Rabbi, Evangelical Leader Call on Progressives to Stop 'Giving Comfort to Anti-Semitism' as War Engulfs Israel

ABOVE: Rev. Johnnie Moore, president of the Congress of Christian Leaders, appeared on Friday's edition of CBN's Newswatch to discuss his op-ed and what appears to socialism mixed with anti-Israel attitudes found in today's culture. Newswatch is seen weekdays on the CBN News Channel. 

As the violence between Israel and Hamas rages, two influential religious leaders, a rabbi, and an evangelical leader are warning progressive Americans to watch out for anti-Semitism. 

In a Newsweek op-ed, co-authors Rabbi Abraham Cooper and Johnnie Moore send a word of caution. 

"We ignore, at our own risk, the high-profile anti-Semitism emanating from the self-anointed gatekeepers of the progressive Left, increasingly on display during these bloody days in the Holy Land," the pair wrote. "The seeds of still more anti-Semitism here in the U.S. have been planted, including by some very influential progressives."

During an interview Friday on CBN's Newswatch, Moore explained there's a significant trend in the Democratic Party in particular, of socialism mixed with anti-Israel attitudes. 

"But that socialism is crossing over with an anti-Semitic/anti-Zionism. So the leaders of this movement like Illhan Omar, the representative from Minnesota, who called Israel a terrorist state in the last few days.  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the rising star of the Democratic Party, may even challenge (New York Senator) Chuck Schumer in a primary, excoriated Andrew Yang, who's running for mayor of New York City at the top of the list, for supporting Israel," he said.

"I mean it used to be that you could take for granted that Israel was a non-partisan issue in the United States of America," Moore noted. The fact of the matter is at the heights of power in our country, we have people defending tacitly the tactics of Hamas. This is serious. And by the way, it isn't just our politicians. There are elements even of these various social justice movements all across the United States that are overtly anti-Zionist, anti-Semitic. They've even attacked synagogues in the United States of America."

"So we're saying, 'Yes, condemn everything on the Far Right. But recognize that we're living in a culture that's giving comfort to anti-Semitism on the Far Left," he explained. 

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Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, headquartered in Sacramento, California, is also calling on the Left to condemn the terrorist tactics of Hamas. Rodriguez said in a statement sent to CBN News, "The violence and bloodshed directed toward Israel from Hamas is nothing short of terror."

"There is no moral equivalency between the actions of the terrorists in the Gaza Strip and the democratic State of Israel in defending its citizens," he said. 

"We are seeing precisely why Hamas has long been designated a terrorist entity by the United States. It is time for the Biden administration to step up as the leader of the free world and condemn the actions of these extremist groups with moral clarity. People of faith everywhere need to know that the United States does not look with apathy at such heinous violations of human rights," Rodriguez continued. 

"President Biden's platform includes a commitment to the Jewish people and social justice but he has kept people of faith in the U.S. and across the world waiting for far too long. Over 40,000 Hispanic churches in the United States and Latin America are watching and waiting for President Biden to make good on his promise. Part of that promise is to ensure there is no daylight between Israel and the United States," he noted.