Please Note: I am in no way saying that ALL CREATIONISTS or ALL EVANGELICALS are anti-semitic. I am simply stating that SOME are, and that by definition, anti-semitism is expressed as suspicion of Jews at the least, or outright hatred of them at the worst. Not all evangelicals are automatically suspicious of anyone who is Jewish, but many are, and they often try to hide it. Even Billy Graham got caught expressing his views on tape with Richard Nixon. His views about Jews were typical --he clearly stated that he believed that Jews controlled the media, and were ruining the nation. This sentiment is not unusual to find, especially in America's more rural areas. Nothing more should be read into this article.
Many people have criticized me for making comparisons between holocuast deniers and Creationists, saying that I go too far, or that the comparison is highly inappropriate. I disagree. Not only are my views on the connection between creationism and Holocaust denial appropriate, but I believe they are accurate and justified.
Holocaust denial and Creationism don't just share common tactics and methodology in how they publicise and spread their message, They also share Antisemitism. Many evangelicals who support creationism deny any charges of antisemitism strongly, but there is a lot of documentary evidence to support the idea that at least some Evangelicals who are involved with the creationist movement, are, in fact, anti-semitic.
Before I get into that, let me restate what I have previously claimed about the similarities between holocaust deniers and Creationists.
(1) Both use conspiracy theories to support their claims. Holocaust Deniers frequently claim that "History is written by the victors", or that "History is controlled by the establishment." When reading Holocaust denial literature, they frequently claim that there is a secret conspiracy of Jews who have influence over governments, and who pressure people into accepting their "official version" of what happened in World War 2 with respect to the Nazi Attrocities against Jews. they claim that the establishment crushes all who go against this official version of history.
Likewise, Creationist literature is full of the same conspiracy claims. They claim that the scientific establishment crushes all alternative viewpoints, and that evolution is promoted as the official word by a politically powerful organized movement within the establishment.
(2) Both say that it's important for children to be taught alternative views (their views, in particular) in school, and decide the truth for themselves. Of course, when it comes to other simlar topics in history and science, both holocaust deniers and creationists have nothing to say about presenting alternative views and letting kids decide for themselves.
(3) Both use deceptive and fraudulent research to promote their agendas. In the case of Holocaust deniers, They often misquote research or blow it off entirely. IN "the Hoax of the 20th Century", for example, Holocaust Denier Aurhur Butz simply casts aside all testimonies of victims as "lies for publicity and personal gain", and all admissions and confessions of former Nazis who participated in attrocities as "coerced by the allies". In other words, despite the fact that plenty of eyewitnesses corroborated thousands of specific stories and facts, they all have to be ignored because the allied victors in World War 2 invented the facts and made sure everyone told the official version of events. David Irving, another Holocaust revisionist and historian, despite ample documentation of Hitler's speeches, minutes from staff meetings, and other material, misrepresented all of it by stating that Hitler had no idea what his generals were doing.
Creationists aren't just similar, They're worse! In case after case, various scientific facts and articles cited in creationist publications, where famous and respected scientists appear to be making the case against evolution, the quotes are often doctored or quote-mined out of context to say the exact opposite of what the original author intended. Creatioists do not simply blow off research and evidence, they actually attempt to redefine science terms and facts, and even tell outright lies about the facts. The use of the second law of thermodynamics is a perfect example of how they attempt to redefine scientific laws to suit their needs. They claim that there are no transitional fossils, which ignores the body of evidence that scientists have collected concerning this. the Discovery Institute claims that more and more respected scientists are coming over to the creationist side, when the reality is that more and more Christian diploma mills are giving fraudulent degrees to people who never were practicing scientists in the first place, and who do not go on to work as scientsts after they get their degrees.
(4) Both have people among them who are blantantly antisemitic. Holocaust deniers are practically unquestionably antisemitic by and large, as most of their appearances and support comes from the Neonazi movement. Arthur Butz and David Irving, two of the most prominant revisionists, speak almost exclusively in front of neonazi audiences.
With Creationism, few of the books, literature, and websites of creationists show direct evidence of antisemitism, but rather, support of their ideas often comes from individuals and groups in the Evangelical community who are undoubtedly antisemitic or racist. For example, Kent Hovind, a prolific Creationist and current Felon (for tax evasion), sold neonazi and antisemitic literature on his website. "The Fourth Reich of the rich" is one such book that he sold, which is a typial conspiracy theory book linking Bilderburgers, Illuminati, and powerful Jews. He also wrote "I love the Jews. But The Protocols of Zion [sic] was written to explain how to control the world, I mean, it lays it all out. But it’s really carefully done so that if it is ever discovered the Jews take the blame for it." (the Protocols of the Elders of Zion is a classic Antisemitic book that purports to show how the Jews control the world, but it was uncovered as a hoax many times).
Racism and Antisemitism are the dark underbelly of the Evangelical movement, and one which evangelicals guard carefully, but occaisionally, they let it slip out of their mouth or into their literature. People like Pat Robertson, Don Wildmon, and Gary North, promote conspiracy theories focusing on how Jews, Masons, and the Illuminati are all working to control the world. Don Wildmon, of the American Family Association, claimed that Hollywood is "run by jews who are hostile to Christianity". Wildmon also has recruited known Neonazis work for him. If you go through lists of antisemitic quotes by Christian leaders in America, you will note that most of the same people support Creationism, and sell creationist literature.
The Creationist movement itself doesn't specify any anti-semitic tennants, but far too many of the people giving money to the movement and promoting it clearly have made statements that suggest suspicion of Jews, or which clearly indicate Jewish Conspiracy beliefs, based in ignorance and anti-Jewish bias.
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Links to back up many of the claims in this article:
Quotations from Contemporary and historical Christian leaders
www.weirdcrap.com/recreational/chrsquot.htm
Answers In Genesis Racist support
http://home.austarnet.com.au/stear/aig_and_racism_response.htm
Presbyterians promote antisemitism at peace conference:
http://atheism.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/articles/2004/02/05/news/local/bhate0206.txt
Bush White House checked with Rapture Christians before latest israel Move
http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0420,perlstein,53582,1.html
Kent Hovind's antisemitic comments:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent_Hovind#From_mainstream_critics
Don Wildmon's Antisemitism:
http://www.seekgod.ca/cnp.wi-z.htm
Monday, February 4, 2008
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