Kathie Lee Gifford told Larry King last night that The Passion of The Christ was in no way anti-Semitic.

Here’s part of the transcript:

GIFFORD: You know what, we had a screening of it in our own home a couple weeks ago. And I had a lot of friends who were curious about it.

KING: You're not Catholic?

GIFFORD: I'm not Catholic. No, I am a very bad Christian.

KING: Rooming.

GIFFORD: I try to live my life according the way Jesus lived his but I'm human and don't do that great. The movie was the most powerful thing that I've ever seen in my life. Without a doubt. As great a "Braveheart" was, this is 10 times "Braveheart." This is the most powerful film I've ever seen. People that could not speak for 10 minutes afterwards.

KING: What about the anti-Semitism?

GIFFORD: Not a bit. Then you are going to have to call the whole New Testament anti-Semitic. If you want to do that, fine. But I think the people that are calling are doing it because they have a certain agenda that is just unfair. They're defaming, Mel, actually.

KING: Some responsible people have said it, some very responsible people.

GIFFORD: Yes, they have. I have a Jewish gay friend, one of my dearest friend, who watched it in our home. And afterwards he said to me, it's not anti-semitic at all. If a Jewish guy killed somebody else a month ago in the Bronx, am I responsible for it?

It is bothersome to me that people like Gifford are so dismissive of Jewish concerns. People have e-mailed me or posted comments on my blog with similar statements.

Yes, fellow Christians, the followers of Jesus have done terrible violence to the Jews in the name of Christ. There is, in fact, anti-Semitism in the New Testament. I wonder if Gifford has ever studied it.

What bothers me the most are her comments that Jewish leaders are simply trying to defame Gibson. That statement alone smacks of anti-Semitism on Gifford’s part and a total disregard for history.