Posted on 03/20/2026 10:25:47 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced backlash for quoting historian Will Durant to say, “Jesus Christ has no advantage over Genghis Khan.”
During an English-language press conference in Jerusalem on Thursday, Netanyahu defended America and Israel’s military operation in the Middle East, arguing in favor of the West asserting strength.
“History proves that, unfortunately and unhappily, Jesus Christ has no advantage over Genghis Khan,” he said. “Because if you are strong enough, ruthless enough, powerful enough, evil will overcome good. Aggression will overcome moderation.”
The comments sparked outrage online, with some calling them “blasphemous,” prompting Netanyahu to clarify his meaning in a post on X, saying “no offense was meant.” He said in another post that it was "fake news about my attitude towards Christians, who are protected and flourish in Israel."
"Let me be clear: I did not denigrate Jesus Christ at my news conference this evening," he said.
Netanyahu’s comments arrive amid heightened tensions about America’s relationship with Israel amid the countries' coordinated attacks on Iran, making his invocation of Jesus especially sensitive for Christian audiences and global allies.
During the press conference, Netanyahu said, “You know, if people want to be naive, then they don’t see the kind of world we’re living in. In this world, it’s not enough to be moral. It’s not enough to be just. It’s not enough to be right.”
“You know, one of the greatest writers of the 20th century, someone that I admire a lot, was the historian Will Durant,” Netanyahu continued. “Now, he wrote many volumes—I read most of them—he also wrote The Lessons of History, a very brief, 100-page book, in which he said, well, history proves that, unfortunately and unhappily, Jesus Christ has no advantage over Genghis Khan.”
(Excerpt) Read more at newsweek.com ...
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What a strange thing to say about Jesus. I’ll refrain from comment given it might be misconstrued.....
He was quoting someone else, but it was bizarre nonetheless. I can’t imagine why anyone would listen to what that guy has to say anyway.
Cue the freekouts 3, 2, 1 . . .
I might express comments in Sunday school about Joseph Smith or Ellen White that I wouldn’t say in the presence of Mormons or Seventh Day Adventists but that doesn’t mean I don’t like them and won’t have them as neighbors, friends and colleagues.
He’s just contrasting peacefulness with aggression. Using Gandhi would have been a better choice than Jesus, given that Jesus could be quite aggressive when appropriate (ie. the temple money-changers, and his fire-and-brimstone warnings). When I first read through the Bible I was surprised that the myth that the OT depicts God as harsh but the NT depicts God as loving was quite false. The harshest language against sinners I found in two places: in Revelation, and in the words of Jesus himself in the Gospels.
He’s Jewish. It isn’t like nobody here has ever criticized the Pope, or Mormons, or SDAs, or JWs, or Armstrongites.
Cue the freekouts 3, 2, 1 . . .
__________________________________
The freekout occurred yesterday when this was first reported here at FR. I went looking for the thread. Hundreds of replies.
The mods apparently freaked out as well. The thread is gone.
More here....
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/4371384/posts
Oops. The censors here at FR decided we are not grown up enough to discuss this.
Clickbait headline by Newsweak. Netanyahu was quoting a guy named Will Durant. Netanyahu is simply pointing out that violent people will use non-violent people’s beliefs to conquer and ultimately slaughter them.
This is important!
Wait, this isn’t important at all.
But ultimately good overcomes evil. It might take a long time.
It is true, however. Christ’s Kingdom is not of this world.
Christians know that in the end, evil is defeated, but it doesn't mean being tolerating of evil.
I believe in my heart that what Christ taught is the right way, but it is a difficult way. ‘Small is the gate and narrow and difficult to travel is the path that leads the way to [everlasting] life, and there are few who find it’.
He was making a valid poiont: the meekness of Jesus and the “turn the other cheek” teachings of Christianity have often not prevailed against the pure barbarism of
Gengis Khan, as can be seen historically and in Africa now with the Mudslimes slaughtering thousands of Christians. Indeed, if we followed the teachings of the current Pope, we’d be looking at a nuclear armed Iran.
Bibi is expressing his frustration with the intelligence of voters these days. The Kahn was probably the most successful mass killer in the history of mankind. He had the nasty habit of annihilating entire nations who resisted his army, which meant the killing of entire populations, including women, children and the elderly. The process was manually accomplished with swords or broad axes and was total, whether the targets were measured in hundreds of thousands or millions. Hitler thought the enormity of his victims would be overlooked in the passage of time as were the Kahn’s. I hope he was wrong.
Divide and conquer courtesy of Newsweek and AP.
Agreed.
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