Supersessionism, or replacement theology, is one of many teachings associated with Judaism and Christianity. It is based on the suggestion that God has taken away the blessing gifted to Jewish people because of their sins and has given it to the church (Jewish Voice, 2018). The gift involves the so-called everlasting covenant – the pact stating that Jews are God’s chosen people and he is always with them. According to the replacement theology, God reconsidered his decisions after Israel had disobeyed him and lost faith.
Rabbi Jack Zimmerman, the staff evangelist for Jewish Voice Ministries International, provides several arguments in his short video about why the replacement theology is erroneous. Firstly, Zimmerman argues that God is omniscient, meaning he had known that Jewish people would sin long before they did (Jewish Voice, 2018). If God did not want to create an everlasting covenant with people because they were sinful, he would not do it since he could easily predict their actions. Secondly, Zimmerman refers to the Bible: “for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (The Bible: Authorized King James Version, 2008, Romans 3:23). God knows that all people are sinners, and he accepts them. Therefore, there was no reason for God to take his everlasting covenant from one group of people and give it to another one, considering that both groups are sinful, as all people are. Thirdly, Zimmerman refers to chapter 11 of Romans: “I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid.” (The Bible: Authorized King James Version, 2008, Romans 11:1). Overall, the Bible itself states that God has not rejected his people.
Personally, I do not find supersessionism a convincing theological theory since I do not see any actual reasons for the main principles of the replacement theology to be true. Zimmerman’s references to the Bible and his arguments about God’s omniscience seem reasonable and conclusive, and I share his viewpoint. I believe that if the replacement theology were true, that would mean that God made a mistake when he entrusted the Jewish people with the everlasting covenant, and God is never mistaken. However, supersessionism is a matter of significant concern for many Jewish and Christian people, being one of the primary interests in interreligious discussion (Levine, 2022). Therefore, I would like to respect other people’s beliefs and keep my own position to myself.
References
The Bible: Authorized King James Version. (2008). OUP Oxford.
Jewish Voice. (2018). Replacement theology explained in 6 minutes [Video]. YouTube. Web.
Levine, A. J. (2022). Supersessionism: Admit and Address Rather than Debate or Deny. Religions, 13(2), 155.