It varies in each generation but they have said some pretty intense stuff:

We influence Hollywood way too much (have you ever heard of MGM, Paramount, Universal, Fox, Warner Bros)

We want to settle the entire Land of Israel (Every prayer book. Ever)

We have too much financial influence (No comment)

We started Communism (Marx?)

We started Capitalism (Adam Smith’s agent was)

We control the weather (true)

We want to build the third Temple in Jerusalem (Every prayer book. Ever)

We think we are smarter (Just ask us)

We have space lasers (Only recently)

They do have a point. Jews are a tiny fraction of humanity, about two-tenths of one percent of the world’s population. And yet Jews show up everywhere. Finance. Law. Medicine. Media. Academia. Entertainment. Nobel Prizes (You’ve seen the list).

The Antisemites see this and leap to the easiest conclusion: Jews secretly control the world.

(If they would only sit in on a Synagogue board meeting…we can’t even figure out what color the paint in the bathroom should be.)

But why is it that way? How is it that we have such a powerful influence in literally every area of the world (except Bobsledding). 

It was told to us millennia ago: We have been chosen with a special mission. And to fulfill that mission, we were given special energy and resources. 

A mission to make the world a more G-dly place. It is a difficult task that needs many centuries to fulfill and we have been battered around trying. But it is a worthy one none the less.

Anyone is welcome to join in that mission and get the same energy and resources. It isn’t a secret and we are not exclusive.

The challenge is when we don’t know about that mission. Or we are not comfortable about it. Or maybe even ashamed of saying it.

So we often make a mistake when responding to the question of our differences.

We panic and deny the obvious.

We insist Jews are just like everyone else. That any suggestion of Jewish influence is pure fantasy.

But people can see reality. When Jews deny what is plainly visible, it only fuels suspicion. So that antisemite looks out of the corner of his eye and says…I smell something fishy. They have to be lying. They have to be covering up something. It is so obvious that they are different. 

“What are they hiding?” he asks. It must be some deep conspiracy about 12 bankers in Europe. Or secret tunnels in Brooklyn where we plan everything. And it all flows downward from there. 

The better response is honesty.

Yes, Jews are small in number and large in impact. Way more than is natural.

But that comes from something much older: A Covenant. With G-d.

The Jewish people know that G-d entrusted them with a role in the moral development of the world.

That role has been about teaching humanity, about justice, responsibility, and the dignity of life.

Even the hope for a rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem is described as a “house of prayer for all peoples.” A universal home for all of humanity.

None of this means the world will suddenly love Jews for embracing their role.

Antisemitism has never depended on facts.

But Jews do not need universal approval to accomplish our mission.

Instead of pretending we have no influence, or hiding our identity to make others comfortable, Jews should do something far simpler.

Acknowledge the responsibility G-d gave us. Embrace it.

And use the influence we have to bring more morality, more compassion, and more purpose into the world.

Antisemites will always claim the Jews are different and have outsized influence.

The real question is whether Jews have the courage to live that way openly.

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)