Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on February 27, 2017

The Canadian and Israeli flags fly together as Pro-Israel Torontonians gathered at Queen's Park to hold a peaceful, positive rally and pray for peace, truth and co-existence in Queen's Park in Toronto in July 2014. ( Steve Russell / Toronto Star ) | Order this photo

Yes you can be opposed to the State of Israel, not only its policies but its very existence, without being an anti-Semite. Some ultra-Orthodox sects in Judaism are against the existence of a Jewish state before the Messiah has come to proclaim it. Theyre religious fanatics but obviously not enemies of the Jewish people.

However, despite these rare exceptions, things are different in real life. The examples below seek to illustrate the worldwide phenomenon of turning against all Jews in the guise of disagreeing with Israeli policies.

Ironically and tellingly the arson attempt took place on the anniversary of Crystal Night, when in 1938 the Nazis burnt and pillaged synagogues, Jewish shops and homes, and thus de facto started the Holocaust.

Such things dont only happen in faraway countries. Jews often feel uncomfortable or worse in many public places, not least at university campuses, because opponents of Israel turn against them pretending that the hostility isnt anti-Semitic. Here are two instances close to home:

What enemies used to say about Jews, they now say about Israel. Anti-Semites of old refused to regard Jews as human: they were either superhuman creatures bent on ruling the world as the notorious forgery The Protocols of the Elders of Zion would have it or they were subhuman: vermin in the vocabulary of the Nazis.

In our time, the version of the old canard often has it that Israel is ruling the United States and the rest of the world through its intelligence agencies and by other unspecified means, or that its actions against hapless Palestinians are beastly.

Under such circumstances, it has become difficult for a Jew to voice legitimate criticism of Israel without being labelled either as a religious fanatic echoing the Messianic fantasies of extremists or a traitor to his or her people mouthing the vilifications of foes.

Of course, Israel isnt beyond criticism. Which country and which government is? But critical or not, I remain committed to the Jewish state and convinced that, after the Holocaust, Jews would have become a quaint sect on the margins of society, and Judaism a museum item, had there been no Israel that enabled many Jews to find a home and all Jews to gain dignity and self-confidence. Those who seek the destruction of Israel are, alas, bent on disenfranchising all Jews.

Correction February 27, 2017: The headline on this article was edited from a previous version that mistakenly said, Anti-Zionism is masquerading as anti-Semitism.

Dow Marmur is rabbi emeritus at Torontos Holy Blossom Temple. His column appears every fourth week.

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Anti- Semitism is masquerading as anti-Zionism: Marmur - Toronto Star

Category: Zionism
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