Dr. Wayne Dehoney, president of the Southern Baptist Convention –a Protestant denomination with 25, 000, 000 members –took issue here today with a contention by two University of California sociologists who reported that a survey has established that large percentages of Protestants and Catholics with anti-Jewish bias “have a religious basis for their prejudice.”
The survey, made under a commission from the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith, but conducted independently of the ADL, showed that, nationally, 43 percent of Protestants and 50 percent of Catholics hold the Jews as a group “most responsible” for the crucifixion of Jesus. It showed that, among the Southern Baptists, 24 percent have anti-Jewish feelings.
“Bigotry and defamation, such as anti-Semitism, are deplorable,” said Dr. Dehoney. “But to label religious conviction about the ‘Christian doctrine of salvation’ as ‘race prejudice’ is the worst kind of defamation. By the same reasoning, the Jews could be charged with racism and with being anti-Oriental because they believe that Japanese Buddhists are outside the realm of God’s salvation for not believing in the Jehovah and not accepting the Old Testament revelation.”
“Christians believe that all Jews who reject Christ as the Messiah are therefore lost from God’s redeeming love, as are all men of all races who have not personally responded to God’s grace. This is not racism. This is the Christian doctrine of personal salvation,” Dr. Dchoney stated.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
