Holocaust victims ‘balancing karma’ from past, claims Hollywood actress
American actress Shirley MacLaine has sparked outrage by saying the murder of six million Jews in the Holocaust may have been “karma from ages before”.
The 80-year old actress who won an oscar for Terms of Endearment, and has also stared in Downton Abbey, suggested in her memoir entitled ‘A Lifetime Of Questions, Speculations, Reasonable Guesses And A Few Things I Know For Sure’, that Holocaust victims may be “balancing their karma from ages before”
“When they were Roman soldiers putting Christians to death, the Crusaders who murdered millions in the name of Christianity, soldiers with Hannibal, or those who stormed across the Near East with Alexander? The energy of killing is endless and will be experienced by the killer and the killee.”
Reacting to the comment, a spokesperson for the Community Security Trust told the Mail: “The first impressions are that these comments will offend and bemuse many Jews – and many other people too.’
In addition to her comments regarding the Holocaust, she said that world renowned scientist Stephen Hawkins, who suffers from Motor-Neurone disease, brought the disease on himself.
She said “Did he ‘create’ the disease that has crippled him in order to learn to be dependent on caregivers and the kindness of strangers”, “so he could free his entire mind to the pursuit of knowledge?”
Disability rights groups have heavily criticised her.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
