What's wrong with Christian Zionism? (If not now, when?)

[mary_j_59]

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."

Comments

Long time lurker here...

[vermouth1991.livejournal.com]

I thought that the whole deal with Isreal was that the Jewish people may have a nation-state (民族国家) of their own — assuming that the Palestinians would agree on who gets what part of the land — not that all Jews should go live in that place. By that line of thought everyone who are not "Indians" or "Eskimos" out to clear out of Canada and America. Which ain't never gonna happen. On the other hand i've been ignorant of the concept of "christian zionism" until just now. I know that in some aspects America is being controlled (or at least heavilly influenced) by certain Jewish families and personages (such as the movie business) yet at the same time the US has its own share of anti-semitism.

A couple years ago my university English class played a clip of Obama's speech on the night of his winning the election, and I caught the words "if anyone still questions the power of our democracy..." and such, and it got me thinking. I used to be (and still sort of am) a history nerd, i spent a lot of my teenage years reading about the progresses and turmoils of the past, especially of the recent two centuries, in my homeland and in the west, and I was glad that most of the events aren't censored, only made hard to find; one of my little conclusions were that the Americans have cause to be proud, but not to be arrogant. And by God the country really can be arrogant. i resent how the politicians get so smug about the system when it's still flawed and deserving of changes, I resent how the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are being fought, desperately dealing with terrorists that in part had been created in the past because any force that was anti-Soviet ought to be backed. (Hello Al-Qaeda) And it's this generation's soldiers who are paying in sweat and blood, while the politicians stay at home ranting about more wars and the might of America. Britain at least sends the princes over to take military helicopter rides and whatnot, how often do we hear of presidents or senators sending their children to the deserts? (Mao Zedong sent his eldest son over to Korea in 1950, then a napalm bombing happened and he was burnt to a crisp. It was of a time when he might've said "An-Ying would be the new chairman after i'm gone" and everyone would've supported out of loyalty, and he sent his son into mortal peril) I would never say this to any real life people in america because a) I'm socially awkward and rather cowardly and b) i'll bet anyone who has loved ones and friends overseas would punch me in the glasses for being so callous. So I'm saying it here, and if it doesn't offend you I'd be glad to let these words stay here; if not, tell me and i'll erase them.

Re: Long time lurker here...

[mary-j-59.livejournal.com]

Thanks for your comment, and you are SO RIGHT about American (and Israeli) exceptionalism. That may be part two of this post. I have much more to say, but will probably throw some links at you, starting with this one:

www.ifamericansknew.org.

Re: Long time lurker here...

[litlover12.livejournal.com]

I Googled that and found this. Would you say it's a fair assessment?

http://archive.adl.org/israel/anti_israel/alison_weir/if-americans-knew.html?m_flipmode=4

Re: Long time lurker here...

[mary-j-59.livejournal.com]

Actually, no. Ms. Weir may represent one side of the issue, but she is trying to get out facts that have long been suppressed or denied. The Palestinian viewpoint has been completely absent in U.S. dialogue for decades. The ADL, however, is quite right-wing, so much so that they actually call her an anti-semite because she is critical of Israel and its policies. They are extremely biased, and, IMHO, not entirely truthful.