Thread by @JoLuehmann

A gentle reminder that using Pharisee to mean hypocrite or “bad guy” is antisemitic.

Believing Christians are the “new” chosen people and replaced Jewish people is supersessionism and its antisemitic.

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Using Old Testament to mean Hebrew Bible is a type a supersessionism that sees Judaism just as a precursor of Christianity, and it’s antisemitic.

Believing the Hebrew Bible is about Jesus as messiah, and only properly understood under that lens;...

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makes Jewish understanding of their own Scriptures “incomplete”, and it’s antisemitic.

Appropriating Jewish traditions for Christian purposes, like lighting a menorah for Christmas or hosting a Passover Seder for Easter, is very inappropriate and disrespectful.

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Being a Christian does not make us experts on Judaism, and doesn’t mean we can take from Judaism without being respectful and thoughtful. The experts on Judaism are Jewish people, we submit to their wisdom to understand their faith.

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Judaism is a complete faith, it is not in need of more to be good, rich, beautiful, and meaningful. It’s an independent full faith. Judaism is not a prequel to Christianity, in need of validation from Christians that don’t really understand it and have never practiced it.

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I learned these things after I left evangelicalism and started listening to Jewish people. A few of those who’ve educated me throughout the years are: @TheRaDR, @RutiRegan, @SharonBrous and other Jewish leaders.

Christianity has a long history of antisemitism. Many Christian theologians that have shaped a lot of modern Christianity held and spread antisemitic beliefs. From Justin Martyr, to Augustine, all the way to Calvin and Luther (whose writings inspired nazis).

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Antisemitism fueled a lot of the brutality of the crusades and inquisitions. It caused the expulsion of Jewish people from different part of the world to “protect Christianity”. By Christian decrees it has stripped Jewish people of their rights and confined them to ghettos.

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Antisemitism of any kind is harmful, it’s dehumanizing and endangers the lives of Jewish people. According to the Anti-Defamation League, Antisemitic incidents in the US increased 12% in 2019 hitting an all time high. 2020 isn’t looking much better.

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Knowing the history of Christian antisemitism is almost as long as the history of Christianity, wouldn’t it be sensible to consider our relationship to Judaism, our language, the way in which we appropriate Jewish beliefs and traditions, and do better? I think it absolutely is
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Wherever you’ve landed after deconstructing your Christian faith, this is worth noting, deconstructing and committing to stand against every time you see it happening.