Antisemitic stereotypes

Antisemitic stereotypes, also known as antisemitic tropes, 



  refer to antisemitic stereotypes about Jews.

Overview

Antisemitism, or Judeophobia, is the fear, dislike or hatred of Jews. Antisemitic stereotypes were created by those holding beliefs attributable to antisemitism. Antisemitic stereotypes have been rife throughout human history.

Consequences

Antisemitic stereotypes shaped the laws of countless empires throughout history and contributed to genocides of Jews, the worst of which was the Holocaust.

Recent trend

Recent antisemitic stereotypes tend to feature the denial or trivialization of atrocities against Jews, especially the denial or trivialization of the Holocaust (or the Jewish exodus from Muslim countries since 1948).

Holocaust denial or trivialization

Holocaust deniers tend to spread the lie that the Holocaust has been "fabricated" or "exaggerated to benefit Israel". 

October 7 denial or trivialization

The most recent example is the denial or trivialization of the Hamas-led October 7 massacre within Israel in 2023, whose victims were overwhelmingly Jewish, including several Holocaust survivors.

Stereotypes

Below is a summary of common antisemitic stereotypes, many of which still believed by nearly half of the world's adult population.

Ancient

 Jews killed Jesus James Parkes, Prelude to Dialogue (London: 1969) p. 153; cited in Wilken, p. xv.







 Jews betrayed their prophets
 Jews conspire against Christianity

Middle Ages

 Jews take blood from Christian babies for rituals (blood libel) 


 Jews worship Satan
 Jews poison wells to cause epidemics, including the 14th century Black Death Etinger, Iakov (1995). "The Doctors' Plot: Stalin's Solution to the Jewish Question". In Yaacov Ro'i, Jews and Jewish Life in Russia and the Soviet Union. London: Frank Cass. , pp. 103–6.





Modern

 Jews control mass media
 Jews control banks
 Jews control governments around the world 







 Jews create wars and revolutions around the world

Contemporary

 Jews are rootless cosmopolitans 

 Etinger, Iakov (1995). "The Doctors' Plot: Stalin's Solution to the Jewish Question". In Yaacov Ro'i, Jews and Jewish Life in Russia and the Soviet Union. London: Frank Cass. , pp. 103–6.








 Jews are fake European converts to Judaism descended from the Khazars* 



 Rory Miller(2020) The anti-Zionist ‘Jewish Khazar’ syndrome in the official British mind 



 Jews ran the Atlantic slave trade 




 Jews created the AIDS and COVID-19 





Contradictory accusations

In her 2003 book The Holocaust and Antisemitism: A Short History, Jocelyn Hellig wrote:. Cited in: 

Argentinian-Israeli educator Gustavo Perednik (b. 1956) wrote in his book Judeophobia:

Polish anthropologist Joanna Tokarska-Bakir also commented on the issue:

From anti-Judaism to antisemitism

Since ancient times, antisemites have promoted false claims about Judaism by quoting passages from the Talmud and Midrash out of context,* 



  judging them by modern moral standards and ignoring the fact that they were written two thousand years ago by those in different cultures.

Examples

Ignatius of Antioch

In the early decades of Christianity, Church Father Ignatius of Antioch (c. 50–117) claimed that those who followed Jewish custom were "partakers with those who killed Jesus".

Justin Martyr

Church Father Justin Martyr (100–165) claimed that God's covenant (also known as the Old Covenant or Mosaic Covenant) with the JewsReferred to as Israel in his writings. was no longer valid and that Christians had replaced them because the Jews "[had] slain the Just One [Jesus]", who would deserve exile and persecution in the centuries to come.

John Chrysostom

Church Father John Chrysostom (c. 347–407), who served as the archbishop of Constantinople, wrote in his homily series Adversus Judaeos (Ancient Greek: Κατὰ Ἰουδαίων Kata Ioudaiōn, "against the Jews"): 

As there were only two other ordained individuals in Antioch legally recognized as Christian preachers, Chrysostom managed to promote his ideas to most local Christians.Christine C. Shepardson, Controlling Contested Places: Late Antique Antioch and the Spatial Politics of Religious Controversy (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2014), 93)

Nazi Germany

In Nazi Germany (1933‒45), "criticism" of Judaism was a major theme in state propaganda. Top Nazi racial theorist Alfred Rosenberg justified intellectual attacks on Judaism:

Rosenberg and other Nazis saw the Jewish emphasis on following the commandments for small details in life as a sign of "lack of moral understanding", while accusing Jews of "double moral standards" in dealing with gentiles. Some Nazis were experts on Judaism themselves, who were able to attack Judaism in a way more convincing to the public.

Public views

Anti-Defamation League

Regarding the matter, American civil rights group Anti-Defamation League (ADL) noted:

Rabbi Rowe

Rabbi Rowe, the former executive of Aish UK, said that the Talmud was "the most natural target of antisemitism", which has been "going on for centuries". The Talmud has been targeted because the Torah is the Old Testament of Christianity, and the secret nature of the Talmud makes it harder for laymen to have enough knowledge to refute false claims made by antisemites about it. Rabbi Rowe noted that antisemitism was always about demonization ‒ making Jews look hateful and demonic ‒ to justify emotional hatred of Jews.

False claims about Judaism

Some false claims made by antisemites about Judaism are summarized as follows.

 Aspect  Summary Gentile humanhood  Myth 1: "Non-Jews are subhumans."Fact: Mainstream Judaism has never seen non-Jews as subhumans. It believes that everyone is equal as everyone is created by God in His image.Mishnah (Avoth 3:14) and Talmud (Avoth 9b):[רבי עקיבא] היה אומר: חביב אדם שנברא בצלם. חיבה יתרה נודעת לו שנברא בצלם,שנאמר (בראשית ט:ו), "כי בצלם אלקים עשה את האדם."[Rabbi Akiva] used to say, “Beloved is man, for he was created in God’s image; and the fact that God made it known that man was created in His image is indicative of an even greater love. As the verse states (Genesis 9:6), ‘In the image of God, man was created.’)” Treatment of gentiles Myth 2: "Jewish law allows Jews to kill non-Jews."Fact: Antisemites cite a line allegedly from Rabbi Simeon ben Yochai (2nd century). However, the line refers only to the situation of war. Simeon lived at a time when Jews were forced to fight non-Jews, especially in the Bar Kochba revolt, due to persecution by Roman Emperor Hadrian.  Child sex abuse Myth 3: "Judaism allows sex abuse of young girls." Fact: This claim was made by Russian Catholic Reverend I.B. Pranaitis. He was found to have distorted Talmud writings to demonize Jews. The Talmud actually treats child sex abuse as rape."פיתוי קטנה אונס נינהו."One who seduces an underage girl is considered as if he had raped her [i.e., the laws applicable to rapists would apply to the molester]. The distorted writings came from a chapter in the Ketubot discussing victims of child sex abuse, which actually stated that a girl sexually abused before three should be seen as a virgin and deserving of higher status.  Study of Torah Myth 4: "Non-Jews studying the Torah are worthy of death."J. David Bleich, Contemporary Halakhic Problems vol. 2 (New York: Ktav, 1983), pp. 311-340.Fact: This claim was made by David Duke, the former KKK leader and a Holocaust denier. He was found to have cherrypicked a line from a whole passage. Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Yohanan said that the misquoted passage did not refer to Jews but the generic "Man", who is supposed to be studying the Torah as a believer rather than making it a subject of study without spiritual commitment, which would be a form of blasphemy. Non-Jews studying the Torah are respected if they are studying it as a matter of faith. Honesty Myth 5: "As per Libbre David 37, a Jew must give non-Jews a false explanation about the Talmud, or the Jew will be put to death."Fact: Libbre David 37 does not exist. It was made up by Neo-Nazis who run several disinformation websites. Gentile acts towards Jews Myth 6: "If a Goy hits a Jew, he must be killed."Fact: This claim is based on the distortion of Sanhedrib 58b, which actually discusses options for dealing with non-Jewish attacks on Jews. It does not incite Jews to kill non-Jews. Socialization Myth 7: "Tosfot Yevamot 84b says that a Jew eating with a Goy is the same as eating with a dog."Fact: It is a falsification. Lost items Myth 8: "Bava Matzia 24a says that a Jew does not need to return an item lost by a Goy."Fact: This claim is based on the distortion of Bava Matzia 24a, which actually discusses options for dealing with items found lost after a flood or a wild animal encounter.

Related pages

 Jésus et Israël
 Black Hebrew Israelites
 Dual-covenant theology
 Accusations of Jewish anti-Christianity
 Antisemitism in the Soviet Union

References

Category:Racism
Category:Nazism
Category:Fascism
Category:Antisemitism
Category:Nazi Germany
Category:Jewish people
Category:Jewish history
Category:Discrimination