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Capitalism, Anti-Semitism & the Judaeo/Christian Ethic

5/5/2017

15 Comments

 
​We are used to hearing that Judaeo/Christian influence has shaped Western society, but what exactly does that mean?   Like all ideas expressed in words it can mean whatever the listener wants it to mean, both positive and negative.  However, it is usually understood to mean that this tradition has somehow shaped and undergirding national values. Well, what values? Both sides of Australian politics as well as the growing myriad of independents stake their claims on the basis that they, more than their opponents, exemplify ‘values’ that are truly Australian.
 
So what of Judaeo Christian values? The touchstone can be found in the Old Testament prophets and the tradition that surrounded them. It was the prophets who forged the idea of monotheism within what was a polytheistic world and with it the necessary concomitant that all human beings are equal, have equal rights, share the same destiny under the one God.  As this became the prism through which human life was to be understood then justice and how it should be both administered judicially under God and more importantly accepted as a way of living by the people became the overriding concern of the prophetic tradition. Matters of religious expression, cultural identity and ownership or sovereignty of land were secondary to this first principle. “The context of the Old Testament concern is not the nation, although Zionism distorts it into that, but the God of justice who, divinely representing justice for everyone and every nation, is called the universal God”. (Paul Tillich)
 
Justice is honed in the New Testament through the application of the principle of grace. That is to say, justice is not simply a matter of right and wrong alone, it is a matter of equity and fairness, of raising up the weak, of releasing the captives and setting the down trodden free. Justice undergirds harmony, equity and peace without which the world is condemned to violent competition and suffering.
 
With this in mind it is difficult to understand those Australian policy makers who claim to be in the Judaeo/Christian tradition and yet enslave the poor through monetary and fiscal policy that favours the rich.  It is also very difficult to understand those who claim to stand in that tradition but who continue policies that have seen refugees caught in a time warp, seemingly without end, on Manus and Nauru.  As my ecclesiastical patron, Bishop John Stoward Moyes of Armidale argued, “it is impossible to claim Judaeo/Christian values if you are a communist who accepts the right of the state to make its people subservient. Equally it is impossible to claim these values, or indeed claim to be a Christian, if you are a capitalist who believes in a market that enables a few to benefit from the resources of the many while the many languish in layers of disadvantage”.  
 
If a nation is to have the right to claim Judaeo/Christian values as its foundation, it must find a path which embraces both space for individual aspiration and a society transformed by social justice.
 
Let me also take this reflection into the heart of the modern State of Israel, presumably an inheritor of the ‘Israels’ that have preceded it.  Universal justice appears to have become an unwelcome stranger in the land of Israel. Zionism’s compulsive identification with land, has replaced justice as its core value. The having, holding and conquering of land has seemingly become the arbiter of nationhood, the ideal which must not be questioned, to do so is to be a ‘self hating Jew’ or anti-Semite. 
 
The modern State of Israel is secular. Those who believe in what might be understood as religious Judaism may well be the minority.   However, the claim to land has a religious history and the manner in which this is articulated relies on that history for its validation. The West, by this I mean Australia and the US make certain claims about Israel that identify it with values which we are purported to share.
 
·         Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East.  Hang on, no it is not.  First of all, on who’s definition of democracy?  Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza are afforded no rights while Arabs in Israel have differing and reduced rights to their Jewish counter parts.
·         Israel is the only country in the Middle East that enables freedom of religion. Well, no.  Israel claims to be a Jewish State.  By definition the statement excludes those who are not Jews. The idea of Jerusalem as an historical centre for Jews, Christians and Muslims alike is being constantly eroded.  “Jerusalem is being Judaised” as the Christian leaders in Jerusalem explained to me.   On the other hand, Palestinian leadership has consistently pleaded with me to ensure that the Christian population of Palestine is not further reduced through lack of support from the West.
·         Israel is the only country in the Middle East that lives by the rule of law.  Well, no, it does not.  Palestinian children as young as primary school are incarcerated in Israeli gaols because they resist the occupation. The occupying force protects the illegal settlers and not the Palestinian civil population. Essential services are provided to the illegal settlers and restricted or denied the Palestinians.
 
My strong critique of the State of Israel and its treatment of Palestinians is based upon what I understand to be Judaeo/Christian values.  As such, rather than this critique being anti-Semitic, I believe it to be supportive of the essential value upon which the culture of Judaism is founded – the practice of universal justice.  It is Zionism, the placing of land in the position of ultimate concern, above human well being, above fairness and justice, which is the truly anti-Semitic narrative.
 
The Judaeo/Christian ethic then is founded on the principle of universal justice: justice that exceeds simple right and wrong, a justice which seeks to restore the balances of personal national and global disadvantage, justice that has its goal in shalom, the harmony of a mutually shared life to which all aspire and in which all might flourish.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
15 Comments
Jack Morris
7/5/2017 07:52:56 pm

Bishop Browning's thinking is twisted. Those who fight for social justice should support Israel and not oppose it.
http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Why-college-students-who-fight-for-social-justice-should-support-Israel-442073

No mention by Browning of the much more egregious PA and Hamas torture of Palestinians, the honor killings of women, Palestinian incitement to violence or the utter humiliation of homosexuals. Ask Palestinians in Judaea, Sumeria or East Jerusalem whether they would prefer to live in Israel in a Jewish state or under the yoke of their own corrupt leadership.

As Ambassador Dennis Ross wrote, “For now and the foreseeable future, Israel will remain the only country in the Middle East governed by the rule of law, separation of powers, an independent judiciary, regularly scheduled elections where the losers accept the outcome, freedom of speech and assembly, a vibrant and open media, respect for women’s rights and for gay rights, artistic freedom, active civil society groups-and an innovative, dynamic economy.”

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Myer
8/5/2017 12:31:54 am

Yes I have a Jewish nose for smelling an anti-Semite, a wolf in sheeps clothing, a mile off.

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Luke Akehurst link
25/5/2017 08:52:28 am

This blog contains a number of misleading statements.

It says “Universal justice appears to have become an unwelcome stranger in the land of Israel.” However, Israel’s Declaration of Independence states that Israel “will be open for Jewish immigration and for the Ingathering of the Exiles; it will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and it will be faithful to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.”

It makes claims about “Zionism’s compulsive identification with land”. Zionism simply means belief in a Jewish State in the land of Israel. There is no core Zionist claim to any particular extent of territory, just to a secure national homeland for a people whose lack of one left them victim to persecution and genocide. There are many Zionists who want to give up the West Bank immediately and support the creation of a Palestinian State in the West Bank and Gaza as part of a Two State Solution. It was Zionist Israeli governments which traded land for peace in Sinai and offered to in peace talks with the Palestinians, who rejected the deals offered.

It says Israeli Jews “who believe in what might be understood as religious Judaism may well be the minority.” This is incorrect, this polling https://en.idi.org.il/media/5439/guttmanavichaireport2012_engfinal.pdf shows only 46% of Israeli Jews self-define as secular, and only 16% do not observe religion at all (i.e. 30% call themselves secular but are to some extent religiously observant). Raising this issue also misses the point – Jews were persecuted and therefore needed a state of their own not because they were religiously observant but because of their cultural and ethnic roots – Hitler killed people on the basis of Jewish ancestry who were avowed Atheists or observant converts to Christianity.

It asks “who’s definition of democracy?”. Freedom House’s “Freedom in the World” report defines Israel as “a multiparty democracy with strong and independent institutions that guarantee political rights and civil liberties for most of the population.” It gives it the top grade – 1 of 7 – for political rights. Arab citizens of Israel have full political rights and indeed serve as Members of the Knesset, where the third largest party is the Arab List. They do suffer discrimination, like ethnic minorities do in many countries, but the judiciary is active in protecting minority rights. Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank would argue they are under occupation. They can’t then claim they want the same rights as Israelis as that would confer sovereignty on Israel, any more than Germans in Allied-occupied Germany could have protested they couldn’t vote in US Presidential elections. This pamphlet goes into detail about the rights of Israeli Arabs: http://www.bicom.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/BICOM_Apartheid-Smear_FINAL.pdf

It says “Israel claims to be a Jewish State. By definition the statement excludes those who are not Jews.” No it doesn’t, any more than England being a state with an established church excludes non-C of E people, or Greece being defined in its constitution as the nation state of the Greeks excludes non-Greeks. As stated above, the declaration of independence commits Israel to “ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions”. Israel is a Jewish state in that its national holidays include the Jewish festivals and it is the national homeland for the Jewish people (whether they are still religiously Jewish or not) and it is majority Jewish and therefore the predominant culture is Jewish. Israeli law recognises five religions: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Druzeism, and the Bahá'í Faith. The Christian population of Israel is going up whilst Christians are fleeing the West Bank not because of Israeli persecution but because of the threat of Islamic fundamentalism. Israel goes out of its way to promote Christian pilgrimages to Jerusalem and other Holy sites and even lays of free buses to help West Bank Muslims visit Al-Aqsa for religious festivals.

It says “Palestinian children as young as primary school are incarcerated in Israeli gaols because they resist the occupation.” Israel’s Military Justice system was established and operates in accordance with

Reply
Luke Akehurst link
26/5/2017 02:01:51 am

.... continued

the Geneva Conventions. Since September 2015, there has been a sharp increase in Palestinian terrorist attacks. Israeli citizens – including children - are being subjected to frequent attacks, including by knives, guns, Molotov cocktails, rocks, vehicular attacks and bombs, all too often with serious and even fatal results. Many of these attacks are being perpetrated by Palestinian minors; close to 30% of the assailants in the current wave of terrorism are Palestinian youth under the age of 18. 70-75% of all crimes committed by the youth of the West Bank are violent. In 2013 for example, of the 470 indictments filed against minors, 54% were related to rock-throwing and 14% to throwing Molotov cocktails. In some cases, they are deadly.

It says “The occupying force protects the illegal settlers and not the Palestinian civil population. Essential services are provided to the illegal settlers and restricted or denied the Palestinians.” That’s because that was the division of responsibility negotiated and agreed with the Palestinians at the Oslo accords. Until there is a final peace deal, the Palestinian Authority is responsible for security and civil administration (utilities and public services) in Area A of the West Bank (all the main urban areas), and civil administration in Area B.

It claims that Zionism is “the placing of land in the position of ultimate concern, above human well being, above fairness and justice”. It isn’t. Zionism is the movement for the national liberation of the Jewish people and their self-determination alongside all the other peoples of the world after 2000 years of exile and persecution – the movement for Jews to enjoy the universal right to justice described in the final paragraph.

Reply
Judy Weleminsky
29/5/2017 01:00:08 pm

Bishop - you are espousing prejudiced, biased, non factual, views focused on discrediting Israel particularly as a Jewish majority state. Others have ably pointed out your many substantive errors so I am just endorsing what Luke Akehurst and Jack Morris have said. It is time to make confession of your errors and apologise to those you have hurt.

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David Lewis
30/5/2017 01:42:24 am

The Bishop has swallowed the standard anti-Israel narrative, hook, line and sinker, without bothering to ascertain the facts. He doesn't seem to realise he is spreading lies and defamation about the Jewish state. Moreover, he is applying a double standard to Israel, as Luke Akehurst has demonstrated in a number of respects. Bishop, you should read Akehurst's comments two or three times, then verify what he has said.

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Harvey Garfield
30/5/2017 02:22:30 am

It would appear my assertion that the author of this post subscribes to replacement theology i.e. Supercessionism, has touched a raw nerve as it has been subject to moderation i.e. deleted.

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MrZee
8/6/2017 01:56:19 am

A Measured Response to Bishop George Browning and Others Interested in the Palestinians.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/10434/bishop-george-browning-palestinians

Reply
John MacArthur
8/6/2017 07:52:34 am

Replacement theology isn't just a so-called Christian idea - Muslims almost by definition are supersessionists as well and they have used it to create an deeply antisemitic mindset towards their Jewish cousins. A serious, rabbinic study of covenant theology brings most people to a very different conclusion to the one reached by the ex-Bishop.

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Michael Burd
9/6/2017 03:40:55 pm

An excellent blog site thank you

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Jo Christiansen
10/6/2017 04:38:23 am

In 1996, I lived in Bahrain & went with an Egyptian/American friend to purchase a globe, or map of the world from the local franchised Toys R Us, for her son's 10th birthday.
Every globe & map in the store had the country of Israel crossed out with Nikko oil pen & the Persian Gulf renamed as the Arabian Gulf.
My friend called for the Manager of the store & berated him in Arabic - the Manager denied that the store was responsible & stated that Bahrain Customs was responsible.

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george
10/6/2017 03:19:01 pm

Thanks Jo,

It is of the utmost importance that relationships be normalised as soon as possible between Israel and its Arab neighbours. This is as important for Israel as it is for its neighbours. For this to happen, a just solution has to be found for the Israel/Palestine conflict. Trump claims to have this as a priority, only time will tell what he has in mind.

Thanks for the comment.

Reply
Dean link
23/7/2017 04:21:51 pm

Although this post seems to be mostly about Israel, I was intrigued by the comment that you can't be claiming christian values whilst supporting either communism or capitalism. I agree and disagree.

From a free-will perspective, a true christian would not force their beliefs on anyone, and so to try and create some economic system which imposes itself on the whole community would be in breach of these values.

However, this is also what communism and capitalism both do - they are systems which impose their rules on the whole.

The only way I can see to live by the values I wish to live by is to live as a custodian (i call it the way of the custodian) and without imposing this way of life on anyone, which leaves the rest of the economic system where it is...put another way, whilst I hold all my human needs in trust for the whole community, my next door neighbour may be an everyday capitalist..i benefit him (and the rest of the capitalist world) because I no longer compete against him (them) for money (because a custodian does not touch money), and they benefit me by supplying my needs.

Capitalism today is simply over-crowded...this is its biggest issue - not greed - we cant extinguish greed..but we can reduce the level of competition within capitalism by allowing some of us to simply leave the table and stop trading...its called the way of the custodian, and to be honest, I feel that any religious leader should be living this way just solely for the purpose of living by example

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vbs central nj link
1/8/2017 01:34:10 am

Thanks for the nice blog. It was very useful for me. I'm happy I found this blog.

Reply
Bianca Baker link
11/12/2020 01:38:21 am

Grateful for sharing tthis

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    ​Author

    ​Bishop George Browning. 
    ​Anglican Bishop of Canberra and Goulburn 1993 - 2008.

    ​Inaugural chair Anglican Communion Environment Network

    ​PhD Thesis: Sabbath and the Common Good: An Anglican response to the Environmental Crisis.

    D.Litt. Honoris Causa for contribution to Education

    Centenary Medal 2000 for Service to cmmunity

    ​Patron: Australia Palestine Advocacy Network

    Patron: Palestinian Christians in Australia

    Patron: Sabeel

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