I don't believe that in my 25 years I have ever written a Vine column on anti-Semitism. That is not to say that I do not believe anti-Semitism exists; it does, I know. It is just that in this country, on the whole, Jews are accepted almost everywhere. We have influence and stature far beyond our numbers. I read recently that in Vanity Fair's listing last fall of the "New Establishment"--100 most influential people in the world--51 were Jewish, as were half of the 30 young "moguls in the making." By so many scores, we have "made it."

Such success could lead a cynic among us to argue that this is the stuff about which anti-Semites dream. It provides them with fodder. This is reminiscent of the old joke of the two Jews sitting on a streetcar in Berlin in 1938--Abe is reading the "Berlin Jewish Weekly;" his friend Max is reading the "Nazi News." Abe asks Max how he could possibly read that paper. Max responds that when he reads Abe's paper it is all "bad news." "The Jews are prohibited from working here, shopping there, they have been arrested here, and a synagogue or two firebombed yet somewhere else...bad news, bad news, bad news. The "Nazi News" is different--here all good news about the Jews: We control the banks, we control the newspapers, we control all the industry and international trade--about us, all good news!"

So, great was my surprise when I read about Arun Gandhi's recent posting on the March 2008 washingtonpost.com blog "On Faith," which focuses on religion in America. Mr. Gandhi, the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, wrote an essay in January titled "Jewish Identity Can't Depend on Violence." It began:

"Jewish identity in the past has been locked into the holocaust experience--a German burden that the Jews have not been able to shed. It is a very good example of [how] a community can overplay a historic experience to the point that it begins to repulse friends. The holocaust was the result of the warped mind of an individual who was able to influence his followers into doing something dreadful. But, it seems to me the Jews today not only want the Germans to feel guilty but the whole world must regret what happened to the Jews...."

I don't even know where to start. Jewish identity locked into the Holocaust experience? Jewish identity is rooted in Torah. Perhaps Mr. Gandhi means that Jews have not been able to "get over" the Holocaust, to which I respond that when one-third of your family is murdered by what had been considered the most civilized people on Earth while the world does nothing--yes, it takes some time to recover. Survivors of the brutality and children of victims and survivors alike are still absorbing the shock of the trauma.

Mr. Gandhi continues:

"The Jewish identity in the future appears bleak. Any nation that remains anchored to the past is unable to move ahead and, especially a nation that believes its survival can only be ensured by weapons and bombs."

Thank you for your assessment, Mr. Gandhi. I think it is safe to assume that Mr. Gandhi is not a reader of Vanity Fair, or is unaware of thriving Jewish life all over North America--let alone the cultural vitality of modern Israel. Our success in this country can be at least partially attributed to both the freedom and protection afforded by the state, enshrined from the very beginning in George Washington's famous words to the Jews of Newport, R.I.: "To bigotry no sanction...." Additionally, the very existence of Israel serves to reinforce our sense of "place" in the world. As for "weapons and bombs," we tried survival without "weapons and bombs" in Europe and it didn't work out so well. Israel understands that its survival without "weapons and bombs" would be brief. More to the point, which countries does Mr. Gandhi prefer? Which ones don't have "weapons and bombs"? His native India, perhaps? Pakistan? Syria? Iran? Perhaps Mr. Gandhi is talking about some of the inhabitants of Southern Lebanon.

Mr. Gandhi concludes his diatribe with this profundity:

"We have created a culture of violence (Israel and the Jews are the biggest players) and that Culture of Violence is eventually going to destroy humanity."

Grotesque, hateful, ignorant, bigoted. At the time he wrote the essay, Mr. Gandhi was president of the M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence at the University of Rochester. After his essay ignited a firestorm, he resigned, the editors of "On Faith" apologized and the president of the university said he was "deeply disappointed." America has once again worked: "To bigotry no sanction...."

This month brings us Purim--wherein we boo Haman and celebrate the defeat of his evil plot to rid Persia of Jews. We celebrate the defeat of this evil as a children's holiday of joy, merrymaking, hamentaschen and costumes. It is almost as if we try to avoid fully confronting the serious message of the day. The Scroll of Esther is the only book in the Bible that does not mention God. This late biblical book opens the door to the rest of Jewish history. Jewish survival will no longer be insured by God's miracles. No waters part to bring Haman to justice. Esther and Mordecai act by their own wisdom and courage.

At this season, Mr. Gandhi reminds us that anti-Semitism takes many forms. Each of us, too, should act by our own wisdom and courage and speak the truth from our hearts when we confront the Arun Gandhis that yet live in our world.