'Blood libel,' social sin and Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin released a nearly eight-minute video Wednesday morning that says that those who imply she bears some responsibility for the tragic shootings in Arizona are guilty of "blood libel," a loaded phrase that dates to the Middle Ages and has deep and painful connotations for Jews.
"Journalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only to incite the very hatred and violence they purport to condemn," Palin said in the statement.
The term refers to the false claim made by Christians starting in the Middle Ages that Jews murder non-Jews and use their blood for ritual or medicinal purposes. According to the Anti-Defamation League, the words are connected to anti-Semitism and have a long and painful history for Jews:
"The allegation that Jews murder non-Jews to use their blood for ritual or medicinal purposes dates back to the Middle Ages and has spawned many variants over time. Jewish law expressly prohibits the consumption of any blood. Nevertheless it was alleged that Jews drank Christian blood on Passover and mixed it into matzah, the unleavened bread eaten on that holiday. During medieval times two popes expressly declared such claims to have been fabricated. Nevertheless, instances of what has come to be known as the "blood libel" have persisted into modern times. Blood libels have frequently led to mob violence and pogroms, and have occasionally led to the decimation of entire Jewish communities."
http://onfaith.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/undergod/2011/01/blood_libel_social_sin_and_sarah_palin.html
