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Here is a question: who has heard actually the term used (as opposed to having read about it) by people who really meant to disparage Jews?

You don't have to go too far: on this forum, Presidio9 in thread after thread claims that Jews are responsible for the death of Christ. Yes, he says "the Jews." When I engaged him in discussion he more than confirmed what he meant. He also said he was disappointed to see that Gibson's film did not implicate the Jews enough: the Bible (according to him) says that THEY killed Christ.

A few days ago, I posted, in bold letters a note "to all Christian friends..." pointing to Presidio9's posts and saying that this may be an example of why Jews are apprehensive. Not a single response criticising the bigot --- to the point that he followed up mocking me: "I am still waiting... everyone agrees with me."

Well, I did receive one response. It said that Presidio9 is corect, the Jews are all responsible. And I should either shut up or be at war with all of the Christian world --- no middle ground, such as mutual respect, you see.

You make a mistake of many good-hearted people: just because this type of prejudice is so foreign to you, it is so absurd, you cannot imagine it being widespread. This particular libel is very deeply rooted --- it started really long ago, in the first couple of centuries of the first millenium. Want to hear its most ironic form: people in communist Russia, those who had never put a foot in a church and did not even know where one was located, accused their Jewish fellow citizens of deicide. In Russia, where for generations they were proudly anti-Christian! Believe it or not. But this is more durable than you think.

TQ-

Thank you for passing along Easter wishes. In these times of hypersensitivity regarding religious slights, it's nice to see someone secure enough in their own belief to pass along genuine best wishes to someone of a different faith.

There is no accounting for those Christians who disparage Judaism using the distant context of the death of Christ, as if that somehow symoblizes their level of devotion.

You will never win these people over. You shouldn't lament their displeasure. They know not how securely cemented the Judeo-Christian ethic is in America today. Indeed, there are no greater mutual friends, in faith, country, and family, than the American Jew and the truly enlightened Conservative American Protestant.

May your family and friends be close to you this Passover.

RFE

Well, if the total use you've heard is one FR poster...well...I wouldn't be too worried.

I've met many a Stalinist, Maoist, etc, on the internet who would just as soon put us up against the wall as look at anyone to the right of Marx. So that if you found one such person here, and I'll take your word for it, and that's all, then this isn't exactly a common sentiment.

That being said, the standard Christian interpretation is that we are *all* Christ-killers. You'll note the symbolism in The Passion, of Gibson's being the hand that hammers in the nail. Singling out the Jews nominally responsible is thereby both hypocritical - as we are all to blame as they - and a rejection of even the most basic understanding of Christianity.

From an areligious analysis, Christ was killed by *some* Jews and *some* Romans 2000 years ago. How that could logically be construed as to paint all Jews today, or Italians, as being responsible is beyond me. Slave reparations and racial quotas, not exactly conservative ideas, are based on just this sort of group guilt theory.

Well, to be fair, Top Quark, sometimes posts go unnoticed on FR. Did you ping anybody?

Last weekend, I made some contributions to that topic on Post 22 , Post 23 and Post 28 of another thread.

Thanks for your reply.

The question I was asking was somewhat different than the one you answered and it was this: it is frequently asserted (as it was on the radio program I heard) that young Jewish children are commonly called "Christ killers" by their Christian peers.

I always let that pass. Now, since I have never in my life heard anyone use that phrase in my presence (except as an accusation regarding the evil that lurks in the hearts of Christians) while I have heard pretty much every other racial, ethnic and religious slur, I now challenge this assertion.

I am sure that there are people out there who have that opinion. There are people who will swear they have been abducted by aliens. But to claim that this Christ killer slur is a common experience of every Jewish schoolboy is something that I now question.

This Christian thanks you for your support. What has been your experience? Were you called a Christ killer as a child?