A few things.
It is not antisemitism to accuse Israel of international human rights law violations for its treatment of Palestinians in Gaza and on the West Bank. Benjamin Netanyahu has been indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity for his actions against Palestinian non-combatant civilians, including children.
Why do I believe this to be true?
As a child I was active in my church, attending Sunday School, singing in the choir, participating in the youth groups, attending worship services. I became very familiar with the Bible.
The part that always spoke most clearly to me was the teaching in Matthew 25: 31-46, often called the Final Judgment. The essence was that those who attended to the “least of these” – the poor, the hungry, the sick, the naked, the homeless, the imprisoned – would inherit eternal life. While those who did not attend to those – the least of these – would inherit eternal punishment.
Metaphorical? Yes. But a clear message about what is important in life, and what must be done to pursue and protect it.
There are many expressions of faith in the world. Much human conflict has come from differences in those expressions and their interactions.
As well – bringing matters of faith into the arena of politics is always fraught with peril. Which is why our Constitution guarantees freedom of worship while prohibiting governmental establishment of any particular faith.
Against that background, I find myself with no great amount of confusion or ambiguity about how my faith intersects with current events. It is me exercising the tenets of my faith, as guaranteed by the Constitution, while not seeking governmental establishment of the tenets of my faith, as prohibited by the Constitution.
The tenets of my faith, expressed so vividly in Matthew 25, clearly suggest how to address current events. Feed the hungry. Provide drink to the thirsty. Heal the sick. Welcome the stranger. Clothe the naked. Visit those imprisoned.
It does not take a leap of imagination to see how those admonitions apply to the realities of the war between Hamas and Israel. Actions appropriate with respect to Hamas combatants are not appropriate with respect to civilians. And beyond that, many are simply cruel – and unusual. Shooting at starving civilians assembling in Gaza to get food is inhumane by any measure.
But I return to where I began. The world must be schooled enough to distinguish between actions taken against the Jewish population because they are Jewish, and actions taken against Israel for its inhumane and illegal treatment of Palestinians.
People of faith who are similarly influenced by Matthew 25 will hopefully bring their faith to bear on these crimes against humanity.
Col Owens is a retired legal aid attorney and law professor, author of Bending the Arc Toward Justice, longtime Democratic Party activist, and member of the Boards of Directors of Gateway Community and Technical College and the Kentucky Board of Elections.