What is the basis for Anti-Semitism?

I am aware of the fact that anti-Semitism has been prevalent in several countries thru history, but I'm at a loss to understand why. Can someone familiar with this issue help me understand why this issue exists & persists? My goal is to understand, and I appreciate anyone's efforts to help me do that. Thanks in advance.

 

Simple enough. It is all about tribalism. That is what drives religious hatred, racial hatred, national hatred, relugious hatred , and any other hatred that seeks to divide instead of unite. Lots of good science if you want to persue.

 

What is the basis for Anti-Semitism?

Religion=Anger=Hatred=violence

The answer is an easily seen reality.

 

The problem and cause is ultimately humanity itself. And short of global depopulation of the entire human race, the problem cannot actually be solved. It is as simple as that. For whatever reason, the human species seems obsessed with destroying itself, either individually or in large numbers. The entire species obsesses with searching out differences to fuel the desire to conflict, and there is no way of stopping such. If religion and race did not exist to use as grounds for differentiation, the species would be murdering each other over the basis of eye color and physical height.

 

The Jews invented the God, from bits of previous Gods.
It is theirs, they have the patient on it.

The Christians stole the God, added more Gods to it, changed the rules, and turned on the Jews.

The Muslims then took the God from the Christians, eliminated the Christian Gods, added their own prophet,
and turned on the Jews and the Christians.

The Catholic church invented the Jews killed Jesus, and it pisses of the non-thinking Christians.
The Jews have always been the merchants, and ripe for robbery.

 

While I recognize some truth in your post, overall, it's a pretty gloomy response to my question. Since individuals perform the acts of violence you describe, and individuals are capable of controlling their own behaviors, I don't see hopelessness as a foregone conclusion. Humanity has learned many valuable lessons over time. Learning compassion, & understanding to value all humans as equal, is not beyond anyone's capacity. As the population of the world increases, it becomes ever more important for people to respect & get along with one another. Continuing the old, senseless, arrogant, violent past behaviors is becoming more unacceptable. We are ALL human, as such, equal in value with one another.

 

Jealousy.

 

Jealousy over what?

 

In America what led to anti semitism was profiteering and price gouging by Jewish merchants during the American Civil War.

Germans made the same claim about German Jews during WW l.
The Nationalist Socialist in Germany ran on that platform during the 1920's and 30's..

But anti semitism in Europe had been going on for more than a few hundred years.

 

The link below addresses the financial aspect of anti-Semitism. The other forms of anti-Semitism are related to religion and politics.

https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/usury-and-moneylending-in-judaism/

Whatever its causes, Jewish business and financial success has more often than not been a major driver of anti-Semitism.

 

Thank you for your response. I agree with your points. I'm wondering if perhaps some of the antisemitism is based on the fact that Jews value education more than most other people, & encourage public service more than most. Those values would automatically place Jews in important positions within any community, & cause some resentment or jealousy as well.

 

Unite "our people" to stop their feuds and confront, "those people".

Antisemitism as a unifying force.


Moi

They Seek A Land Corridor to NYC!​

 

The best illustration of the long history of anti-semitism is sadly out of print. You may however manage to dig up a copy of ‘The Christian Holocaust: A Critical Study of Organised Religion’ by Mark Mason. (Publ’ Markwell Press 1981 Hong Kong.)
In his introduction Mason tells us :- 'This is a collection of essays written for those people who spent their lives looking for spiritual truth and justice where it is not to be found. It is a story of how men’s hearts and minds have been perverted by ignorance, superstition and fear'

 

Your post was interesting, but not helpful in terms of seeking to understand the reasons for anti-semitism. Can you provide reasons?

 

Reasons for anti-semitism?
The Roman church has a long history of teaching Jesus was crucified by the Jews. Somehow they forgot to mention Rome’s involvement.
The Christian Holocaust: A Critical Study of Organised Religion’ by Mark Mason. (Publ’ Markwell Press 1981 Hong Kong.) explores this at some depth up to the co-operation of Rome with the Nazis’. Instance, he documents in detail catholic clerics in Poland giving the German invaders long lists of local Jews prior to invasion.

 

So you suppose that might have been due to the name of the Church at the time, the "Roman Catholic Church?" The early Church was a definite part of the ruling faction of the Roman Empire, so it would be bad politically to have the Roman Church take partial blame for Jesus' death. So, blame the non-Christian Jews. Easy scapegoat.

 

Oh yes, we have seen this exact same thing far to often by those on the Left.

Far to many in that area hate anybody that is religious, even if it has no impact on them.

Thank you for saying that so clearly. Religion causes anger in others, who then hate and commit acts of violence.

Now maybe if we can get those violent hateful ones some help, this will no longer be a problem.

 

I am a leftist, & I've never felt violent toward anyone for their religious beliefs. I've never met anyone with those feelings, though I know some interpretations of Islam encourage hatred toward all other religions. There are religious sects that I do feel less comfortable with generally, like fundamentalist Christians, Evangelicals, & Mormons, but I don't hate them or feel violent toward them. I simply disagree with their religious views & practices. I believe in freedom of religion, & that means respecting all religions equally along with the rights of their followers. I try to do that.

 

Jealousy of being God's chosen people.

 

To become jealous of such an issue, one would first have to BELIEVE it was actually true. Jews claim to have a special relationship with God, but do they claim to be God's chosen people? Do Christians in general believe Jews are God's chosen people? Many people in different cultures, societies, & countries around the world, claim to be special or superior or "chosen" in some way, that distinguishes themselves from others around them. America has done that for decades--especially since WWII, saying we had the most individual "freedom", highest standard of living, & were the most respectful of human rights of any country in the world. It wasn't true, of course, but it sounded good to Americans themselves, & many grew to accept it without question, as if it were true. Many humans seem to have a genetic need to feel "superior" to others around them in some way. I don't suffer personally from that particular malaise; I don't understand it, & I have no explanation for it.

 

Anti semitism in ancient history was based on people who spoke Hebrew. During this time such people were considered lower class by various societies. They were often enslaved.

Later Jewish people followed an orthodox belief in saving, ratholing money. As a form of irony the term ratholing was used to describe this Jewish practice. So they were seen as cheap. This is about the crusades through the Renaissance.

Later than that, Jewish people were seen as clanish. Like they always have been, they dressed differently, behaved and socialized differently.

When they would spend money and invest in communities they focused on their own. This actually happened in pre Nazi Germany and still occurs in the United States to this day, it's not even unique to this religious group. But people see this as selfish, others would see it as a form of commune. Add an ism to the back of that word and see why it persists in the United States today.

Jews seem to be a Target because they are enduring. Amish and Quaker are relatively new compared to Jewish people, plus they are Christian. Amish are often secluded not in a community within a city. So their version of Beth din is likely less known about, plus you have to be Amish to live in an Amish community. You don't have to be Jewish to live in a Jewish community.

So there are a lot of reasons it persists. I don't think any of them are justified. I ascribe to live and Let live philosophy. But it bothers some folks.

 

I think I might have over answered your question, I apologize. I've given it a lot of thought and read about it quite a bit because it seems so strange to me.

 

Thank you for saying that. I'm as perplexed as you, & I've given it quite a lot of thought too. Since it started long before Christianity began, I know the treatment of Jesus wasn't the root cause. The Romans didn't like them. The Babylonians enslaved them. I'm not sure how they fared under the Sumerians, or even if they existed then. Right now, I'm feeling that they became hated due to these factors:
1. They believed in monotheism & refused to adopt the local gods favored by the societies around them. This set them apart & sowed the seeds of distrust & non-acceptance.
2. They believed in & supported education as a powerful theme in Jewish lives. As we all know, educated people tend to rise to the top, which focused attention onto them from the lesser educated native peoples around them, who came to regard them with contempt as privileged outsiders. Jews became hated in spite of the fact that their educated members did things to help everyone in those communities where they resided & worked--not just themselves.
3. Due to their unusual religious beliefs, along with certain ceremonial & ethnic habits they had that weren't part of the cultures in which they resided, they became a separate presence within those societies. That separateness breeded both mistrust & contempt from their neighbors, which was passed on thru generations & across ever widening geographical regions as civilization spread.
4. Although antisemitism began as a local hate reaction, as it spread across the later, larger civilizations, it became a powerful theme that many in every culture adopted as part of their own personal lives. Sadly, it continues today.

I don't know if my feelings stated above are accurate or not. I'm not sure it explains the dilemma. I'm totally open to being wrong, which is why I asked the question in the first place--to get responses from others who might be better informed than me. I appreciate your thoughtful input, & I remain open to & anxious for more, should you (or anyone) choose to offer it.

 

The basis for antisemitism is hating Jews. The Jews have been the punching bag of the religious world for so long and it is rather depressing

 

Hermann Wittgens Ph. D. taught history at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, N. S. for several decades. It was a tremendous privilege to have him teaching me modern European history ... a third year level course although I was only in my second year.

He explained how he personally left East Germany days before the Russian armies came through. He stated that anti-Semitism built up in Germany over many centuries. His theory was that when Jews in Germany were allowed to participate in medicine..... they became the best doctors and the German doctors got jealous of them.

He explained that when Germany's Jews were allowed to participate in the military and become officers...... they quickly advanced through the ranks... and the non-Jewish Germans soon got jealous of them.

If I remember correctly.. .he also stated that the aristocrats of Europe got Jewish bankers to
implement monetary policy for them...... because nobody else seemed to be able to handle the
complexity of the seemingly conflicting goals of............. getting lots of revenue for the monarch and
the aristocracy by having a busy economy...... with... .keeping the lower classes relatively poor and hungry.......
so that they kept working and working and working.......

Jewish bankers proved to be the best at this all across Europe..........

By WWI it was proverbial for ordinary Germans to be in debt to a Jewish banker..... this increased anti-Semitism.....

Adolf Hitler...... capitalized on this sentiment to propel himself into power....