A Maimonides statue in Córdoba was defaced. His writings have an answer to hate - opinion
When you deface a statue of Maimonides, it is about only one thing: Judaism.
On July 31, a swastika was spray-painted onto the base of a bronze statue of Maimonides in Córdoba, Spain, igniting outrage and condemnation. Despite efforts to deface the site, the statue remained focused on addressing the deeper issue at hand: the presence of hate. Maimonides, considered one of the greatest thinkers in Jewish history, would have wanted to impart wisdom about the nature of hatred rather than dwell on the attacker.
Born in Córdoba around 1135, he was a rabbinic judge in a city ruled by a relatively tolerant Almoravid dynasty. However, his world was shattered when the Almohads, a fundamentalist Berber movement, took control and forced Jews to convert or leave. Maimonides, born with three names (Rambam, Maimonides, and Musa ibn Maymun), recognized that hatred often stems from ignorance, which is the absence of wisdom.
In his writings, he traced the various forms of persecution throughout history, such as outright killing, argument, and the rise of rival faiths, asserting that none would succeed in eradicating the Jewish people. Instead, Maimonides advocated for a simple solution: leaving one's home and seeking refuge where they could live without coercion.
He also emphasized the importance of judging the persecutors, rather than the persecuted, urging tolerance and understanding. Nearly nine centuries later, his message remains relevant, urging us to recognize the failure of hatred in the past and to remain vigilant against its continued presence.
Written by urgent.news from Jerusalem Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
