‘Tis the season to be jolly and, apparently spread the word that Jesus was a Palestinian.
Some may argue that this is just a matter of semantics and calling Jesus a Palestinian is accurate because he was born and spent much of his life in what are now Palestinian territories. Even if we were to use a more historically accurate description of his identity, there would still be debate on how to square Jesus’ “nationality.” Was he a Judean? Was he a Samarian? Or was he a Galilean?
We are talking about the life of a man many doubt even existed, why does any of this matter? I mean, it’s highly unlikely he was born on December 25, yet people have accepted that as canon for centuries.
It matters because whether or not you “believe” in Jesus, the historical context in which his story unfolds is very much a real thing. Calling him a Palestinian isn’t a academic squabble over ancient identities. This isn’t your average debate over whether, say, Julius Caesar was an Italian. This is a deliberate attempt to deny modern Jewish identity.
But, wait, wasn’t Jesus Jewish?
Yes, he was, and even those framing him as Palestinian don’t deny his Jewishness. Instead, they erase any connection modern Jews have with the land of Israel and deny any ethnic, religious and cultural connections we have to the region.
This is done by pushing back against the narrative that Jesus was a white dude with light hair and light eyes. Because the world sees Jews as white and European, and Jesus was definitely none of those things, the non-Jewish world has no trouble severing any tangible ties modern Jews have with the Jews of Jesus’ time.
This narrative ignores the fact that a large number of ethnic Jews are indistinguishable from their Arab cousins. It also glosses over the impact of the diaspora and colonization on Jews through-out history. Anyone who has spent any time studying indigenous communities knows that denying someone their culture because they are “too white” is harmful. As a friend of mine once wrote, “many Jews had whiteness raped into them.”
Another smart Jewish guy, who isn’t my friend, but authored the book Jewish Pride has some thoughts on this as well.
And speaking of the Nazis, they too twisted the story of Jesus to fit their Antisemitic agenda. The Nazis created their own version of the Bible in which Jesus was an Aryan. In their version, Jesus was not only NOT Jewish he fought against them. Considering the huge influence of the Church on European ideas and values, it is little wonder that the Nazis would seek to erase Jesus’ Jewish identity. If they could convince Christians of this fact, they could succeed in eliminating or at least minimizing any sympathy Christians have for Jews.
Do I think the modern attempt to equate Jesus with the modern Palestinian struggle is akin to the Nazis effort to subvert the story to fit their ideology? No, I do not. I do believe that this move, however misguided, is an attempt to gain empathy for the Palestinian cause. Christians are a large and influential group; appealing to them makes sense.
However, as I have said above, part of the Anti-Zionist effort is to minimize Jewish ties to Israel and delegitimize any claims my people have to the land.
If the world at large can change the narrative regarding Jews and Israel than it becomes much easier to convince people we don't belong there and that Israeli Jews are acceptable collateral in a righteous battle to decolonize the land.
And what better narrative than the story of the most famous Jew in history.