> I would argue that John Paul II has done precisely that. > To a large extent, yes. Certainly more than any major Christian leader before him (well, Pope John XXIII and Pope Paul VI also did a lot).
Still a long way to go, though. > But isn't judging all Christians as a class exactly the sort of class-based > thinking that Jews of all people should explicitly reject? > I've said that I don't blame all Christians for Christian anti-Semitism, or at least that I try not to. Suspicion and resentment are not exactly the same as blame. But even if I do, or even if other Jews do, is it so hard to understand why? I'm trying not to play victim here, since I personally have experienced also no anti-Semitism myself. Most of the Christian friends I've had in my lifetime have been just that - friends. They accept me for who and what I am, just as I accept them for who and what they are. To the extent that I have been writing on this issue here recently, it's out of a very strong feeling for what other Jews have gone through, and an understanding that that COULD have been me - and in different times and places very well MIGHT have been me. America has been good to the Jews (and vice-versa), and I don't really think that this is likely to change much, even if Gibson's movie breaks records. But there is always nervousness among Jews, and if we judge Christians harshly, that's hardly of the same consequence as Christian anti-Semitism or Nazi extermination. Again, my point is, if Christians truly want to demonstrate that they understand why Jews are suspicious, if they truly want to prove that they pose no threat, it's easy to do so. John-Paul HAS begun to lead the way, and many other Christians have done likewise. And you don't have to let Mel Gibson speak for you, or leave it to Jews to point out the inherent dangers in basing a popular entertainment on an uncritical and ahistorical adaptation of the Gospels. Tom Beck www.mercerjewishsingles.org "I always knew I'd see the first man on the Moon. I never dreamed I'd see the last." - Dr Jerry Pournelle _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
