Jarryd says sorry
San Francisco 49ers running back and former Parramatta rugby league player Jarryd Hayne has apologised for tweets he made recently stating that the Jews killed Jesus.
Using the same social media network, the former Sydney footballer Hayne has tweeted:
The B’nai B’rith’s Ant-Defamationion Commission’s Dvir Abramovich told J-Wire: “Jarryd Hayne did the right thing by reaching out directly to the Jewish community.
I very much welcome his heartfelt apology and pleased that he has disassociated himself from his hurtful remarks. We take him at his word that he genuinely regrets his unacceptable tweets and that he recognises that his offensive comments were wrong.
Mr Hayne has made it clear that he condemns any form of racism and bigotry and it is gratifying that he has called on his fans to follow his lead and become advocates for the values of tolerance, diversity and respect for people of all faiths. It takes a champion to admit he made a mistake and I appreciate Jarryd’s remorse.
As a role model for many, this was certainly an important step.
As far as I am concerned, the matter is closed.
Now that this episode is behind us, the ADC is willing to work with Mr Hayne on a campaign that will build bridges between different communities and promote inclusiveness, co-operation and education. This episode is a reminder that we all have a role to play in standing united and declaring in one voice that religious stereotypes and bias have no place in our society.
I am certain that in the future Mr Hayne will always speak out against antisemitism and against all forms of hatred.”
Sorry, but this sounds like a TV comedy skit that I saw once, where a gorilla sportsman read a lawyer enriched statement regretting the offence he had caused due to his own insensitive comments. It came across as authentic as the plastic replica food plates in the windows of some Asian restaurants do.
These forced and often too glib statements just seem to suggest ‘don’t get caught out’ to many readers, they don’t explain why such vitriolic beliefs should and must be changed.
Nowhere, in this cardboard copy of an apology, is there any suggestion of the lack of basic logic shown in blaming of the Jewish people for Jesus’ crucifixion. For instance, when would the all powerful Roman Empire ask a conquered people for its judgement? Jewish priests and people were not considered citizens of Rome. They were subjugated, only good for whipping, ordering about and taxing. How is a Roman Governor going to listen to the local ‘rabble’ in any case? This trial of Jesus (for argument’s sake) was a show trial.
Sadly the ‘Christkiller’ accusation is still alive today. While working at an inner city charity, I had to explain this to one coworker who broached the subject. For him to ‘get it’ I had to ask him if John Howard (PM at the time) would listen to the suggestions of an Aboriginal group and enact their judgment. (This was at the time of the Govt Intervention in NT Aboriginal communities.) Finally, he got it. You could see the veritable light dawning in his eyes. He wasn’t happy. It wasn’t comfortable. Yet he accepted it. Later he came to admit that some of his Greek Orthodox beliefs might not be realistic.
Deconstructing dangerous myths takes time and depth of argument, often using logic to gently remove long encrusted prejudices. For this we need to speak up.
Slim, glib twitter apologies are not enough. Better had Jarryd Hayne EXPLAINED WHY his ideas were wrong. Had he done this, we might have found his apology to be believable. Also, others reading his explained apology would have perhaps thought long about their own beliefs. They might have their own lights switched on.
Twitter retractions are not enough….They still leave the ‘twit’ in Twitter.
what a pathetic apology.I dont believe a word of it.
Well, he does say that he took the tweet down once he realised his words were incorrect, which is in effect implying he now thinks differently on the issue. However, certainly I agree that the focus should be on the lie handed down through the ages by Christians and not the perceived hurt to the Jewish people and the apology.
Retraction and apology by itself puts everything into neutral. We have to be far more active and aggressive about re-educating people.
Due to political correctness this poor guy has been forced to apologise for something he truly believes in because of his religious indoctrination from day one.
The error of the Jewish leadership is that they always want someone to retract statements but never have the courage to engage in serious dialogue pointing out the blatant untruths of certain aspects of the Christian Gospels. That would take courage and possession of a spine.
Hayne apologised because his words were “hurtful” not that he was given counter points of view so that he could apologise for not realising the blatant untruths of his comments.
I’d rather he were told the situation as I’ve reiterated umpteen times and on his own disowned his comments and declared he has come to the conclusion that what he has been fed from birth was a lie and that Jews killed nobody, “collectively” or otherwise.
That would be far preferable to the spectacle we now see where he is forced to apologise because he hurt someone’s feelings and not that his comments were wrong.
Spot on Gil. I must comment that most people, Jews and “Christians”, alike have no understanding of scripture or Christianity. Perhaps those who are interested could go to “Ariel Ministries” who have excellent studies or read “In the Footsteps of the Messiah” written by Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum who is the founder of Ariel Ministries, I’ll leave it in God’s hands and in His word.