Betrayal of spirit

Discusses two main issues: first, the origins and the nature of antisemitism in Christendom, and the connection between Christian anti-Judaism and antisemitism; and second, the roots and the meaning of the Holocaust, including the question of responsibility of the Churches. Criticizes the views of Clark Williamson and Rosemary Ruether, according to which the conflict between Judaism and Christianity stemmed from a competition between the two "sibling religions" (which they are not) in the first centuries. Both anti-Judaism and antisemitism began in the pagan world. Contends that the seeds of antisemitism can be found in the Gospels and in Christian supersessionism; the latter is a natural standpoint of every religion. However, the source of Christian anti-Judaism is not doctrinal but socio-political. Therefore, antisemitism cannot be eradicated by alterations in Christian theology: theology cannot undo history. Believes, however, that the Churches have to evade blatant anti-Jewish passages in their liturgies. Notes that Nazi antisemitic ideology included not only racial, but also strong religious elements. However, it was a necessary but not sufficient condition for the Holocaust; the traditional German rejection of Jews and the vicissitudes of the war also contributed to the Nazi genocide. Calls on theologians to explain the Holocaust theologically; contends that God did not die at Auschwitz, but He experienced an unprecedented defeat there. (From the Bibliography of the Vidal Sassoon International Center for the Study of Antisemitism - The Hebrew University of Jerusalem)