Ancient Hatred Returns: What Today’s Violence Against Jews Means for Believers

Faith Facts

• 2025 is reported as the deadliest year for antisemitic violence in thirty years, with attacks in Sydney, Manchester, and Washington, D.C.
• The pattern of hatred against the Jewish people traces back thousands of years to biblical accounts including the Book of Esther
• Christian Americans must understand that biblical warnings about persecution of God’s covenant people carry urgent relevance today

A disturbing pattern of violence has emerged across the Western world, targeting Jewish communities with a ferocity not seen in generations. At Bondi Beach in Sydney, fifteen people lost their lives. In Manchester, two were killed at a synagogue. In our nation’s capital, two were shot at a Jewish museum.

According to a new report, 2025 marks the deadliest year for antisemitic violence in three decades. But this is not merely a contemporary crisis — it is the resurgence of an ancient evil that Christians must recognize and confront.

The hatred directed at the Jewish people is not new. From the genocidal plot of Haman in the Book of Esther to the pogroms of Europe, the pattern repeats itself across history. Each generation believes it has moved past such darkness, yet the darkness returns, often cloaked in new ideologies and political movements.

For Christians, this matters deeply. Our faith is rooted in God’s covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Scriptures we cherish were written primarily by Jewish hands. Our Savior was born, lived, and ministered as a Jew. To stand silent in the face of antisemitism is to deny our own spiritual heritage.

Three critical factors explain why this ancient hatred has resurged in our time.

First, moral relativism has weakened the West’s ability to recognize evil. When truth becomes subjective and all beliefs are deemed equally valid, societies lose the capacity to identify and condemn genuine wickedness. Antisemitism thrives in environments where clarity about right and wrong has been abandoned. The Judeo-Christian moral framework that once served as a bulwark against such hatred has been systematically dismantled in our schools, media, and public square.

Second, political radicalization on both extremes has provided cover for hate. Far-left ideologies have repackaged ancient antisemitic tropes as “anti-Zionism,” while fringe elements on the far right have revived older forms of racial and religious bigotry. Both threaten Jewish communities and both must be condemned by Christians who value truth over tribal loyalty.

Third, spiritual warfare intensifies when God’s purposes advance. The Jewish people remain central to God’s redemptive plan. Their miraculous preservation as a distinct people, their return to their ancestral homeland, and their ongoing role in biblical prophecy make them targets of demonic opposition. This is not merely sociology or politics — it is a cosmic conflict between the Kingdom of God and the forces of darkness.

The Book of Esther reveals a timeless truth: when the enemies of God’s people plot destruction, God raises up defenders. Mordecai and Esther risked everything to stand against genocide. Today, Christians must ask ourselves if we possess the same courage.

This is not a call to uncritical acceptance of every policy decision made by any government. It is a call to recognize that attacks on Jewish people — whether physical violence or ideological assault — represent an attack on the God who chose them as His covenant people.

American Christians have a particular responsibility in this moment. Our nation has been blessed with religious freedom precisely because it was founded on Judeo-Christian principles. If we allow those principles to erode, if we permit antisemitism to flourish unchallenged, we participate in our own spiritual and cultural destruction.

The violence in Sydney, Manchester, and Washington should serve as a wake-up call. These are not isolated incidents but manifestations of a growing darkness that will not stop with the Jewish community. History demonstrates that societies which tolerate antisemitism eventually turn on all people of faith.

We must speak boldly in our churches, our communities, and our public discourse. We must educate ourselves and our children about the unique dangers of antisemitism and its role throughout history. We must support policies that protect religious minorities while defending the freedom of all people to worship according to conscience.

Above all, we must pray. Prayer moves the hand of God and aligns our hearts with His purposes. The same God who preserved the Jews through Haman’s plot, Pharaoh’s oppression, and Hitler’s Final Solution remains sovereign today.

Antisemitism is not merely a Jewish problem. It is a test of Christian faithfulness, a measure of our commitment to truth, and a sign of the spiritual condition of our civilization. How we respond will determine not only the safety of our Jewish neighbors but the moral integrity of our own witness.

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