A minister prays for a second Holocaust against the Jews

I was shocked and appalled to learn recently that a minister in Rio de Janeiro, along with members of his church, have been praying to God for a new Jewish Holocaust to take place. In one of his sermons, Rev. Tupirani da Hora Lores reportedly shouted the following to his congregants:
 
“Massacre the Jews, God, hit them with your sword, for they have left God, they have left the nations…. They contrived, went with prostitutes, and when they were told to repent, they said they’d do it, but they lied…. God, what you have done in World War II, you must do again. This is what we ask for in our prayers to you: justice, justice, justice!”
 
True, the minster is a known extremist Evangelical preacher… and true, his congregation is small. Still, his words brought to mind what one of our readers wrote in response to our call for personal anecdotes about antisemitism. Jerusalemite Benny Benjamin’s two beloved aunts (z”l) were Holocaust survivors. Among other things, Benny observed…
 
“As we know, we can never assume an ‘enlightened’ country will always honor Jews’ right to survive as a people. Unfortunately, we don’t have the luxury of saying, ‘These antisemitic trouble-makers are just a few rabble-rousers and not to be taken seriously.’ ”
 
Of course, many Germans wrote off Adolph Hitler and his cronies at the beginning of the Führer’s “political career” as just a few rabble-rousers. The rest, as they say, is history — maybe its darkest chapter at that.
 
In the interest of full disclosure, Benny and I became good friends way back in the day (late 1960s) when we were living in Israel and studying at Hebrew University of Jerusalem. I was also friendly with the young woman who later became his wife.
 
Since I had no family in Israel, the two aunts in question “adopted” me. Benny and I spent many a weekend in Tel Aviv with them, the husband of one of them, and the couple’s young son. We ate wonderful home cooking, enjoyed the familial warmth, and devotedly observed Shabbat in the traditional way.
 
As noted, the aunt who married after being liberated (from Bergen-Belsen) and her husband — also a wonderful person — had a son. He has grown into a very accomplished and highly respected member of Israeli society. Eventually, he and his wife had six children; at last count, they have eight grandchildren.
 
This is perhaps the best answer to Hitler’s maniacal dream of ridding the world of every last Jew.
 
— Lenny Giteck, Publisher and Editor
 
To read Benny Benjamin’s entire message, click here.here.
To learn more about Tupirani da Hora Lores, click here.