At Saint Leo University’s Center for Catholic-Jewish Studies, the date was originally slated to be an enlightening presentation on rabbinical text study, Hassidic tradition and other esoteric Jewish spiritual teachings.
Instead, it became a much more somber affair for dozens of university students, faculty and community members.
The university organized an interreligious dialogue that explored the subject of anti-Semitism in the United States.
The talk was in response to the Oct. 27 murder of 11 congregants of the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh — the deadliest attack ever on the Jewish community in the United States.
The Nov. 14 discussion was led by Dr. Matthew Tapie, the center’s director, and Rabbi Jason Rosenberg, of Congregation Beth Am in Tampa.
Weeks removed from the tragic event, Rosenberg still has trouble processing it all.
“I’m ticked off,” Rosenberg said. “I don’t want to have to talk about why people hate me just because I’m a Jew.
“The worst part of this is there are 11 dead people,” he added.
Rosenberg also noted the massacre shouldn’t be discussed just in the realm of anti-Semitism, but should include the issues of mental illness and gun culture in America.
The rabbi explained: “Anyone who’s claiming it’s about (anti-Semitism) is dodging part of the issue. Schools get shot up. Malls get shot up. Clubs get shot up. I think that you have to have both truths in your mind at the same time. This was an act of blatant, specific, targeted anti-Semitism, and at the same time, this is what it means to be alive in America in the 21st century.”
Tapie expressed similar sentiments about the attack: “I was horrified. I was shocked that it happened in a sacred place in Shabbat, in a house of worship.
“I have a sense of shock and horror that we’re moving further away from the American tradition of religious freedom,” Tapie added.
For many years, Rosenberg believed anti-Semitism — the prejudice or discrimination that includes hatred, distrust or unfair treatment director toward Jews — was “mostly dead” when he was ordained nearly two decades ago.
The rabbi used to tell congregants and anyone willing to listen that while there were undoubtedly anti-Semites living in America, he didn’t believe there was any form of systemic anti-Semitism.
During the last couple of years, he’s become less sure of that.
Rosenberg put it like this: “When I tell people, ‘It’s dangerous to be a Jew,’ it’s more honest than it used to be.
“I don’t want to overstate the danger of anti-Semitism, but (last month) somebody walked into a synagogue, during prayer time, and opened fire simply because he wanted to kill Jews. That’s the country we’re living in right now,” the rabbi said.
Much of the hourlong interfaith discussion focused on the roots of anti-Semitism, which Rosenberg described as “one of the longest running hatreds in human history.”
The speakers explored historical events like the Holocaust and the Dreyfus Affair, and the early 20th century publishing of “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion,” generally regarded as the most notorious and widely distributed anti-Semitic publication of modern time.
“For thousands of years, people have hated Jews simply because they’re Jews,” Rosenberg said frankly.
They also discussed more recent examples of anti-Semitism in the United States, such as last August’s white nationalist Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, where marchers displayed swastikas on banners and shouted slogans like “blood and soil,” a phrase drawn from Nazi ideology.
Tapie labeled the Charlottesville march as “dangerous” and “especially pernicious.”
He characterized the rally this way: “This is Nazism. It’s here. It is Nazi ideology.”
The speakers noted other acts of anti-Semitism have hit closer to home.
Two years ago, for instance, a desecrated American flag with an anti-Semitic message was found at Congregation Zedek in south Tampa, blaming Jews for media bias and immigration policies.
“Some of these conspiracy theories are still present in our culture,” Tapie said. “Unfortunately, people are still buying these things and spreading these ideas around,” he added.
Besides addressing the history of anti-Semitism, the speakers offered up some ways to possibly combat extremist forms of violence toward race, religion, sexuality and so on.
They said it starts with loudly and consistently condemning hate speech.
“I think that ultimately speaking out and speaking against all these forms of hatred is absolutely essential,” Rosenberg said.
Added Tapie: “If you hear a comment or a joke made about somebody, perhaps don’t laugh.”
Tapie also suggested: “And, maybe ask that person later who made the comment, ‘Hey, do you realize that might hurt somebody?’”
Tapie said more interfaith community forums like the Saint Leo event are key.
“I like to say dialogue builds bridges of peace between different groups that otherwise have nothing in common,” Tapie said.
He added, “These dialogues can impact people, because they allow for others to hear the voices of those whom they wouldn’t otherwise talk to or know at this level, so it does create more favorable attitudes.”
Conversations are important, Rosenberg agreed, but he doesn’t see any single practical solution that will eliminate anti-Semitism and other group hatred in his lifetime.
“We are talking about a 2,000- to 3,000-year-old tradition of anti-Semitism,” the rabbi said. “It’s hard to overcome a millennia of pattern.”
Published November 21, 2018