Christians must counteract antisemitism with acts of solidarity - opinion

As another school semester begins, college students will start a new year in the shadow of last year’s encampments. Some are already planning for a repeat of the disruption as student organizations in support of Palestine are already reserving campus space for October 7 resistance events, a year after the murder of 1200 Israelis. 

Last month, I had the opportunity to travel to Washington, DC with a group of Christian college students sponsored by Passages. These students came from a variety of different backgrounds. Many have witnessed encampments and antisemitism on their own college campuses.

Our purpose for being in DC was to learn about the roots of our Christian faith and how to be better Christian advocates for Israel and the Jewish people. We did this by visiting the US Holocaust Memorial, attending lectures on Jewish-Christian relations, and meeting with Israeli friends and partners to learn about their experience in the Jewish state following October 7.

Just a few days before we landed in DC, the city erupted in anti-Israel protests. These featured burning American and Israeli flags, vandalizing a historical monument with inverted red triangles, and holding up posters with swastikas painted on them.

As I stood outside Union Station, which saw the worst of the protests, remnants of the vandalism were still visible. While there had been attempts to conceal the damage, hateful sentiments still shone through like painful scars. 

Antisemitism leaves its mark. The world’s oldest hatred continues to rage today.

In DC, I met over 200 Christian young adults willing to travel great distances (for some, the other side of the globe) to be equipped and educated to stand against antisemitism. Through Passages, I have met many other young people who share the same desires.

Standing in front of the vandalism with these students offered a new perspective on the fight against antisemitism today.

I share this with you because hateful voices are often loud, but despite the noise, there are still many who want to be a voice for truth amidst the hatred.  

The need for non-Jewish allies to stand with our Jewish friends and neighbors has never been more relevant, and there are many young people willing to stand against antisemitism today.

In the past year, antisemitism has skyrocketed by 400%. Gen-Z is the most antisemitic generation since the Holocaust. Last semester’s encampments, pro-Hamas protests, and students shouting, “Hamas we love you,” serve as painful examples of this hatred. 

Hatred toward any people or group on campus should never be acceptable.

As college students pack their bags and prepare to move back to campus, questions worth asking themselves are: “How will I stand against hate on my campus?” and “How will I stand against antisemitic rhetoric in my community, or hatred and bias on social media? 

Specifically, Christian college students can play a unique role as advocates in this fight. 

Sadly, Christians have not always expressed solidarity with the Jewish people. In fact, they have sometimes created disunity between the groups, and at times, perpetuated and even participated in the hatred and violence against the Jewish people throughout history. Now is the time to change that narrative.

The Christian faith cannot be separated from its Jewish roots. Just as we are told in the Bible, we can be light amid darkness and division. It was the Jewish people who wrote, disseminated, and protected so many of the holy scriptures we read today. This alone is one reason among many that Christians need to stand with the Jewish people. 

Hatred towards the Jewish people is hatred towards a people whose faith is the basis of our own. Historically, many Christians have stayed silent in the face of antisemitism. May it not be said that Christians stayed silent in the face of antisemitism today. Through Passages, I have been blessed to meet many students who strive to do this. 

I have met students who stood alongside their Jewish peers as their campus celebrated the October 7 massacre. I have met students who are deeply troubled by the rise in antisemitism and desire to stand with the Jewish community against this hatred. I have met students who visited Israel during the current war with Hamas to volunteer, bear witness, and share these experience on their own campuses and with their communities. These students are both an inspiration and an example to me. 

As antisemitism leaves its mark of hatred and division, let us counteract this by leaving our mark of support and solidarity. Antisemitism shouldn’t be a problem the Jewish people fight alone. Antisemitic incidents on campus, violent protests, and hatred don’t affect just Jewish students. It’s a fight that belongs to everyone who values humanity and desires peace. 

Now is the time to stand boldly against antisemitic hatred on campus. 

The writer works for Passages, a Christian organization dedicated to taking Christian students to Israel and mobilizing young people to support the Jewish state on campuses and in communities across the US, and to stand up against antisemitism.