Publisher’s Point: Is It 1933 Again?

A little over 80 years ago, an evil man whose first name was Adolph came to power in Germany. He was responsible for the deaths of millions, stole thousands of pieces of art, and gave us insight into things that we should not know about the human body’s response to “medical experiments.” Itis now on record that some students currently attending some of our “finest” universities either don’t recognize his face at all, or think he was an actor.

When he came to power in 1933, there were a few “watchmen on the wall” who sounded the alarm. Winston Churchill was one of them. There were articles registering grave concern on the part of Jews and Gentiles alike published immediately thereafter. One that appeared on February 25, 1933 in the Literary Digest, (following Hitler’s inaugural parade of triumph,) had the following to say: “The slogan roared by the triumphant Nazi paraders before the Presidential palace on Monday morning, was ‘Down with Judah!’ Following this up, the leading Fascist paper in Berlin announced, with glee, that an exodus of Jews was jamming passport offices. No effort was made by the official organ of the Hitler party to conceal its view that those Jews who got out early would be wise.”

We all know what happened, though there are those who still try to deny it. And, as Alabamians, we can be proud of the fact that it was our state that first called unanimously for the formation of the State of Israel in 1943. Alabama’s governors have continued to officially proclaim their support for Israel as recently as April of 2013.

So, why the question, “Is it 1933 again?” In a word, we are seeing a “new anti-Semitism,” largely being accomplished by the rewriting of history and the exploitation of systemic ignorance. Words such as “land for peace,” or “the two state solution,” as well as “Israeli occupiers” pretty much go unchallenged.
It is easy to make a case for the validity of the existence of the State of Israel, and Melissa Kirby in her article on page………. has done an excellent job of “teasing” the premiere of a fine documentary on the topic entitled Israel Indivisible. It will be shown to the public for the first time at 7pm on February 24th in Nashville at the Gaylord.

It was Laurie Cardoza-Moore, one of the founders of Proclaiming Justice to the Nations, who helped produce the film, and made the following statement to the group of us assembled at the private showing: “It is 1933 again, and what are we going to do? Are we going to stand with Israel?” For her part, Mrs. Moore has drawn a line in the sand that took her this week to the United Nations as well to the studio of Fox’s Sean Hannity to tape a program on the impact of Christians in the media. It will be shown at 9 pm, February 21st. Laurie will then return to Nashville for the jpcarrie@earthlink.netNational Religious Broadcasters’ Convention this weekend.

If it is indeed “1933 again,” and if we have a President who, contrary to the promise of his predecessor, George W. Bush, is demanding that Israel return the Golan Heights to her enemies who attacked her in the Six Day War, we need to sound the alarm. If former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke and Iran’s Press TV together are praising the Presbyterian Church of America for denouncing Israel, (as they did on February 16th, 2014,) we need to sound the alarm. And oh, just in case you’re not particularly motivated to stand with Israel, know this: as we speak, Israel’s arch-enemy, Iran, has warships parked off the East Coast of the United States, ostensibly for “training purposes.” A more honest assessment was given by the Ayatollah Khamenei when he said the reason for the ships heading to our coastal maritime borders was because of America’s “controlling and meddlesome attitude.” Newsflash: to the Ayatollah, Israel is the lesser Satan, (whom Iran has vowed to drive into the sea), and we are the Great Satan. We need to courageously join in sounding the alarm in 2014, or there might not be anyone left to do it.
By: Ali Elizabeth Turner