Blood libel
From RationalWiki
The blood libel is an old anti-Semitic trope that claims that Jews use the blood of Christian (or, sometimes, Muslim) children to make their Passover matzo. While generally discarded in modern times in favor of "Jews rule the world" conspiracy theories, the blood libel is still propagated in some Islamic countries and is occasionally still believed even by Western anti-Semites. The consequence of the blood libel myth could be in fact bloody for Jewish populations, as they could result in a pogrom.
[edit] History
This incredible canard began in the first century when it was claimed - without proof - that the Jews carried out human sacrifice in the temple (the Bible and Jewish oral traditions make it pretty clear that the animals were acceptable birds, cattle, and goats). The first occurrence of the idea in western Europe was that the supposed murder in 1144 of William of Norwhich in England, which resulted in the Jews being banned from that country until 1655. The most famous blood libel is known as the Damascus blood libel of 1840. The notoriety generated by this case and progrom was so widespread that American President Martin Van Buren wrote a letter of protest to the Ottoman officials running Syria at the time on behalf of the United States.
[edit] Theology
The whole idea is theologically nonsense, as (cannibalism aside) kashrut forbids the consumption of blood in any form. Furthermore, kashrut limits acceptable mammals to ungulates that chew cud, which humans are not, except in some parts of America.
[edit] Today
While it is perhaps possible to understand how super-superstitious people living in the 12th century might have fallen prey to this ridiculous libel, what is not so easy to understand is how apparently educated people in the 21st century can believe it. Some Jewish groups contend that the meme does show up in different forms (for example a poster protesting Israeli policies once used "canned baby meat" with a "made in Israel" label).
It is perhaps a measure of the ridiculousness of this belief that Metapedia - that home of homophobia, racism and denialism - believes it.
