How is it that the violence of antisemitic extremists often echoes the arrogance and grandiosity of Their God? Yes, I'm talking about the one Jews, Christians, and Muslims worship.
I’ve wondered why God says he loves us while threatening us if we don’t do his bidding. So in other words God is blackmailing us to act a certain way or else….eternal hellfire damnation. I have NEVER understood the open hostility, hatred and violence towards Jewish people. Those bullies have to be dealt with. Free speech is a wonderful concept; however, people need to understand that it comes with CONSEQUENCES when our “Right” is abused. Remember what our parents taught us “if you don’t have anything nice to say then don’t say anything at all”. People find it’s easier to hate because all the blame goes to everyone else vs the pain of self reflection.
Words can’t be unsaid, words can hurt, words are powerful. Playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton wrote “the pen is mightier than the sword”. Words even have the power to insight people who feel marginalized to commit violent acts against our own government. Just because you’re not antisemitic doesn’t give you a free pass; stand up and let others know antisemitism is unacceptable! To abolish antisemitism (this next part will be difficult) we need to reach out to those very same antisemitic people. If we see them as humans who are more than just their hate it allows us to have meaningful discussions -why do they feel as they do. Hate begets Hate. Compassion begets Compassion. How can we expect hateful people to act differently if they’ve never known compassion ? Maybe we’ll plant a seed of doubt resulting in them turning their backs on antisemitism. Jewish people & non Jews have to continue the fight as long as antisemitism continues.
Narcissistic? Even when I was a kid I noticed that God was narcissistic, although I didn't name it as such. I sort of wondered why he was so obsessed with us being in church every Sunday (although in retrospect I think that was more the Word of the Mother instead of God :) The evil, the violence, the imperialism, the baby-brains-bashing, the kids-laughing-at-bald-guys-killing of the Old Testament...well, you can see a heavy hand of Man in those stories.
Some have speculated that religion exists to justify all the above, but Jonathan Haidt (himself Jewish, but I don't know if he's religious or secular) thinks there's a good evolutionary reason for religion - because it makes groups more cohesive, better able to cooperate, get shit done. Which is great if you're raising a barn, less so when you're raising an army against the infidels du jour.
As for the haters of Jews in Michigan and other places, I don't know if it's narcissism so much as a weird need to shit on someone else. And *everyone* seems to need one. When I read Richard Wright books when I was in school, I was annoyed at his grandmother (mixed ancestry herself, whitish, blackish, and Indingen-ish) bitching that the Jews killed Christ. I was like WTF??? You're black, you bitch about racism in pre-civil rights America, and you think the Jews killed Christ? How about the ROMANS? Theirs was the final word.
Robert Wright's book The Evolution of God, which I've read twice, puts *everyone* in their place, religiously speaking, and explains how we all got so fucked up on religion.
That said, corners of some religions are trying to move beyond the more violent days of yore, which is good to see. Glad to see some Jews (probably not all, I'm guessing) are moving beyond the Sinners In The Hands of an Angry God spiritual model (and I realize I just referenced a historical Christian sermon, but it fits nevertheless) and embrace a quieter, kinder, more middle-of-the-road kind of God, as some Christians have attempted to do (while others cling to the Old-School God and a Jesus who hates all the people they hate and would totally bring an AK-47 to a mall and gun down all the consumerist and liberal sinners. Progressive Muslims are also fighting back against discrimination against women, terrorism and hating on Jews. True fact: I got mistaken twice for a Muslim here in Toronto by Muslims who thought my pentagram was a Star of David. One freaked me out a little ("Are you Jewish?" he said with a big smile and I thought, "OH MY GOD HE'S GONNA LOB A MOLOTOV COCKTAIL AT ME!" and I was like, "NO! NO! I'M NOT JEWISH!" and he was like "It's okay if you are, I was just asking, I don't hate Jews!") The other one was on the subway and he said, "Happy Rosh Hashanna!" and I said, "But I'm not Jewish!" and he said, "You're not?" and I said, "Why do you think I am?" Well it was the pentagram again! But this time I laughed and said, "I think it's nice that you said that. Are you trying to build bridges with Jews?" and he said he was. I've never forgotten that.
So, there's hope for everybody, y'know? I'd like to see all us *level-headed spiritualists* get together and fight the whackos (with words and deeds, not guns or bombs).
anyway...long-winded answer :) Excellent article and I'm sorry you're having to put up with all this awful anti-Semitic mischigoss in Michigan. I hope you and your husband stay safe, along with all your synagoue!
It’s true. People often need to put down others to feel good about themselves; it’s not necessarily a personality disorder as you rightfully point out in your wonderful article about narcissism. But violent extremists seem to be suffering from any number of personality disorders including NPD. Their actions are scary and the propaganda they listen to is frightening and dangerous. Like I say in the article, I don’t know what the answer is. As a society, we have to figure this out.
Excellent article as well as thought provoking.
I’ve wondered why God says he loves us while threatening us if we don’t do his bidding. So in other words God is blackmailing us to act a certain way or else….eternal hellfire damnation. I have NEVER understood the open hostility, hatred and violence towards Jewish people. Those bullies have to be dealt with. Free speech is a wonderful concept; however, people need to understand that it comes with CONSEQUENCES when our “Right” is abused. Remember what our parents taught us “if you don’t have anything nice to say then don’t say anything at all”. People find it’s easier to hate because all the blame goes to everyone else vs the pain of self reflection.
Words can’t be unsaid, words can hurt, words are powerful. Playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton wrote “the pen is mightier than the sword”. Words even have the power to insight people who feel marginalized to commit violent acts against our own government. Just because you’re not antisemitic doesn’t give you a free pass; stand up and let others know antisemitism is unacceptable! To abolish antisemitism (this next part will be difficult) we need to reach out to those very same antisemitic people. If we see them as humans who are more than just their hate it allows us to have meaningful discussions -why do they feel as they do. Hate begets Hate. Compassion begets Compassion. How can we expect hateful people to act differently if they’ve never known compassion ? Maybe we’ll plant a seed of doubt resulting in them turning their backs on antisemitism. Jewish people & non Jews have to continue the fight as long as antisemitism continues.
Narcissistic? Even when I was a kid I noticed that God was narcissistic, although I didn't name it as such. I sort of wondered why he was so obsessed with us being in church every Sunday (although in retrospect I think that was more the Word of the Mother instead of God :) The evil, the violence, the imperialism, the baby-brains-bashing, the kids-laughing-at-bald-guys-killing of the Old Testament...well, you can see a heavy hand of Man in those stories.
Some have speculated that religion exists to justify all the above, but Jonathan Haidt (himself Jewish, but I don't know if he's religious or secular) thinks there's a good evolutionary reason for religion - because it makes groups more cohesive, better able to cooperate, get shit done. Which is great if you're raising a barn, less so when you're raising an army against the infidels du jour.
As for the haters of Jews in Michigan and other places, I don't know if it's narcissism so much as a weird need to shit on someone else. And *everyone* seems to need one. When I read Richard Wright books when I was in school, I was annoyed at his grandmother (mixed ancestry herself, whitish, blackish, and Indingen-ish) bitching that the Jews killed Christ. I was like WTF??? You're black, you bitch about racism in pre-civil rights America, and you think the Jews killed Christ? How about the ROMANS? Theirs was the final word.
Robert Wright's book The Evolution of God, which I've read twice, puts *everyone* in their place, religiously speaking, and explains how we all got so fucked up on religion.
That said, corners of some religions are trying to move beyond the more violent days of yore, which is good to see. Glad to see some Jews (probably not all, I'm guessing) are moving beyond the Sinners In The Hands of an Angry God spiritual model (and I realize I just referenced a historical Christian sermon, but it fits nevertheless) and embrace a quieter, kinder, more middle-of-the-road kind of God, as some Christians have attempted to do (while others cling to the Old-School God and a Jesus who hates all the people they hate and would totally bring an AK-47 to a mall and gun down all the consumerist and liberal sinners. Progressive Muslims are also fighting back against discrimination against women, terrorism and hating on Jews. True fact: I got mistaken twice for a Muslim here in Toronto by Muslims who thought my pentagram was a Star of David. One freaked me out a little ("Are you Jewish?" he said with a big smile and I thought, "OH MY GOD HE'S GONNA LOB A MOLOTOV COCKTAIL AT ME!" and I was like, "NO! NO! I'M NOT JEWISH!" and he was like "It's okay if you are, I was just asking, I don't hate Jews!") The other one was on the subway and he said, "Happy Rosh Hashanna!" and I said, "But I'm not Jewish!" and he said, "You're not?" and I said, "Why do you think I am?" Well it was the pentagram again! But this time I laughed and said, "I think it's nice that you said that. Are you trying to build bridges with Jews?" and he said he was. I've never forgotten that.
So, there's hope for everybody, y'know? I'd like to see all us *level-headed spiritualists* get together and fight the whackos (with words and deeds, not guns or bombs).
anyway...long-winded answer :) Excellent article and I'm sorry you're having to put up with all this awful anti-Semitic mischigoss in Michigan. I hope you and your husband stay safe, along with all your synagoue!
It’s true. People often need to put down others to feel good about themselves; it’s not necessarily a personality disorder as you rightfully point out in your wonderful article about narcissism. But violent extremists seem to be suffering from any number of personality disorders including NPD. Their actions are scary and the propaganda they listen to is frightening and dangerous. Like I say in the article, I don’t know what the answer is. As a society, we have to figure this out.
Thanks for your wonderful response!