Antisemitism: Gateway to Jewish Identity - Part 2

The triggers of antisemitism can change with socioeconomic shifts, but the root cause underlies all its manifestations. Understanding this root cause can deepen our understanding of what the Jewish people embody. Here, we'll identify what the anti-semite finds disturbing about the Jewish people.

Paraphrasing Adolf Hitler from "Hitler Speaks" by Hermann Rauschning (1939):

"I am freeing man from … a false vision known as conscience and morality…

Conscience is a Jewish invention. It is a blemish, like circumcision."

Conscience, the sense of right and wrong guiding our conduct, is the bedrock of civilized society. Hitler sought to eradicate accountability to a moral order to facilitate a lifestyle guided by the laws of the jungle where the strong dominate and the weak perish. In his view, along with those who perpetrated the holocaust, a conscience-free society must be free of the Jewish people and their deep-seated sense of conscience, even if some Jews acted immorally. Remarkably, this viewpoint aligns with Jewish philosophy.

Mount Sinai

In Hebrew, 'Sinai' translates to 'hate.' What links this mountain to such enmity? At Mount Sinai, the Jewish people committing themselves to live a Divine blueprint reflecting God's vision for humanity, the Torah. This blueprint empowers the nobler aspects of human nature and frequently involves harnessing one's instincts to advance higher ideals. This commitment is an affront to the self-centered lifestyle of the anti-Semites.

Abraham and Nimrod

The opposition to the Divine design championing human dignity did not begin at Mount Sinai, but with Abraham, the first Jew. He committed his life to teaching the world the uplifting nature of aligning oneself with the ideals of a Higher Authority. Nimrod, the era's global tyrant, sought to negate Abraham and his teachings. Initially attempting to incinerate Abraham and later attempted to eliminate him withing the context of a war. These early attempts on Abraham's life are the first known cases of antisemitism.

In essence, antisemitism, at its root, is an aversion to accountability to a Higher Authority that Jews inherently symbolize. It is not a product of Jewish social standing or conduct.