I was honored to be on a panel at an antisemitism conference at Kol Ami Center for Jewish Life in Kirkland, WA.
I first met Rabbi Kinberg when she spoke out against anti-Muslim bigotry and the Muslim ban in 2017. I so appreciate all she does to rehumanize people to each other in these divisive days. So when she asked if I would speak at the conference I said yes. We need to stand with each other in these days – our democracy depends on it.
Several members of the Jewish community told me they had never heard a Christian say what I said at this conference. This both warmed my heart and made me feel a deep sadness. It shows the work that the Christian community needs to do and the lack of interaction between Christians and Jewish temples.
What did I say?
I was raised in Christian supremacy that taught me that Christianity is
- The only way to God
- God’s only way to us
- Therefore superior to other religions
- And that “love” is reduced to making others become like us
I shared how engagement with Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, Indigenous people, atheists, and so many others, AND a deep exploration of the tradition of Jesus led me to see things differently. The Creator connects to people in their own time, place, and culture. This does not diminish the beauty or validity of our own connection. It only does away with our desire for superiority and competition.
Given the history and present reality of antisemitism in the Christian tradition and the larger culture, it is up to every Christian community to do our own work, to root out antisemitism from our hymns, liturgies, preaching, theology, and practice. This is not because we need to be “nice” to Jews and other groups – it is a matter of faithfulness to Jesus, to the thriving of the human family, and to the health and healing of our own souls, bodies, communities, and the earth.
When these human beings said they had never heard a Christian say these things, I felt some grief – for them and for my own community.
But I also felt that we don’t need to continue down the same path, and that the Creator or the Divine is reaching out to us again to connect us to one another.