In 1965, the Second Vatican Council made historic changes to church policies and theology. Among them was Nostra Aetate, Latin for "In Our Time," a document that revolutionized the Catholic Church's approach to Jews and Judaism after nearly 2000 years of pain and sorrow. Section four of Nostra Aetate repudiates the centuries-old "deicide" charge against all Jews, stresses the religious bond shared by Jews and Catholics, reaffirms the eternal covenant between God and the People of…

For more than 30 years, Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam (NOI), has been a notable extremist figure, railing against Jews, white people and the LGBT community. In recent years, Farrakhan has embarked on a wide-ranging campaign specifically targeting the Jewish community, a campaign that has featured some of the most hateful speeches of his tenure as head of NOI. Farrakhan has alleged that the Jewish people were responsible for the slave trade and that they conspire to control…

Though some present-day bigots have flocked to newer ideologies such as denial of the Holocaust, much antisemitism still revolves around the basic conspiratorial ideas expressed by older antisemitic texts. By offering older texts at their Web sites, today's haters demonstrate the longevity of their beliefs, thereby legitimizing them to both dedicated followers and potential recruits. Due to the fame of its publisher, Henry Ford Sr., The International Jew, a four-volume antisemitic work first…

For centuries, antisemitic propaganda has demonized the Jew as a conspiratorial, manipulative outsider, often with powers and designs of world domination. From the Middle Ages through the Holocaust, fabricated accusations against Jews as poisoners and corrupters have led to horrendous suffering for the Jewish people. In more recent years, the antisemitic notion that "the Jews" dominate and command the U.S. Federal Reserve System and in effect control the world’s money has surfaced…

"The Kosher Food Tax is the biggest consumer fraud existing in America." The bizarre claim by right wing extremists that kosher certification markings on food product labels ("U" "K," etc.) cost consumers extra money and represent, in effect, a "kosher tax" to make rabbis rich, is a striking example of the propaganda used by anti-Semites to trick the uninformed into accepting conspiracy charges and stereotypes about Jews. Other anti-Semitic allegations regarding kosher designation on…

In 1913, the Jewish community in the United States faced rampant antisemitism and overt discrimination. Books, plays and, above all, newspapers, depicted Jews with crude stereotypes. Against this backdrop of bigotry and intolerance, an attorney from Chicago named Sigmund Livingston, put forward a bold idea—to create an organization with a mission “to stop the defamation of the Jewish people, and to secure justice and fair treatment to all…” The Anti-Defamation League…

Introduction The two principal leaders of Sabiqun, an anti-Semitic Muslim group that advocates for the creation of a global Islamic state, have become popular speakers on college and university campuses over the past several years. Sabiqun founder, Imam Abdul Alim Musa, who heads a mosque in Washington, DC, and Imam Abdul Malik Ali, leader of a mosque in Oakland, California, ahve used their appearances on campus to promote hostility toward Israel and AMerican Jews. For example,…

For Educators

Freedom of religion is one of our nation's most cherished liberties. It is at the very foundation of America. Our nation's Constitution protects religious freedom for all, prohibits religious tests for public office, and mandates separation of church and state. These are essential American ideals and values, which candidates for public office should respect. Candidates for public office are, of course, free to worship as they choose. And they should feel comfortable explaining their…

The central narrative of Christian theology is the passion, i.e. the trials and crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus. There are four different accounts of the passion in the gospels of Christian Scriptures, in which Jews play different roles. All these accounts culminate in the death and resurrection of Jesus as revealing God's saving power available to humanity. Good Friday and Easter celebrate respectively the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus as the high points of Christian creed and…