Whatever you believe about the people of Israel, nothing can justify what happened on October 7. See the film Screams Before Silence. Before talking about the most famous Jew in history, I think it is important to hear what one of the captives has to say about her experience in Gaza.
Christians should call out antisemitism whether its source be Christian or Islamic (see Antisemitism in the Church1 and Christian-Muslim Relations: Implications for Jews and Israel).2
Because many Christians are opposing antisemitism, God is removing the wall of hostility between the Church and the Jewish people. (See the Bible Project’s Does the Church Supersede Israel?, the article ‘Tertium Genus or Dyadic Unity? Investigating Sociopolitical Salvation in Ephesians’ and Lamb of the Free: Recovering the Varied Sacrificial Understandings of Jesus’s Death by Andrew R Rillera.)
The way the Church treated Jews for over a thousand years was shameful. Fortunately, many Christians are waking up (see video below).
Unfortunately, some Christian leaders still spread lies about Israel and the Church. (Usually this is not done intentionally. But a lie believed and repeated, is still a lie spread.)
If a Jew starts following Yeshua (Jesus), should they observe the laws of Moses?
‘When we arrived at Jerusalem, the brothers and sisters received us warmly. 18 The next day Paul and the rest of us went to see James, and all the elders were present. 19 Paul greeted them and reported in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry.
20 When they heard this, they praised God. Then they said to Paul: “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law. 21 They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs. 22 What shall we do? They will certainly hear that you have come, 23 so do what we tell you. There are four men with us who have made a vow. 24 Take these men, join in their purification rites and pay their expenses, so that they can have their heads shaved. Then everyone will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law....’ (Acts 21:17-24)
“Then everyone will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law.”3
1. Some interpretations of the Bible do lead to antisemitism; others lead Christians to strongly support Israel. Broadly speaking, there are three views about the Church and Israel within Christianity. See Dr. Stephen J. Lennox, “Are the Jews Still God’s Chosen People” on the Kingswood University YouTube channel.
2. For a good example of a Christian calling out antisemitism in the Islamic world see Raymond Ibrahim's video (YouTube) "How Muslims Exploit the Bible to Justify Hate for Christians & Jews."
3. Jews and gentiles should both be free to follow their customs and laws. God wants a Church where Jews and Gentiles respect, love, and honour each other. For an in-depth look at how gentile believers should view Torah observant Jewish believers see ‘Tertium Genus or Dyadic Unity? Investigating Sociopolitical Salvation in Ephesians’ by Andrew R Rillera. See also “The Hope and the Jews” in The One Purpose of God by Jan Bonda. Much of the antisemitism in the Church has been driven by a misunderstanding of the relationship between Jewish and gentile customs within the Church. It has also been largely driven by a fear of Hell (see “A Legacy of Fear and Persecution” in Thomas Talbott's book, The Inescapable Love of God).
Paul observed the laws of Moses and encouraged Jewish believers to live in obedience to the Torah, but he knew that no one could be justified before God through simply trying to keep those laws. (See here and here. And even though gentiles are not bound by the Torah, we can learn much from those laws; which is not such a bad idea, considering that western society has gone so astray. See here. See also By This Standard by Greg L. Bahnsen and The Quest for Cosmic Justice by Thomas Sowell.) Christians can learn much from the Jews. See here. See also The Rational Bible: Deuteronomy by Dennis Prager.