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Ever since I have known about them, the Jews have been hated. I believe it is because Jesus set them apart. He had told Abraham to leave his country and his people and his father’s household and go to a land that God would show him. He told Abraham that he would make him a great nation, that he would bless him, and would make his name great. (Genesis 12: l-2.) God also promised him that all the peoples on the earth would be blessed through him.
Abraham left as God had told him, and he also took his nephew, Lot, his wife, Sarah, along with all the possessions and people they had acquired in Haran. Abraham was 75 years old when they left for the land of Canaan. Abraham obeyed God and God blessed him. God set them apart for Himself and gave them certain rules to follow. But they, like us, were sinners.
God had given them certain rules to follow and certain ways to atone for their sins. God gave them a way to escape their sins by the method of burning a lamb (or animal) as a sacrifice. The blood that was shed was a way of atoning for their sins. However, it had to be repeated often. This procedure lasted until the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.
Christians and some Jews believe this repeated procedure could have ended even sooner with the atonement once and for all by the shed blood of a Jew, Jesus Christ, the prophesied coming Messiah, whose death and resurrection paid the price for the sins of all mankind for those who believed in him.
God had kept his promise to make Abraham a great nation. We all know how God chose Mary to be the one to bring Jesus into the world and how Jesus was crucified so that we would be forgiven our sins because he took our sins and nailed them to His Cross. However, the Jews refused to accept Jesus as their savior. The Cross seems to be the disturbing factor as to how the gentiles view the Jews and the Cross on which Jesus was crucified.
Whether that is the reason the Jews are hated by the gentiles, I do not know. I had never understood that to be the reason, but I do know that people did hate them, and I could not help but wonder why they did because I found them to be very good and kind people.
When I was a child I lived in a Jewish neighborhood. I was about 6 or 7 years old at the time. My aunt would take me to the Jewish stores, a butcher shop and a store that sold such items as clothing, items for the household, and various articles. I remember in that store, there was a Jewish man who waited on my aunt. He was very nice to her, and he talked to me a little. I really liked him. As a matter of fact, even at the butcher shop I was greeted by the people who worked there. One person gave me a pickle from the barrel that stood at the back of the store.
I remember a confectionary store on the other side of the street corner. We used to stop there on the way to school and buy candy. The owner of the store was always very nice and helped us pick out the candy we wanted.
I believe the Jews who attend synagogue are very nice because they believe the Bible as the Word of God. They tried to obey what Jesus told them in the Beatitudes. They were very kind and showed us a lot of love. The wife of the candy store owner came to our house to have my mother make dresses for her.
My brother and I played with Jewish boys down our street. There were no girls around. We had a wonderful time with them. They were just like us. We jumped off a garage roof down to a very large cardboard box with a tarpaulin over it. We all took turns. We played until we tired, then we went down in the basement and started to put on a play, but that did not develop into anything. We then went back outside and because it was time for supper, my brother and I walked home. That particular day stands out in my memory because we had such a good time.
At the time I did not know about Jewish rituals, how they celebrated the Sabbath on Saturday. When I learned about their eating habits, that they had two sets of dishes, for two different kinds of food, I was surprised about that, but I did not learn anymore about it.
At school, we all did the same kind of work. I thought the Jewish kids were smart, but I was able to learn with them. We enjoyed learning about the same things. Every morning we sang a song together before we started our work. There was only one difference about us that I can remember, and that was that in September they were always away from school because they had a Jewish holiday. In high school, we went to school on a streetcar and bus. The same kids who were in elementary school with us were also in junior high and high school with us.
Their religion was a big part of their lives. They had holidays we did not partake of. They did not celebrate Christmas as we did. As well as I can remember, the only difference between us was their religion.
Now some of the Jewish people are turning to Jesus, accepting Him as their Savior; they have become what are known as Messianic Jews.
Those of you who hate the Jews would be wise to respect them as people God created and who He loves and cares for as much as he does for us. Let us never forget that He set them apart for a reason. This is explained in Romans 3:1-2 (“What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew … Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God.” NIV) and Romans 9:-4 (“…the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption as sons; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised Amen.”)
It is because of them that we as Christians have come to know our God.
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The trouble, Ethel, is that people are apt to confuse the Jews with the State of Israel and Zionism; and they are not the same. I heartily agree with what you said concerning the character of the Jews, and I find them to be an industrious people and decent to the core. Sadly the State of Israel is tarnishing the image of the Jews. And many people wrongly believe that if you criticise the State of Israel you are somehow anti-semetic; but that is not so. The harshest critic of the present State of Israel is the famous Jew, Professor Noam Chomsky, and were he not a Jew born and bred they would be calling him anti-semetic. Jews are good and pleasant people, and the Messianic Jews are our brothers and sisters in Christ, deserving of our love and support. We look forward to the time when the State of Israel exemplifies the fine qualities of the Jews, the qualities for which they are justly acclaimed. This article is timely, cogent and well written; and I hope will be widely read.
Ethel, I've just commented on your fine article before I logged in. My error.
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