An Old Jewish Woman’s Interpretation of the Gospel According to John
This sign appeared in a neighborhood nearby my home in St. Petersburg, Florida, a few weeks ago.
“Jesus said: Jews are the children of Satan: Liars and Murderers. John 8:44.”
Jew-hatred — plain and simple. My friends and I know who the man is; we know what business he owns. I have been advocating speaking directly to the homeowner. Others differ.
I asked a rabbi I know for his thoughts. He replied: “I know how jolting this can be. But responding only brings more unwanted attention to a negative situation. Better to write about the broad-based support of Zionist Christians whom the Jewish people are grateful for and urging them to fight antisemitism amongst their Christian brethren.”
I have great respect for this rabbi. I have studied with him, I receive weekly parashah discussions from him, and we correspond occasionally. Nevertheless, I somewhat disagreed. I replied: “But I disagree about not calling out Jew-hatred when I see it. And I encourage others to, also. I think we have ignored it too much to our detriment.”
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) recorded 9,354 antisemitic incidents across the US in 2024. This represents a 5% increase from 2023, a 344 % increase over the past five years, and an 893% increase over the past ten years. Jew-hatred cannot be ignored.
I read several articles about John 8:44. Most modern thought concurs that it is about abandoning faith. The Vatican News (authors Fr. Pino Di Luccio S.J. and Bishop Étienne Vetö) states: “These phrases, in the context of first-century Jewish communities, imply that those who abandon faith act according to the thoughts of the devil, who in the Bible is deceitful and opposed to the life God seeks to give his children.”
At the time, to the devotees of Jesus, those who refused to follow were abandoning faith. Name-calling was the same then as it is now. Misinformation is the same now as it was then. When people are angry that their friends and acquaintances refuse to follow a new religion or a new politic, it can be ugly. Martin Luther expected the Jews to join him when he founded a new religion in protest of Catholic teachings: Protestantism. When the Jews didn’t follow he wrote dreadful articles and books about them (see The Jews and Their Lies: https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/martin-luther-quot-the-jews-and-their-lies-quot; also —https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_the_Jews_and_Their_Lies.)
The Spanish Inquisition offers a gruesome example of what can happen when there is only one acceptable religion. This 356-year period of religious persecution (1478-1834) was established by the Catholic monarchs. The Inquisitors identified, investigated, and prosecuted individuals whose beliefs deviated from Church doctrine. Jews, Muslims, and even conversos (those who had converted to Catholicism) were hunted for secretly practicing their own faiths. Perceived heretics were tortured, imprisoned and often executed ̶ mostly by burning at the stake. Other punishments ranged from penance to public flogging and confiscation of all property.
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The sign above appeared in June. Also in June, Bishop Gregory Parkes of the Diocese of St. Petersburg, FL, wrote the Jewish community a letter (June 2, 2025) – not in reference to the sign, but to show support in light of the Colorado bombing of innocent Jews rallying to bring our hostages home from Gaza. I will close with a paragraph from that letter.
To see the Jewish community targeted with such cruelty is both heartbreaking and unacceptable. There is no justification—political, religious, or otherwise—for hatred. Violence against Jews is not an isolated issue; it is part of a broader issue with bigotry and extremism that threatens the safety of many groups, including Christians. When one community is attacked, we are all diminished. Silence in the face of such hatred is complicity.
Thank you Bishop Gregory Parkes and all allies in our struggle against Jew-hatred. Am Yisrael Chai.
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This article first appeared in the Tampa Bay Times on July 30, 2025.
