I am on a plane to Idaho today. Tonight I am speaking at the Idaho GOP State Convention as the undercard to former RNC Chair Rich Galen.
Idaho is a mostly Christian state. There are Jews in Idaho, but not too many. Yet I was treated very warmly there, and look forward to making more lifelong friends.
This brings me to the notion of Christian support for the Jews. Many liberals have this nonsensical notion that they just want to convert us all. No. They love us because they believe God, and God tells them to love us. This is positive, not negative.
During the worst atrocities Jews have faced, Christians have risen to our defense like the big brother protecting the little brother.
One such good Christian man is actor Jon Voight. I have met him many times in various places. I saw him at Hannity’s Freedom Concert and at a Rudy Giuliani fundraiser. At the 2008 GOP Convention in Minneapolis, he and I sat next to each other in a suite and handed out tissues to misty eyed ladies when Sarah Palin spoke. I have even met him through his wonderful support of the religious Jewish organization Chabad.
He laughed when I told him that I admired his work, especially as the football coach in “Varsity Blues.”
He was also great on “24.”
Yet his acting is an afterthought with me. The man himself is what impresses me.
My dad expressed these sentiments in a better manner than I would. Here is his letter to Mr. Voight, with only my dad’s name redacted.
“Dear Mr. Voight,
As a Holocaust survivor, your unwavering support for the Jewish people and the state of Israel has touched a deep nerve within me. I know first-hand of what it felt like to experience the horrors of a world gone mad, when the world did not even want to bother with the plight of the Jews. Yet, even then, there were ‘Righteous Gentiles’ who took principled and moral stands at great personal risk to themselves and their families to save hapless Jews from slaughter.
I am here today because such Righteous Gentiles aided my family and me to survive. There is a place in Israel called Yad Vashem where such people are honored. G-d says, ‘I will bless those who bless my people, and curse those who curse my people.’ I am sure you will be among the blessed.
In an age when moral equivalence is made between terrorists, suicide bombers, and people who only wish to live in peace in the land of their forefathers, from which they were driven 2000 years ago in the Diaspora, it is refreshing to see a man such as yourself support with clarity what is moral and right.
I have always been a fan of yours, and a great admirer of your work, because of your acting skill and talent. I am an even greater admirer of yours, because you can be described as a true ‘Mensch’.
May G-d bless you with a long and healthy life, prosperity, and peace of mind.
Respectfully,
(My dad’s name–redacted)”
Without the love and support of Christian America, there would be no Jews and no Israel.
I thank Jon Voight and all the Christians like him, and pray that my own Jewish community realizes how special…and positive…this support is.
eric
Better be careful. Some of the core tenets of Protestantism involve virulent anti-Semitism. With friends like that…
I’m a liberal, and I don’t think Protestents are trying to convert you. (I’m not using the word “Christian” here, because there are huge differences between different Christian sects.) I think many Protestents believe that if somehow Israe lis returned to certain boundaries, and the Temple is rebuilt, that Jesus will return, and all you Jews will be left for dead.
Nice friends you got there. A bunch of idiotic psychos who want you to do their bidding so you can go to hell. Great people.
JMJ
“Nice friends you got there. A bunch of idiotic psychos who want you to do their bidding so you can go to hell. Great people.’
This coming from someone who has no concept of faith except in some loser community organizer…
priceless
Oh, right, Micky. I was just born yesterday and have “no concept of faith.” Right, Micky. how you read my mind is beyond me. It must be some supernatural power you have.
I know what “faith” is all about when it comes to religion, and one of those things is the “us vs them” meme. And one of the “them,” in the Protestant tradition, are the Jews. The Jews, according to Protestants, are the reviled messiah-deniers who killed Jesus, corrupted the modern “Christian World,” but are necessary to carry out prophesy for a few select Christians. There’s no getting around that. That IS what Protestents BELIEVE. The FOUNDERS of Protestentism, like Luther and Calvin, could not have been clearer about that. They HATED the Jews. Dealings with the Jews, according to these FOUNDERS of Protestantism, were dealings with the Devil, and because the Catholic Church was finally starting to leave Jews alone, the Catholics themselves came to be thought of us Devil-dealers. Anti-semitism is a theological pillar of very the Christian sects who now call themselves “Christian Zionists.” It’s been theologically acceptable among these shmucks recently to make nice-nice with the Jews for the sake of the apocalypse (re: Idiots Dream). The fact of the matter is that these people do not care at all about the Jews, but only in returning Jesus to purge the world of all the people not of their particular Christian faith. And so, when these sleazy, stupid, delluded morons support something Israel is doing, it’s highly likely that whatever it is they’re supporting is probably bad for Israel. I think you’d have to be a fool to be Jewish and get into bed with the Protestant-Right.
Micky, I know more about faith than you. I’m sure of it. If I have no concept of faith, then you’re friggin’ totally clueless.
JMJ
“I know what “faith” is all about when it comes to religion, ‘
Yeah, if you wanna include Global warming and “Hope n Change”
Millions of Christians have died for Jews…Jersey
You wanna base your beliefs on out dated doctrines of rigid conformity, go ahead.
No one will ever acuse you of thiking outside the box, never mind looking around today minus your ideological persuassion.
I’m gonna take a gamble, “have faith”, and say that I think Eric knows a little more about where he stands with Christians than you do.
When you can actually believe one day that theres a creator whos placed us here with purpose other than to say things they can never prove then you might begin to qualify defining faith.
Lets admit to be frank, that not all Christians ( whether Baptists, Methodists, Seventh Day Aventists, Lutherans, etc., etc., and people who
are of the Catholic faith), like Jews.
I could list hundreds of anti-Jewish (religious) and anti-Semitic ( racial) statements I have overhead or have been the target of, during my lifetimes.
Where I grew up, there were German American Bundists..they were
characteristically tall, blond haired, blue eyed. Does that say something
about their racial prejudices?
I have met anti-Semites with seemingly an axe to grind against Jews.
They fault we Jews for all the world’s ills. They accuse us of being too rich ( “you Jews have 60% of the money” or Jews are always on welfare and wont work the land, like we Christians.
“Why are Jews liberal and vote Democratic,whats wrong with the Republicans?”. They don’t know about repairing the world, or
Tikkun Olam (Torah) which permeates Jewish thought.
“Jews, you should move to Uganda and stop brutalizing the Palestinians”.
“I hate M. Begin, he detests me”.
“You Jews all look alike (Ahmad thinks we are not human), but dress differently” ( said about Jewish attorneys and CPA”), “You Jews always
go into enterprises that make money”.
And on and on and on.
But when it comes to Israel, they have differing opinions. Some Christians believe Israel must exist until their Messiah comes back. Others feel
some pity for country created after the Holocaust and survivors.
Most Christians want to convert us, whether they do or do not support Israel’s existence/policies. This is a given.
They say, it’s about the”word”, Judaism is an ancient religion,
it’s laws circumvented (meaning: the torah has no meaning).
Its about giving Jews their greatest opportunity, to leave their
old faith for something much better.
Considering the Muslim hatred for us ( fatwas issued ), the Christian
goal of conversion, is not all that bad.
This time around, the Evangelicals are on our side, and I applaud them
(at least for now).
As far as the word, we have Etz Hayim. You have the word, we have
Torah. It’s all in one’s view.
But then again, believers in Allah, well, read their websites.
Its funny how some people talk about how they like to help the jews and mention the bible to support their claims. While at the same time treating immigrants in their own country with a contempt that borders on policies of ethnic cleansing not to be confused with genocide but polices of blaming a minority with all their woes. Even doing little or without mentioning the corruption that pervades each party and with the unwillingness to leave party affiliations to find a concensus. If anyone wants to help a true organization that benefits relationships between christians and jews i suggest the international fellowship of christians and jews of which i am a partner. “I will bless those who bless you.” Gen 12:3 visit ifcj.org
Micky, I do not have blind faith in what the Obama administration or any governmental institution or agency (unlike you cons who worship the military). I understand that “hope” and “change” are just rhetorical flourishes, just like “family values” or “Christian nation.” They’re just vacuous slogans.
JMJ