Christian Century Outlines Ten Criticisms of Israeli Policy It Says Avoid Antisemitism

The Christian Century has published an essay titled “Ten ways Christians can criticize Israel that aren’t antisemitic.” The authors, one of whom is Rabbi Joshua Stanton of East End Temple in Manhattan, begin with a definition from historian and diplomat Deborah Lipstadt: “An antisemite is someone who hates Jews more than is absolutely necessary.” The authors argue that many progressive Christian leaders have failed this standard in their criticism of Israel over the war in Gaza that followed Hamas’s attacks on October 7. They say some respected colleagues have accused Israel of genocide, which they describe as a trope akin to Holocaust inversion. Others, they write, speak of apartheid in Israel, including outside the West Bank, while noting that Palestinian Israeli citizens make up 20 percent of the population and serve in high office. The authors also say that some Christian leaders have labeled Israeli Jews “White colonialists,” a description they dispute because the Jewish people are indigenous to Israel and most Israeli Jews are people of color. They further point to what they call an excessive focus on the war in Gaza that excludes other countries.

The authors connect their concern to the history of Christian anti-Jewish hatred. They write that Christian teaching contributed to the rise of antisemitism, that Martin Luther “redoubled the hate,” and that the Christian Century itself has received criticism for its coverage of the Holocaust while it was unfolding. They also cite church efforts to repair these relations. The Catholic Church’s Nostra Aetate declaration in 1965 officially banned antisemitism “directed against Jews at any time and by anyone” and rejected the notion that “the Jews killed Jesus.” In 2023, The Lutheran World Federation issued a study document, *Hope for the Future*, which builds on the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s acknowledgment of Luther’s antisemitism and its 1994 statement on its desire to live out faith “with love and respect for the Jewish people.” The authors write that the wounds of history remain fresh, especially the participation of some Christian religious leaders and institutions in the Holocaust.

The authors state that they do not wish to presume malice when progressive Christians use antisemitic tropes, though they say they fear “there may be more than a little of it coming from certain corners.” They acknowledge that Christian communities are directly affected by the war in Gaza and that Christian values of peacemaking and concern for civilian suffering are at stake. They also state that some criticisms of the Israeli government are appropriate. They present ten statements they consider permissible, several of which concern Israeli leadership and policy. The first says Benjamin Netanyahu must resign as prime minister, noting that Israelis across the political spectrum have protested to demand this. The second says Israeli leaders have no plan, while the third says the Israeli army must do more to protect civilians. The fourth argues that aerial bombardment in densely populated urban areas causes an unnecessary number of civilian casualties, while acknowledging that Hamas uses human shields. The fifth calls on Israel to work with Egypt to expand aid to Gaza, which Egypt helps control through one of its key entry points.

The remaining statements focus on the West Bank and the wider region. The sixth says the Israeli government must curb settler violence, which the authors say a minority of Jewish settlers has carried out against Palestinian civilians since October 7. They describe this violence as a matter of protecting the vulnerable (Proverbs 31:8-9), and they argue that the extremists should be denounced for misrepresenting the ideals of most Israeli Jews. The seventh says Israel should remove West Bank settlements, and the eighth says Israel could do more to pursue peace, including through its diplomatic and trade relations with Middle Eastern countries and Saudi Arabia’s work toward normalization. The ninth argues that Israel must help create the preconditions for a Palestinian state, and the tenth says Israeli leaders must stop undermining the Palestinian Authority, which the authors say is placed in an untenable position by settler activity and hurtful rhetoric from Israeli political leaders.

The authors conclude that progressive Christians have a moral obligation to ensure their progressivism includes Jews, given Christianity’s history of anti-Jewish polemics. They note that many words and actions, however well-intentioned, have contributed to a dramatic rise in antisemitic incidents and violence in the United States since October 7.

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