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his post is primarily for people who want clarification from my Follow Friday tweet about JIDF. But if you read it before seeing that #FF tweet, then it still clarifies and the link to follow if you choose is at the bottom of the post.
Here’s the exchange I will refer to throughout this post. I suggest you either read it first or this post first…but don’t try to read them concurrently. Below is the impression I got; it’s no commentary on the person or the organization, just the behavior I encountered.
I caught this conversation quite by accident @JIDF (Jewish Internet Defense Force, Run by founder David Appletree) had with @ConchoQueen (someone I didn’t run across until this exchange). What you see is what I saw. I chimed in when I saw JIDF say he would rather “burn in hell” than “accept Jesus as anything other than a regular guy.”
I saw this as an ad hominem attack on Christians – or at least a rude and unnecessary punch. You don’t need to use that kind of language to say you don’t have any intention of following Christ. In the leadership position David is in, relative to his stated purpose for the JIDF (covered later), it’s probably something you would just want to let pass. Imagine William Bennett saying “I would rather burn in Hell than accept that Moses was anything more than a regular guy.”
So I looked at the tweet that caused such a reaction…which is ConchoQueen’s that I start the thread with. I see what she is saying as this:
We all get chances at things – even accepting Jesus. I have the chance to be a Transvestite just by deciding to. Doesn’t mean I’m gonna if someone tells me I have a chance to be, and I’m not gonna rail into them. I’ll just say “that’s not my thing.” Doesn’t mean they were trying to convert me!
Taking any chance is up to us, but if God wants us to take it, he’ll help us in making that decision. If He wants you to do something else, he’ll help you do something else.
Personally, I think God wants JIDF to do what he is doing (though I don’t think it is with such hateful language and haughty air). I think it’s a fantastic idea and can really make a difference in the world
So I mentioned to JIDF that he was a bit harsh. Which left me open for his attack, starting with the sympathetic, “Why is everyone picking on me by forcing their beliefs on me” rap. If there is one person upon whom Christian beliefs cannot be imposed upon, it is JIDF. In fact, the first tweet I sent him (which he never responded to) when I started following him was how supportive I was in his cause and his stick-to-itiveness in not letting Christians preach to him on his own blog and site. I don’t let people use curse words on this site…rules are rules.
He has to be strong in his faith to do what he does. And I find that very encouraging and something worth supporting. But his communication style as a leader I think jeopardizes his entire purpose.
So I get the ad hominem attack right out of the box, equating me and ConchoQueen (because we are Christians) to Martin Luther and his treatment of the Jews and then, though he wants to use the Internet to defend Judaism, he refuses to answer ConchoQueen’s question…which doesn’t make sense to me. I mean, if you have a captive audience asking questions…answer them – engage them – so you can further your cause! But instead he assumes her motives are his conversion and ceases his discussion with her.
She responds telling him he has reasons to feel the way he does (granted) and that she hopes modern Christians are doing better. Remember, this is from a woman who knows Jews killed Christ (even if he was a “regular guy” that’s still not really a good thing, what with the Mosaic Law of “Thou Shalt Not Kill” and all…), yet she remains open to reconciliation/learning and not holding it against JIDF, while JIDF holds Luther against her.
Hmmm…double standard, eh?
JIDF tells me he doesn’t want to be preached to. Okay, but stating a fact is not preaching. We all have chances AND if God wants us to take a road, he’ll let us know. I’m assuming JIDF believes in God, or his entire Internet presence is a farce. Maybe I am unschooled in the Jewish faith, but I think God is down with the idea of telling even Jews what to do. I seem to recall some guy named Abraham…
Then JIDF tells me that he’s a nice guy (when I let him know that honey goes further than vinegar), and that his honesty and direct tone are misinterpreted ONLINE.
HELLO?!?! The JIDF’s purpose on their web site says the following, in part:
Leading the fight against Anti-Semitism and Terrorism on the Web. Coordinating concerned citizens around the globe. We work to bring together different individuals and represent a younger generation of Jewish leaders, a new approach, and a real grassroots effort for change!
So I explain to JIDF that his leadership style is hard to follow, and he goes for the jugular. Though I haven’t made any accusations, he claims I have, because that fits his template of people of the Christian Faith (remember, we are all Martin Luther-like Jew Killers to him). All I have done is explain to him how he comes across…in a venue where he is trying to “Lead the fight against anti-Semitism.”
I’m trying to help!
So, unfortunately, I think this organization, with GREAT intentions and purpose, has a leader with pretty lousy leadership skills. He has no intention of furthering the Jewish cause as much as it seems he does in destroying a vast resource of support – Pro-Jewish Christians. I don’t think there are many Christians out there who want to see Jews treated the way they have been – my personal faith tells me Jews are my older siblings in Faith. And that’s the faith of some One Billion other Catholics, as well.
I want nothing more than to have the Jews’ suffering ended and their fulfillment as God’s chosen to be realized on Earth and Heaven.
So, though you’ll see JIDF’s tweets and agree with most of them and want to retweet them, I say this with all seriousness:
Christians beware.
Follow his conversations for awhile before taking the Follow plunge. He has tens of thousands of followers and follows a near-equal amount of people, so the likelihood of them being much more than a few hundred or thousand that really follow him (instead of followbacks for increasing coverage without content) is probably pretty low – making your follow more meaningful if you do so. Your name, reputation, and Twitter Influence gets attached to who you are following, is all I’m saying.
And just so you know, I was an active, avid ReTweeter of JIDF’s Tweets. Here’s what I ReTweeted from the moment I started following him on June 26th to today. That’s an average of almost six tweets per day – I reckon more than anyone else during that time period.
Here’s the page to follow @JIDF.
And just so we are clear: I think the cause is just, and the leader is dynamic. The leadership style is incompatible with a serious movement that can get very far without significant changes to that style and the communication style as well.
I hope it does. The Internet is a great venue for this kind of activism, but followers once lost are hard to regain in this social media environment.
Kristofer Cowles has written 306 articles on this blog.
