Within the wake of pro-Hamas protests and threats in opposition to Jewish college students at quite a few universities throughout the nation, two Christian faculties have issued an open letter to Jewish college students, welcoming them and condemning the hatred and violence directed at them.
The presidents of Indiana Wesleyan College, which has 14,000 college students, and Colorado Christian College, which has 10,000 college students, launched the letter on Wednesday, the identical day Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will tackle the US Congress.
“To our pricey Jewish brothers and sisters,” IWU President John S. Kulaga and CCU President Eric Ok. Hogue started. “We’re writing to precise our deep shock and outrage in response to the wave of hate and violence directed in opposition to Jewish and Israeli people on college campuses throughout america earlier this yr.”
“We need to make it clear to our nation and the world that our Christian establishments is not going to tolerate this habits,” they continued. “We additionally need to specific our deep concern that the horrible occasions all of us witnessed on the finish of the 2023-2024 educational yr are already being forgotten. What we have seen reveals a deep downside within the tradition of many organizations, an issue that should be addressed.”
“For hundreds of years, the Academy has stood as a beacon of enlightenment, embodying the Judeo-Christian values of tolerance, freedom and human dignity,” they famous. “But, in latest days, what now we have seen is an insidious gloom over the academy. It is a darkish image of different horrific occasions in historical past.”
“Historical past warns us, now“They introduced.
Then they turned to the hatred that had been expressed in opposition to Jews on different campuses, writing:
Respectable establishments have expressed a dedication to inclusion at the same time as they welcome golf equipment comparable to College students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), which overtly spew anti-Semitism. These teams not solely refused to sentence the horrific atrocities of October 7, 2023, however celebrated them as official acts of resistance that started on October 8. Is it any surprise that ultimately, the actions of SJP and their related organizations have ignited the fires of violence and hatred on numerous campuses? No pupil membership needs to be allowed to have a good time and justify such violence on any campus. They won’t be allowed to take action on our campus. Like all wars, we’re deeply saddened by the lack of civilian life on this warfare. Nonetheless, it’s morally clear to us the way it started on October 7, 2023.
“All college directors should take decisive motion earlier than the seeds of hatred take root on their campuses,” they urged. “We name on all seminaries and universities to assessment their commitments to uphold their commitments Biblical Rules of Inclusion and Variety. Establishments should recommit themselves to creating and sustaining studying environments on their campuses, modeling these values in all larger training establishments.”
They concluded, “Lastly, we lengthen a heat invitation to Jewish and Israeli college students to hitch us. our You may be welcome on campus, and you may be protected. We stand with you in solidarity and thanks to your centuries of stewardship of the group upon which our establishments are based mostly.”
