There are two types of Christian Zionists: the prophetic and the political. The first type supports the modern state of Israel based on a biblical prophecy that suggests the resettlement of the holy land by the Jewish people is a prerequisite for the second coming of Christ. The second type is a Christian who believes that the current state of Israel must exist as a haven for Jews.
Christians who are not Zionists dismiss the first type by quoting Jesus from Matthew: The people of Noah’s time knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came; the same will be true when the Son of Man returns. Only the Father in heaven knows the day and hour; the angels and the Son do not know the time. In other words, God purposely kept the timing of Christ’s second coming hidden from everyone. If this is correct, no event can be a prerequisite, as this would imply people had knowledge of Christ’s return, which contradicts everything Jesus said.
There is nothing wrong with the second type’s support for Israel, unless it stems from historical guilt. The simplest way to convey this shame is to compare it to what Black conservative author Shelby Steele called “White guilt.”
Steele stated that “White guilt” makes White moral authority and the legitimacy of American institutions dependent on proving a negative: that they are not racist. In the 1960s, the need for White redemption from racial guilt became the most powerful, yet unspoken, element in America’s social-policy-making process, giving rise to a series of programs, policies, and laws designed to uplift minorities while also relieving White America’s guilt for its racist history.
The comparison is clarified by replacing “White guilt” in the previous paragraph with “Christian guilt,” which reads as follows: “Christian guilt” makes the moral authority of Christianity and the church dependent on proving a negative: that they are not antisemitic. Following the Holocaust, the need for Christian redemption from historical guilt became the most significant, yet unspoken, component of American foreign policy, resulting in support for the modern state of Israel while also alleviating Christians’ guilt over Christianity’s antisemitic past.
During the Middle Ages, most Christian leaders viewed Jews as a threat to Christianity and persecuted them. In 1096, the pope declared the first crusade. Christian soldiers went to recover the holy land from Muslims, but on their way to Jerusalem, they killed Jews, whom they considered enemies of the Christian God.
After Protestants in Europe broke away from the Catholic Church in the 16th century, they created their own brand of Jewish hatred. Martin Luther, the leader of the Protestant Reformation, argued that Jews were a rejected and condemned people who deserved God’s wrath, and hostility towards Jews grew over the next two centuries. Jews were forced to convert to Christianity, while those who maintained their faith were persecuted or expelled from Christian countries. Many Jews fled to the Ottoman Empire, where they were treated as second-class citizens, but it was safer to live with Muslims rather than Christians.
Zionism, or the aspiration to establish a Jewish nation-state, began as a response to Christian persecution and expulsion, long before Zionists clashed with Arabs in Palestine.
The website of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum chronicles Christian persecution of Jews from antiquity to the present. It states, “Documentation of this kind is important, but it is ineffective unless it is implemented from the pulpit and in church publications and educational materials. Christians need to become aware of their almost total ignorance about postbiblical Judaism, the hatred some have for Jews, and the violence perpetrated against Jews by their fellow Christians.”
The Holocaust Museum assumed that Christians were unaware of the extent of their persecution of Jews; however, many Christians recognize Christianity’s brutal past, feel ashamed of it, and support Israel as a way to make amends. Yet, if “Christian guilt” resembles “White guilt,” it may share the same fundamental problem.
Steele argued that “White guilt” is not genuine remorse but a social performance. It leads institutions to make decisions based on appearance rather than effectiveness, and it encourages a dynamic where Black Americans are treated as victims rather than equals. Once again, when “White guilt” is replaced by “Christian guilt,” the previous statement reads as follows: “Christian guilt” is not genuine remorse but social performance. It leads the church to make decisions based on appearance rather than effectiveness, and it encourages a dynamic where Jews are treated as victims rather than equals.
There are numerous reasons for Christians to support the modern state of Israel, but alleviating historical guilt is not one of them.
