The shocking antisemitism of the right

OPINION:

I’ve always tried to stay informed. Understanding our present cultural narrative and having a pretty good handle on how our ideas will likely shape our future has always been front and center for me. Frankly, my job has demanded it.

As an educator, how could I possibly pretend to be relevant if I didn’t know what was going on in our world? Bottom line: Over the course of my career, I’ve fancied myself as being “in the know” as well as having a better-than-average ability to predict the attitudes and agendas that are just around the corner and likely to impact our daily lives.

I must acknowledge, however, that my confidence has been misplaced. In all my efforts to stay on the cutting edge of political and social debate, one major trend has taken me completely by surprise. Frankly, I didn’t see it coming and am utterly stunned by its magnitude. What is this movement, and what are these ideas? What is it that I totally miss? It’s the antisemitism of MAGA conservatives and those who call themselves Bible-believing evangelicals and Catholics.

Take last week, for example. On Tuesday, I posted a picture on my social media of the cover of a book I am reading. The title of the book is “How Should Christians Think About Israel?” My post included nothing other than the photo and my recommendation to “read this book.” That’s it. That’s all it said. I took no position and presumed to grind no ax.

Well, within minutes, my Facebook blew up with more than 1,800 comments. Here is just a snapshot of what my “friends and followers” had to say.

Chris responded: “Modern-day Israel should be turned to glass and given back to the Palestinians.” Caroline chimed in, “Israel is demonic. That’s how we should think of them.” Luke added, “We don’t need to be told by Jews how to feel about anything.”

Corey was less wordy. He simply said, “F—- Isreal.” Joe was even more concise. He just posted a meme of a man stomping on a bunch of cockroaches.

This commentary went on and on.

Glen suggested that we should “Beware of dogs and evil workers; Beware of the circumcision party.” Perry opined that “Israel is evil” and that “they have killed thousands of women and children.” James suggested that “any discussion on modern Israel has to begin by acknowledging that it is an illegal state.”

Kris added, “I like the Catholic approach much better. Fully reject Zionism.” More “friends” than I can count said, “Today’s Israel is not the same as the one described in the Bible. It is a secular state governed by atheists.”

Then there were the more academic-minded folks such as Zane, Jill and Jeremy (and others too numerous to count) who didn’t have much to add other than to say, “I don’t need a book to tell me how to feel or what I see” and “I don’t have to read that book to know how I should think about the corrupt nation state of Israel.”

Finally, there were comments such as those from Dwight and Dino, who said, “The Jews killed Jesus. They crucified the messiah and still deny him today,” and Dianne, who said, “We shouldn’t care any more about Israel than we do Canada. The church has replaced Israel.”

So there you have it. I simply suggested that Christians would do well to learn a bit more about what the Bible really says about Israel, and “conservatives” came out of the woodwork with incredulity. How dare I? How dare anyone refute their long-discredited antisemitic tropes? How dare anyone challenge their highly questionable “replacement theology”?

Ask these people to read something, and more than 1,800 of them respond with “Protocols of the Elders of Zion” nonsense about how “the Jews are evil cockroaches who killed Jesus” and how we should turn Jerusalem into glass.

I just didn’t see any of this coming. As I said, I’m stunned and dumbfounded by it. Another Facebook follower named Billy summarizes it best: “I am simply appalled at the idiocy and lack of biblical understanding displayed here. Do these people not understand that God is not done with Israel? To not get this is to fundamentally misunderstand His plan for humanity.”

Amen, Billy, amen. Even if the acolytes of Candace Owens, Tucker Carlson and Nick Fuentes can’t read a book, then maybe they can at least read a paragraph — and I pray they read yours.

• Everett Piper (dreverettpiper.com, @dreverettpiper), a columnist for The Washington Times, is a former university president and radio host. He is the author of “Not a Day Care: The Devastating Consequences of Abandoning Truth” (Regnery). He can be reached at epiper@dreverettpiper.com.