conspired with the Roman government to arrest Jesus, but He was murdered on a cross, not stoned to death. Crucifixion was a Roman form of capital punishment. The Romans didn’t do this small group a favor; they didn’t say, “No problem; we’ll take care of the rabble-rouser for you!” Rome didn’t care what a handful of religious fanatics wanted. The Gospel of John is especially problematic; THE JEWS are constantly being pointed out as opposing Jesus and accusing Him of blasphemy. Sure, there were people who opposed His teachings. In fact, in John 5 we see the first schism in the movement; Jesus was teaching that He was the bread of life come down from heaven and, “Because of this many of His disciples turned back and no longer went about with Him.” Any child with some form of accurate Sunday school training can tell you all of this. Rome did it, not the Jews.
And Pontius Pilate? The Gospel of John gives him a free pass, portraying him as sympathetic and having no choice. Yes, the Romans were always concerned about rebellion, but Pilate, history tells us, was a blood-thirsty tyrant. He wasn’t concerned about the feelings of a few Pharisees who didn’t like what some countrified Rabbi was teaching. He even put idols in the Temple once, just to make them angry. The early church purposely painted this picture of Jewish guilt, making them the culprits. Why? Who are you going to mess with – the Roman Empire, or a small religious sect with little power? And once the church got in bed with Rome in the 4th century, it was all downhill from there. Jesus was murdered by the government to make a point. Rome did it. Not the Jews.
This bad theology is rampant in many churches. The Jews are still painted as the bad guys every Holy Week on Good Friday. People like Greene want to continue to spread this lie, and their right to practice their religion will continue to allow them to do so. This is part of holding a particular theological viewpoint – as long as you don’t directly injure someone, you can believe any crazy or damaging thing you want to. Even if it is a lie. The problem is, that these lies do, eventually, hurt people. That’s how lies work.
Prayer – Forgive us, God, when we misuse Your name to benefit our own biases. Cure us of our madness and willingness to lie. Amen.
Today’s art is “The Crucifixion” by Eduardo Rodriguez Calzado.