I had a strange and unexpected reaction to October 7th. I began to ask my Christian friends if they would hide me. As a Jew living in Israel, the question made no sense. As US citizens, my wife and I had discussed taking our family to the US, but we decided against it. We felt safer in Israel than in the US and would not abandon our nation in its time of need. 

But my question confused me. As Israelis, we are not afraid of a Nazi takeover. Our enemy comes in two forms: terrorists from within or terrorists from outside our borders. I received several gracious offers from concerned Christians who offered to put my family and me in their homes in the US.

But two years later, reactions to the massacre of Jews have developed. Initially, Jews in the US were shocked and did not immediately rally in support of Israel. The sudden groundswell of support for Hamas, thinly masked behind dissembling terms like “anti-Zionism” and “pro-Palestinian,” was shocking and fooled no one. The world was once again demanding the genocide of Jews. Organizations like the UN, ICJ, EU, and the Red Cross, which were intended to act as an expression of universal morality, were fully weaponized against Israel. The world demanded that Israel act mercifully and humanely toward Hamas, but Israelis held by Hamas were deemed unworthy of humanitarian aid.

The dust has settled, and some of these reactions have developed. The Jew-haters are even more deeply entrenched, rewriting history, rewriting or erasing October 7th, and openly debating when they have no logic or facts to support their absurd claims. I wish I could say that history will judge them harshly, but I doubt that.

During Holocaust Remembrance Day, I was granted a more profound understanding. There were actual pro-Hamas protests on Holocaust Remembrance Day. October 7th, and what followed, taught me a painful lesson. Jews have been repeating ‘Never Again’ since the Holocaust. We thought that the world joined in this pledge. October 7th, and the support for Hamas has shown in the most painful terms possible that this is not the case. When we say ‘Never Again’, the Jews are alone.

Christian support of Israel indeed touched my heart. Indeed, evangelicals defended Israel with more faith and more faithfulness than even American Jews. At first, American Jews rallied behind Israel, I believe, out of an understanding that their only hope for survival was an IDF reservist in a baggy uniform. But Jewish support for Israel is fading as more liberal Jews condemn Israel’s war against Hamas, while most evangelicals remain true to their faith and stand by Israel. 

But even so, support for Israel was not universal among Christians. High-profile Christians like Tucker Carlson, Candice Owens, Russell Brand, and so many others shifted, claiming that it was “un-Christian” to support a Jewish state. I faced the undeniable fact that Christian faith can cut in many directions.

I will certainly not judge all Christians by the actions of these people. These people seem to be the exceptions and not the rule. They also seem to be contradicting many of the basic tenets of Christianity. On one hand, these grotesque exceptions make the Israel-loving Christians even dearer to me. I have been privileged to meet many Christians who have dedicated their lives and service to God through Israel. I do not mean to diminish this in the least. Even more so, the opposite. They are beacons in the middle of a stormy ocean, a shining example of Christian grace that should be used to guide humanity. 

It pains me to say this, but I cannot build the future of my family and my people on this Christian faith. History has taught Jews that the Christian faith can become a rallying cry to kill the Jews. 60 years after the Nostra Aetate, the label of ‘Christ killer’ is making a comeback on social media. Far too often, my dialogues with Christians who claim to love Israel devolve into accusations that I have rejected salvation.

I am left with no choice. Despite Christian love of Israel, the future of Israel can only rely on one thing: the god of Israel. Not only have Christians let us down, but it has been their faith that has been the motivating force behind some of this reemerging anti-semitism. My dearest Christian friends can reject anti-semitism, replacement theology, and repent for all of Christianity, and I welcome them with wholehearted love.  But ‘Never Again’ cannot be built upon a faith in their friendship. It pains me enormously to say this. Unfortunately, I have seen Christians profess their love for Israel and then been shocked when I state that I will never accept Jesus as my savior. I was never accused of killing Jesus until I began to reach out to Christians in friendship. Ironically, so many Christians tell me they love Israel and then tell me which verses in the New Testament I must read, which verses in the Torah I have clearly misunderstood, and how important believing in Jesus is for my salvation. But they were quite clear that they loved Israel and loved the Jews. As a Jew, it is clear that that is replacement theology in a nutshell. But even those who have rejected replacement theology cannot see that preaching the gospel to a Jew is based on a desire to replace the Jew with a Christian.

Preaching the Gospel, proselytizing Jews, has always been and remains an existential threat, an actual attack on the faith of the Jewish people.

I was privileged to sit down and have a genuine heart-to-heart dialogue with Bishop Jerry Bowers. He explained to me that Christians have to realize that Jews have our own covenant and that Christians should not try to bring us into their faith. It was a stunning statement and one that will surely bring many Christians to criticize him. I cannot fathom his level of belief and devotion that allowed him to make such a statement. I was humbled. Bishop Bowers spends extended periods in Israel. I think he is understanding what the Jewish people are. Few Christians do. If you only know Jews as they exist in exile, then you don’t know jews.

There’s no reason to go on at length about this point. I learned on Holocaust Remembrance Day that ‘Never Again’ is intended as a discussion and a declaration among Jews. We cannot rely upon the Nations to allow the Jews to be Jews in our homeland. We cannot rely on the world, even those who profess to be our most steadfast allies. As I said, it pains me to say this. I was sick of being a lonely Nation. But we are a holy nation; in Hebrew, holy means separate. If anything, this realization has made my Christian friends even dearer. But I will never rely upon them. When the moment comes for me to stand up and, for my children’s sake, scream ‘Never Again’, when they come to murder Jews, I will act as a Jew, rallying alongside my fellow Jews. 

But when the Jews are safe again, when the smoke settles, I will look to my left and right to see who among the nations stood with me. Perhaps then I will not feel so alone.