During the early and middle part of the 19th century, the view that children belonged first and foremost to the state was spreading among many school leaders at both the national and municipal level. Of course, the family took care of children’s physical care, but the mind of the child must be formed by the state. It can be quite difficult to imagine the power of this doctrine and the fierce opposition it encountered among poor and religious families. Many parents felt an instinctive horror at the prospect of sending their children to a school where a powerful state would teach them how to think and believe. It is no wonder that some parents kept their children at home rather than submit to what they believed to be indoctrination. By way of contrast, Dutch theologian and statesman Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920) believed that children belong first and foremost to their parents, whose duty and right it is to nurture and educate them in accordance with their own deepest beliefs. While the state has an interest in the education of its citizenry, it does not have the responsibility to manage or direct that education.

On December 10, 2019, shoppers in a Kosher market in Jersey City, N.J., became the targets of anti-Semitic violence. Two men opened fire in the grocery store, killing four people. Just a few weeks later, a man wielding a machete broke into a rabbi’s home in Monsey, New York, and stabbed five people who were in the midst of celebrating Hanukkah. One victim, 72-year-old Josef Neumann, was the most seriously injured and currently remains in a coma. These two atrocious incidents are just a fraction of a trend anti-Semitic attacks in the United States. In a letter written to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, four New York Jewish officials wrote that, “Simply stated, it is no longer safe to be identifiably Orthodox in the State of New York. We cannot shop, walk down the street, send our children to school, or even worship in peace.’’ Not even a full century after the Holocaust, anti-Semitism is once again rearing its ugly head. What's causing the outbreak and what can be done to counteract this hatred? Rev. Ben Johnson, managing editor at Acton, breaks it down.