Coulter: For Jews, Jesus was a ‘lunatic

Jews believe Jesus was a “raving lunatic,” Ann Coulter said.

The celebrity pundit appeared on October 15 on Michael Medved’s radio show to defend comments on another show that she hoped Jews would be “perfected” by becoming Christians.

Coulter told Medved, an Orthodox Jew, that the sentiment was unremarkable; most belief systems wish for universal conversion, she posited. “Of course a Christian wants everyone to be a Christian,” she said. “I assume all vegans think the world would be better if everyone were a vegan. And the global warming wackos would like everyone to believe in their crackpot global warming theory. And nonsmokers would like everyone not to smoke.”

However, she added: “Jews don’t accept the New Testament, so, you know, as long as we’re playing this new sport of ‘he who is offended first wins,’ if anyone’s going to be offended by anyone else’s religion, the Jews believe that my savior, a Jew, was a raving lunatic, and you don’t see me sniffling and crying.”

There is no Jewish theology of Jesus. There are a small number of isolated Talmudic and Midrashic references describing him as a rabbinical student who strayed and who lured others into heresy; these have had virtually no impact on Jewish views of Christianity.

Media Matters, a liberal media watchdog, first highlighted Coulter’s remarks.