Republic of Hate - Podcast Five - Singing the Lord's Song

Hello and welcome to Republic of Hate – Iran, Israel, and Anti-Semitism, in which we explore Iran’s hatred of Israel, Jews, and the West. These are essays by Dr. Mark Silinsky, president of Kensington Security Consulting, which brings education to the field of national security. And now to podcast five, which is a deeper look at early Jewish history in Iran. It also explores how the Islamic Republic erased Jews from the country’s national memory.             ''This is my country, my Iran. 'When the mullahs made their revolution 20 years ago, I could have left, like many Jews, but I decided not to go. And why? Because my family came here 2,500 years ago.'' An Iranian Jew, 1999 “Singing the Lord’s Song in Strange Land”             King Cyrus established the ancient Persian Empire in the sixth century. He also freed the enslaved Jewish community that had been marched into exile by the Babylonian conquerors in 587-586. Several Psalms mourn the captivity, especially Psalm 137, and describe weeping “by the rivers of Babylon” and the mocking of their captors. The tragedy of exile echoes throughout the Bible in books like Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Lamentations, and Isaiah. European musical masters have set it to music, such as in Verdi’s Nabucco.             Cyrus is the only non-Jew called the “messiah” in the Bible for having freed the Jews from their Babylonian exile: “Thus says the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped.” President Harry Truman, perhaps overstating his importance, said, “I am Cyrus,” after acknowledging Israel in 1948. Similarly, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu linked President Trump to Cyrus after the U.S. moved its embassy to Jerusalem.              Today, many young Iranians honor Cyrus's memory. In the early 2000s, Iranians established "Cyrus the Great Day" to celebrate Iranian nationalism and pre-Islamic history. Threatened by Cyrus’s legacy, the Islamic Republic bans celebrations at Cyrus’s tomb and arrests visitors. Despite this, Iranians still visit the ancient leader’s burial site and chant, “Iran is our homeland; Cyrus is our father.”  The Cyrus Declaration permitted Jews to return to Judea, and some chose to do so. However, others remained in Persia because it had become their home. Warrior-king Cyrus was killed in battle, and his son Cambyses II cared less about the Jews' well-being. But his son Xerxes, also called Ahasuerus, was enchanted by Esther, a legendary and charming Jewish beauty. Both are central figures in the long-lasting festival of Purim. According to religious tradition, Esther and her uncle Mordechai saved the Jews from slaughter by warning Ahasuerus about Haman’s threat, a sinister advisor. Today, Haman is still hated, and Cyrus remains highly respected among Jews. Over the centuries, prosperous and patriotic Jews have named hospitals, vocational and religious schools, and civic centers after Cyrus.              Today, there is no Xerxes to defend Jewish memory, but monuments still stand, even though they are under threat. Historically, Muslims protected the Tomb of Esther and Mordechai, which a Persian-Jewish architect restored under the shah. The structure features a Star of David, visible in aerial photos. After the revolution, this tomb became a site for anti-Israel protests. It was vandalized in 2011 and again in 2020. After Cyrus Overall, life was good for the Jewish community under the early Persian kings. But, like all golden ages, this period of tolerance ended.  "Jews had relatively warm relations with leaders of the Achaemenid dynasty, but Alexander the Great destroyed it, sending back the quality of Jewish life. During the Sassanid dynasty, the Jewish population of Iran grew considerably.             When Zoroastrianism was declared the official state religion during the Sassanid Dynasty, from 224 to 651 CE, the situation for Iran's Jews worsened. The once rich religious culture of the Achaemenid period became more authoritarian. Political and religious leadership combined, giving Zoroastrian clerics more control over the government. Tolerance for non-Zoroastrians decreased. The status of Jews during the Sassanid Era declined: the Sassanids burned synagogues and outlawed celebrating the day of rest, Shabbat. One Sassanid ruler was called "Feroz the Wicked" because he had the Jews of Isfahan murdered. Life became harder for Jews under Islamic law, especially because of the Pact of Omar, which denied non-Muslims equality and stigmatized them. Muslim clerics required Jews to wear a yellow ribbon on their arms and Christians a blue ribbon to tell them apart from Muslims. Persian literature often included negative stereotypes of Jews. Iran’s most famous poet, Hafiz, who lived in the mid to late fourteenth century, portrayed Jews as dishonest and secretive. Another well-known poet, Khaqani from the eleventh century, criticized Jews as "ignoramuses" and "always suspicious."             The plight of the Jews worsened further in 1501 with the rise of the Safavid dynasty. The new regime established the Shia sect as the dominant faith in Iran. Shia clergy declared all non-Shia, including Sunni Muslims, to be ritually unclean. Safavid rulers imposed an even broader range of humiliating and dehumanizing restrictions on Jews: they could not leave their houses on rainy days, build homes with walls taller than those of their Muslim neighbors, paint their houses white, buy property from Muslims, or sell food to them.  This concludes this podcast from Republic of Hate – Iran, Israel, and Anti-Semitism. We welcome your comments. Dr. Silinsky’s latest book – Cauldron of Terror – Israel, Hamas, and the World – will be available for purchase in summer 2026. Nothing in this or any of Dr. Silinsky’s podcasts represents the official position of the United States Department of War, the United States Intelligence Community, or any other agency of the U.S. government. On behalf of Kensington Security Consulting, thank you for listening, and goodbye until our next podcast.