I immediately felt embarrassed and switched to something from The Prince of Egypt. But despite learning a valuable lesson, something about that song stayed with me. It reignited a frustration I’ve had with the non-Jewish world for a while. It was present when I wrote my response to that ill-informed Chanukah piece, and it’s been at the back of my mind whenever I’ve discussed anti-Zionism with non-Jews. Basically, I feel like Christian Hegemony and Christian Supersessionism are major issues in the world.
What are Christian Hegemony and Christian Supersessionism? These terms might sound like no-brainers to Jews, but mainstream discourse doesn’t stop to think about them. The word “supersessionism” even shows up as a spelling mistake, despite being a real concept. Therefore, I should also refer to them as two facets of “Christian Superiority”.
Plenty of people will be incensed by this, despite it being important to understand. It makes sense; after all, there are over 2 billion Christians or individuals with Christian origins in the world, in contrast to roughly 15 million Jews. Additionally, most have never met a Jew in their life, so much of people’s understanding of Jews is rooted in second/third-hand knowledge. That’s why Christianity, a religion that sprung from Judaism, feels so weighty in comparison to Judaism.
This all boils down to The Pharisee Conundrum. I’m no expert on the history of the Pharisees, but the term “Pharisee” is routinely used as an insult. It seems harmless at first, but since The Pharisees became the modern-day Rabbis, it’s disturbing that a euphemism for “Jews” is an insult. But that’s to be expected with Christian Hegemony.
I’ll go even further: in The New Testament, The Pharisees aren’t portrayed flatteringly. They’re insular, off-putting, greedy and the catalysts for betraying Jesus to Rome. There’s plenty about Jesus’s trial and execution that I find offensive, but his death also ignores a key component, that being Rome. Rome would later adopt Christianity, even using Jesus’s life and death as propaganda for spreading the religion forcefully. Rome, therefore, had to change the story to absolve themselves of guilt, reframing it as a Jewish problem.
Christian Hegemony spreads this constantly. It’s why The Crusades happened. It’s why The Spanish Inquisition happened. It sprinkled the seeds for 20th Century Fascism. And even now it’s mentioned frequently by well-intentioned, and sometimes no-so-well-intentioned, individuals. All of this while othering Jewish voices.
I’ll go even further: in The New Testament, The Pharisees aren’t portrayed flatteringly. They’re insular, off-putting, greedy and the catalysts for betraying Jesus to Rome. There’s plenty about Jesus’s trial and execution that I find offensive, but his death also ignores a key component, that being Rome. Rome would later adopt Christianity, even using Jesus’s life and death as propaganda for spreading the religion forcefully. Rome, therefore, had to change the story to absolve themselves of guilt, reframing it as a Jewish problem.
Christian Hegemony spreads this constantly. It’s why The Crusades happened. It’s why The Spanish Inquisition happened. It sprinkled the seeds for 20th Century Fascism. And even now it’s mentioned frequently by well-intentioned, and sometimes no-so-well-intentioned, individuals. All of this while othering Jewish voices.
Also, FYI, Jews still exist. And contrary to Christian Hegemony and Christian Supersessionism, we have agency and our own identity. It’s why we’ve never fully fit in with gentiles, as well as why suppressing our voices is hurtful. It’s also condescending.
I know this is jarring for so many. After all, you’re not awful people! And you wouldn’t intentionally marginalize Jews! But even the well-meaning can prop up hate in the name of progress. And co-opting Antisemitic behaviour’s one such an example.
I wouldn’t be quite as irked if people weren’t readily-offended when Christian Hegemony and Christian Supersessionism are called out. Like with other bigotries, Jews should be listened to when we say that something’s hurtful. Slandering our ancestors is one example. And co-opting our practices to spread your messages, something that song was guilty of, is another one. This should be a moment of learning, not offence.
I know this is jarring for so many. After all, you’re not awful people! And you wouldn’t intentionally marginalize Jews! But even the well-meaning can prop up hate in the name of progress. And co-opting Antisemitic behaviour’s one such an example.
I wouldn’t be quite as irked if people weren’t readily-offended when Christian Hegemony and Christian Supersessionism are called out. Like with other bigotries, Jews should be listened to when we say that something’s hurtful. Slandering our ancestors is one example. And co-opting our practices to spread your messages, something that song was guilty of, is another one. This should be a moment of learning, not offence.
I’ll end with a story: someone I Follow on Twitter disseminates Christian Hegemony regularly. His Pinned Tweet mentions how Christians who claim that Antisemitic beliefs are vital to their religion are, in essence, practicing Antisemitism. Despite clarifying that he doesn’t think Christianity can’t be practiced free of that, it went viral and attracted defensive claims that he was calling Christians “Antisemitic”. In the process, people were proving his point.
This is what I mean by “Christian Hegemony” and the legitimate damage it does. Antisemitic talking points are so normalized by history that attempts to call them out cause people to take them way too personally. It shouldn’t have to be like that, though. If we’re to successfully create a better world for future generations, then unlearning bigotry of all kinds is critical. And that includes Christian Hegemony and Christian Supersessionism. It’ll be hard to do, yes, but no one said it wouldn’t be.
Alternatively, you can ignore everything I’ve written, much to your detriment, and continue acting surprised when Jews call you out over your rhetoric. Because why break old habits, right?
Apologies for the short piece, but I didn’t want to overstay something I felt could be summarized succinctly. Additionally, I’ll mention now that I was way too ambitious with my Blogging routine this year, as my content has slowed again. Hopefully this is only temporary, but for now I’ll play it by ear and see what what’s worth writing. Until next time!
This is what I mean by “Christian Hegemony” and the legitimate damage it does. Antisemitic talking points are so normalized by history that attempts to call them out cause people to take them way too personally. It shouldn’t have to be like that, though. If we’re to successfully create a better world for future generations, then unlearning bigotry of all kinds is critical. And that includes Christian Hegemony and Christian Supersessionism. It’ll be hard to do, yes, but no one said it wouldn’t be.
Alternatively, you can ignore everything I’ve written, much to your detriment, and continue acting surprised when Jews call you out over your rhetoric. Because why break old habits, right?
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