A new phrase spreading across social media platforms has sparked debate over antisemitic undertones and the way internet users mock pop culture.
The term “Spiritually Israeli” has emerged on TikTok and X, as a pejorative expression describing brands, celebrities and cultural trends that are viewed as shallow, overcommercialized or insincere.
According to the website Know Your Meme, which documents online trends, the phrase originated after Israeli artist Albert Levy posted a TikTok video in which he appeared in uniform and wrote, “I’m an artist from Israel and this is my art,” while showing his paintings. The video drew polarized reactions — some commenters praised his work, while others called it “materialistic” and “soulless.”
That clip laid the groundwork for the first known use of the term a year later, in May 2025, when a user on X commented under a video of a matcha rave in Dubai, writing: “This is Spiritually Israeli.” The post received nearly 10,000 likes and helped propel the phrase across social networks.
By the summer of 2025, Spiritually Israeli had become a viral shorthand for mocking mainstream pop culture. Among those targeted were Taylor Swift, whose October album “The Life of a Showgirl” was labeled Spiritually Israeli in a video that received more than 100,000 likes, and was even liked by Finneas, the brother of singer Billie Eilish. Other items and figures described with the phrase include Dubai-made chocolate, the Burning Man festival, colored contact lenses, Justin Bieber, matcha drinks, Labubu dolls and the sitcom Friends.
On Reddit, users said the phrase is used largely by members of the American left to describe things they view as culturally hollow — sometimes extending that critique to Israeli culture itself. It has come to denote what some see as inauthentic or corporate, including companies accused of greed or moral hypocrisy, and trends that people feel pressured to admire.
However, growing numbers of users and Jewish organizations have condemned the phrase as antisemitic. Critics argue that replacing the word “Jewish” with “Israeli” masks age-old stereotypes portraying Jews as greedy or manipulative.
“The phrase Spiritually Israeli is barely disguised antisemitism, and it’s such a weird thing to say,” one social media user wrote, receiving hundreds of hostile replies.
The Instagram account @jewstalkjustice, which promotes awareness of antisemitism and social justice issues, said in a post: “Antisemitism doesn’t need to use the word ‘Jew’ to express hatred of Jews. Often people hide it behind words like ‘Israeli’ or ‘Zionist.’ Spiritually Israeli relies on antisemitic stereotypes — portraying Jews as bloodthirsty, greedy and obsessed with money.”