Thread by @jonathanvair

A few years ago a Zionist cornered me in a grocery store to try and convince me that Palestine was an imaginary place/identity, because it was all just "Arab". If I didn't have my Jewish friends who were vocally anti-Zionist, I wouldn't have been prepared for that moment.

Her beliefs were, as you can expect, incredibly sinister. I'm not going into the grit of it because you probably follow me for art or whatever, but stick with me a sec.

If you're an outsider or at least undecided to these current events, keep reading.

Other followers, hi! Bye!

Back to this person, she said I was "smarter than I looked" because I knew that there were different types of Judaism, and that evangelical America is by far the greater supporter of Zionism.

It was such a gross, weird interaction that felt like a power play. Because it was.

Raised Evangelical, one learns that Israel is good because they are proto-Christians or something, which is... uh... no?

But these false narratives were, in fact, something pressed on you for a long time, as a part of American Exceptionalism.

(What's that? Link at the end.)

You are taught that Israel perseveres because it is a miracle that God protects. You're never taught just how much money the US pours into promoting Israel, and to what economic gain. Of course, you don't hear about war crimes, don't learn about Kissinger. YOU.DON'T.LEARN.💩.

Before starting my #exvangelical journey, it was understood that Israel was the closest thing an American Christian could have to a spiritual legacy, so we needed to protect it. This discussion is predicated on knowing little history and ZERO perspective from neighboring nations.

Zoomers, imagine all this without the internet. You'd have to go to a library after thinking maybe, POSSIBLY you are being lied to about this very complicated overwhelming thing. Imagine being in a small Christian school in Ohio, where you either choose distraction or distress.

This questioning of authority includes questioning the character of God and "his" relationship to humanity.

Would you feel like dropping a paradigm shift into your lap between applying to colleges and $7/hr jobs?

Of course you wouldn't. Your life is DESIGNED to not do that.

Gentiles raised in this context can get pretty nervous at the thought: "Am I bad for thinking these may be war crimes against Palestine? Am I anti-Semitic? Am I anti-Christian?!!"

It felt like the person at the grocery store understood she already had this advantage.

My Jewish friends are some of my most anti-Zionist friends for the same reason that Muslims sacrifice themselves fighting ISIS more than anyone else.

How inconvenient that is for Fox News, this woman, and all the evangelical Christians who don't know what garbage they promote.

So, if you grew up like I did, and you never saw life from a different lens, or you feel too scared to jump into something messy: my advice is to start learning now. And if you're American and/or Christian and staying away, I'm not just asking you to learn. I'm demanding it.

This playlist from @/wirelesshogan explains well the what and why behind America and its brand of Christian imperialism.

If you are aren't familiar with this element of US history, few things are more important than learning this, so get cracking:

youtube.com/playlist?list=…

And finally, a friend just shared this collection of infographics with me, and it's a great share for people with the blinders on:

ifamericansknew.org

@threadreaderapp unroll