“For the Lord is a God of justice;
Blessed are all those who wait for Him.”
Isaiah 30:18b
Awareness
Official 2025 antisemitism figures released this week show a second-highest year on record of antisemitic incidents in the UK. Incidents peaked on the exact day as the antisemitic terror attack at Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester, with the same number of incidents the following day (half of these were related to or celebrating the attack). The second highest peak in the UK coincided with the aftermath of the Bondi Beach terror attack on Sydney’s Jewish community. This pattern, reminiscent of the peak of antisemitic incidents immediately following October 7th 2023, shows how major antisemitic attacks fuel more antisemitism. The evil of Jew-hatred is revealed through this pattern – witnessing antisemitism doesn’t humble antisemites or cause them to re-evaluate their ideology. Rather, it fuels the fire of hatred, brings gratification, and validates their own antisemitic feelings. Pray for greater awareness of the dilemma of Jew-hatred in our society; and that it will not be covered-up or appeased, but will be called out and condemned.
Protection
Pray for the safety of the Jewish community in the UK and around the world. On Friday it was announced that two Manchester-based Jihadis, plotting to murder as many Jews as possible, have been sentenced. They were planning to target several Jewish sites. Praise the Lord that their evil plan was foiled. Praise the Lord for the counter-terrorism police that prevented the attack through an undercover sting operation. According to reports, it would have been the biggest terror attack ever seen on British soil. They also admitted that killing Christians would have been “a bonus”. May this good outcome remind us to keep the Jewish community continually in our prayers.
Justice
We have already mentioned, ‘Awareness’ – understanding the threat, and ‘Protection’ – praying for the safety of Jews. But Jew-hatred must also be effectively prosecuted. The decision by the High Court on Friday ruling that the government proscribing ‘Palestine Action’ as ‘unlawful’, does absolutely nothing to guarantee security for the Jewish community. This gives a green light to members of this group to use illegal means to target Israeli establishments and call for the eradication of Jews, as it has done previously. It is a big mistake by the High Court. It also limits the Police’s powers to clamp down on Jew-hate on UK streets. Pray that any appeal will be successful. Most importantly, pray against the validation that some anti-Israel groups will be feeling after this unnecessary and unjust ruling.
