by David Virtue DD on substack
The Church of England began condemning anti-Jewish laws in England in 1222, during the Synod of Oxford, which imposed several anti-Jewish rulings that discriminated against Jews and led to their eventual expulsion in 1290.
This period marked a significant point in the Church’s history, as it was responsible for the establishment of these laws, which were not officially in place when the Church of England was formed in 1534. The Church of England has since apologized for these actions and planned a formal “act of repentance” to mark the 800th anniversary of the Synod of Oxford. In May of 2022 the Church of England formally apologized for anti-Jewish laws that were passed 800 years ago and eventually led to the expulsion of Jews from the kingdom for hundreds of years.
But have things really and truly changed?
On the present state of Israel which is at war with Hamas in Gaza, former Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn is on record saying that Israel must ‘end occupation’ after declining to condemn Hamas. Corbyn drew flak for saying ‘ending the occupation is the only means of achieving a just and lasting peace.’ He has argued for the ending of all arms supplies to Israel. Words like “complicity” and “genocide” can be heard coming from his lips. What it amounts to is that God is one side and not the other.
Baroness Ruth Deech, DBE is a British academic, bioethicist and politician, who argues that the next Archbishop of Canterbury ought to acknowledge the historic role of the Church in the spread of antisemitism; accept the moral duty to protect the Jewish community; and ensure that children’s lessons are not passing on antisemitism in the guise of religious teaching.
She writes, “For nearly 2,000 years, Jews around the world suffered persecution, forced conversion, expulsion and expropriation at the hands of the Church. Only as recently as 1965 did the Catholic Church repudiate the charge of Jewish collective guilt for the death of Jesus. I well remember from my education at both a church primary and secondary school that condemnation of Jews permeated everyday worship and teaching.”