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What's wrong with Christian Zionism? (If not now, when?)
I am deeply upset by the news of the world, and thus I'm posting something rather controversial. One of the driving forces in U.S. politics is Christian Zionism. I have many problems with that philosophy, if philosophy it can be called.
First, as a Jewish friend noted, it is profoundly anti-Semitic. Christian Zionists believe that all Jews, everywhere, should go and live in Israel. That is not what I believe. I believe Jewish people should be able to live, as free and equal citizens, in any country they choose. Israel might be one of those countries; it might not. If a majority of Jews choose instead to live in the U.S., that is their absolute right! When Christian Zionism arose in late 19th-century England, one of its goals was to get all the English Jews to leave and go "back" to Palestine.
But the anti-Semitism doesn't end there. Not only must all Jewish people leave their homes and go to Israel, but also, once they do, the end times will begin. Those Jews who do not convert to millennial Christianity will be killed and (presumably) condemned to hell. I honestly don't think God is that small-minded.
Then there are the indigenous people of the country that was called Palestine for almost two millennia. They are also Semites. Christian Zionists absolutely do not care what happens to them.
But not only is this philosophy anti-Semitic, it is also theologically suspect. You may or may not believe in God. Surely, if there is a God - a creator of the Universe! - he or she is not so small-minded as to desire the destruction of almost all the Semitic people. I cannot believe in a God like that!
Nor can I believe in a God who requires us to do evil that good may come. But that is what Christian Zionism requires. Those who believe it see the end times as the good they are working toward. It is evil to deny people the right to live wherever they like because they are Jews. It is evil to condone the robbery and murder of Indigenous people because they are not Jews. Yes, these things are evil! War is also evil, and, as I understand it, Christian Zionists look forward to Armageddon. This brings me to my last point.
C.S. Lewis has a refrain in his Narnia books, referring to Aslan, the Lion who in that world is the image of Christ. "He's not a tame lion", Aslan's subjects say. They mean two things: they cannot fully understand Aslan, who is wiser and more powerful than they. They also cannot control him. Christian Zionists seek to control God by their own actions, and, if you believe in God, that is very, very wrong. It makes it even worse that - as I said in the previous paragraph - they seek to control God via violence towards innocent human beings, especially the Palestinians.
These are my quarrels with Christian Zionism.It has, unfortunately, great sway in my country, and influences our foreign policy. I wish it were not so. It is a sort of deadly literalism, and it has caused great harm to many - ourselves included. It is heresy, like all literalism, and heresy kills.
"For the letter killeth, and the spirit giveth life."
First, as a Jewish friend noted, it is profoundly anti-Semitic. Christian Zionists believe that all Jews, everywhere, should go and live in Israel. That is not what I believe. I believe Jewish people should be able to live, as free and equal citizens, in any country they choose. Israel might be one of those countries; it might not. If a majority of Jews choose instead to live in the U.S., that is their absolute right! When Christian Zionism arose in late 19th-century England, one of its goals was to get all the English Jews to leave and go "back" to Palestine.
But the anti-Semitism doesn't end there. Not only must all Jewish people leave their homes and go to Israel, but also, once they do, the end times will begin. Those Jews who do not convert to millennial Christianity will be killed and (presumably) condemned to hell. I honestly don't think God is that small-minded.
Then there are the indigenous people of the country that was called Palestine for almost two millennia. They are also Semites. Christian Zionists absolutely do not care what happens to them.
But not only is this philosophy anti-Semitic, it is also theologically suspect. You may or may not believe in God. Surely, if there is a God - a creator of the Universe! - he or she is not so small-minded as to desire the destruction of almost all the Semitic people. I cannot believe in a God like that!
Nor can I believe in a God who requires us to do evil that good may come. But that is what Christian Zionism requires. Those who believe it see the end times as the good they are working toward. It is evil to deny people the right to live wherever they like because they are Jews. It is evil to condone the robbery and murder of Indigenous people because they are not Jews. Yes, these things are evil! War is also evil, and, as I understand it, Christian Zionists look forward to Armageddon. This brings me to my last point.
C.S. Lewis has a refrain in his Narnia books, referring to Aslan, the Lion who in that world is the image of Christ. "He's not a tame lion", Aslan's subjects say. They mean two things: they cannot fully understand Aslan, who is wiser and more powerful than they. They also cannot control him. Christian Zionists seek to control God by their own actions, and, if you believe in God, that is very, very wrong. It makes it even worse that - as I said in the previous paragraph - they seek to control God via violence towards innocent human beings, especially the Palestinians.
These are my quarrels with Christian Zionism.It has, unfortunately, great sway in my country, and influences our foreign policy. I wish it were not so. It is a sort of deadly literalism, and it has caused great harm to many - ourselves included. It is heresy, like all literalism, and heresy kills.
"For the letter killeth, and the spirit giveth life."