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{{Short description|none}} <!-- This short description is INTENTIONALLY "none" - please see WP:SDNONE before you consider changing it! --> | |||
'''Relations between Catholicism and Judaism''' concern the two thousand year history and rivalry between ] and ], in particular with the ]. Relations at times have been strained, but have improved notably during the pontificate of ]. | |||
{{Catholic Church sidebar}} | |||
The '''Catholic Church and Judaism''' have a long and complex history of cooperation and conflict, and have had a strained relationship throughout history, with periods of ] and ], particularly during the ]{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}. | |||
The Catholic Church, as the largest ], traces its roots back to the ], while ] is the oldest ]. ] started as a movement within Judaism in the mid-1st century. Worshipers of the diverging religions initially co-existed, but began branching out under ]. In 380, Christianity became the state religion of the ]{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}, and a power on its own after the ]. As Christianity grew and became the dominant religion in the Roman Empire, the relationship between the two religions began to change with the Catholic Church, which emerged as the main institution of Christianity, starting to view Judaism as a rival religion{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}. In the 4th century, the ] ] converted to Christianity and made it the state religion{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}. The Church began to suppress the practice of Judaism and forced many Jews to convert to Christianity{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}. This persecution continued for several centuries{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}, with Jews being subjected to ]{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}, ], and massacres. | |||
==] A.D.–]== | |||
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Catholicism traditionally taught that without belief in ] as ] and as the ], it would be impossible for any person to have a relationship with God; the result of a lack of such a relationship is "damnation". All Jews were considered to have "forsaken" God by not "accepting" Jesus as the messiah. Some even went so far as to view Jews as being "collectively responsible" for the death of Jesus, despite the protestions of many pontiffs and fellow Catholics. | |||
During the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church institutionalized ]{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}} through the creation of discriminatory laws{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}} and the establishment of the ]{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}. This led{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}} to widespread persecution of Jews, including forced conversions, expulsions, and ]. Jews were expelled from Catholic kingdoms, including ] and ] and many of the principalities and cities of the ] and Italy. | |||
===The Crusades and the Inquisition=== | |||
<!-- Fill in this section with the suffering of the Jews at the hands of Catholics --> | |||
The era of the ]s and the ] resulted in many ]s being killed or forcibly converted to Catholicism by the Catholic Crusaders and Inquisitors over many centuries and in many countries, mainly in ]. However, many Catholics also strongly opposed the persecution of the Jews. This topic of Catholic opposition to anti-Semitism is covered extensively in the article ]. | |||
After ] in the 20th century, the ] in the 1960s led to improvements in the relationship between the Catholic Church and Judaism, following the Church's repudiation{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}} of the ] accusation and its addressing the topic of antisemitism. In 1965, the Church issued the document "]" which condemned antisemitism and recognized the shared heritage of Jews and Christians. Since the 1970s, interfaith committees have met regularly to address relations between the religions, and Catholic and Jewish institutions have continued to work together on issues such as social justice, interfaith dialogue, and Holocaust education. The Catholic Church has also taken steps to address the harm caused by past persecution of Jews, such as the establishment of the ] and the ] to the Jewish community. | |||
==] A.D.–]== | |||
== |
== Background == | ||
] of Jesus and his disciples may have been to mark to the ]. Today, Christians recall the Last Supper in the ].]] | |||
The ], commonly known as ''Vatican II'', was a pastoral ] of the ] church opened under ] in ] and closed under ] in ]. One of the most revolutionary changes that resulted from interpretations of this council's documents are those which concerned the document '']''. | |||
{{See|Paul the Apostle and Jewish Christianity|Anti-Judaism in early Christianity|Antisemitism in Christianity}} | |||
] started as a ] in ] in the Roman province of ] in the mid-1st century. The first Christians were ] and the ] was aided by the wide extent of the ]. Although ] was not accepted as the ] by Jewish leaders, worshipers of the diverging religions initially co-existed within the Jewish synagogues, reading the Jewish scriptures, singing the ] and joining in the various rituals of the ]. ] in subsequent centuries, but modern Catholicism has retained much of its Hebrew literary heritage, the Old Testament (]).<ref>Geoffrey Blainey; ]; Viking; 2011; pp.32-35</ref> | |||
Even as ] and ] increasingly began to attend Christian worship, the Jewish framework remained strong. ] initially took part in the ], but following his ], he became a leading exponent for Christianity branching away from Judaism and becoming a religion open to all, which could move away from ] and the ].<ref>Geoffrey Blainey; ]; Viking; 2011; pp.37-38</ref> Judaism was recognized as a legal religion by ] but the relationship was volatile resulting in several ]. Christianity did not receive legal recognition until the 313 ]. The reign of the ] elevated Christianity to the preferred religion of the Roman State - while reducing the position of paganism and Judaism, with Christianity becoming the ] in 380. The dominance of Christianity was to flourish and outlast the Roman Empire.<ref>Geoffrey Blainey; ]; Viking; 2011; pp.72-75</ref> | |||
:''True, the Jewish authorities and those who followed their lead pressed for the death of Christ; still, what happened in His passion cannot be charged against all the Jews, without distinction, then alive, nor against the Jews of today. Although the Church is the new people of God, the Jews should not be presented as rejected or accursed by God, as if this followed from the Holy Scriptures. All should see to it, then, that in catechetical work or in the preaching of the word of God they do not teach anything that does not conform to the truth of the Gospel and the spirit of Christ. Furthermore, in her rejection of every persecution against any man, the Church, mindful of the patrimony she shares with the Jews and moved not by political reasons but by the Gospel's spiritual love, decries hatred, persecutions, displays of anti-Semitism, directed against Jews at any time and by anyone.'' | |||
Following the ], and during the ], the Catholic Church became a temporal power in its own right. | |||
In 1971 the Catholic Church established an ''International Liaison Committee'' for itself and the ''International Jewish Committee for Interreligious Consultations'' (this Committee is not a part of the Church's ''Magisterium''). | |||
===The Black Death=== | |||
==]–]== | |||
{{see also|Jewish persecutions during the Black Death}} | |||
].]] | |||
The "]" ] swept through Asia and the Middle East and into Europe between 1347 and 1350, and is believed to have killed between a third and two-thirds of ]. Popular opinion blamed the Jews for the plague, and violence directed at them erupted throughout the continent.<ref>{{cite book|author=L. Steiman|title=Paths to Genocide: Antisemitism in Western History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vxx_DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA37 |year=1997 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan UK|location=Basingstoke|isbn=978-0-230-37133-0|page=37}}</ref> | |||
Pope John Paul II wrote and delivered a number of speeches on the subject of the Church's relationship with ]s, and often paid homage to the victims of ] in many nations. He was the first pope to visit the ] in ], in ]. | |||
In defence of the Jews, ] issued two ] in 1348 (6 July and 26 September), the latter named ''Quamvis Perfidiam'', which condemned the violence and said those who blamed the plague on the Jews had been "seduced by that liar, the Devil."<ref name=Skolnik1>{{cite book |last1=Skolnik |first1=Fred |last2=Berenbaum |first2=Michael |title=Encyclopaedia Judaica: Ba-Blo |publisher=Granite Hill Publishers |isbn=9780028659312 |page=733 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jblYAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA733 |access-date=30 January 2015 }}{{Dead link|date=November 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> He went on to emphasise that "It cannot be true that the Jews, by such a heinous crime, are the cause or occasion of the plague, because through many parts of the world the same plague, by the hidden judgment of God, has afflicted and afflicts the Jews themselves and many other races who have never lived alongside them."<ref>{{cite book |last=Simonsohn |first=Shlomo |title=Apostolic See and the Jews|publisher=Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, Vol. 1: Documents, 492 |place=Toronto |date=1991 |page=1404 |isbn=9780888441096}}</ref> He urged clergy to take action to protect Jews and offered them papal protection in the city of ]. | |||
One of the few popes to have grown up in a climate of flourishing Jewish culture, one of the key components of pre-war Kraków, his interest in Jewish life dated from early youth. His visit to The Great ] was the first known visit to a synagogue by a modern pope.] On ], ], after John Paul II's death, the ], a Jewish organization, stated that the Pope had revolutionised Catholic-Jewish relations, saying that "more change for the better took place in his 27 year Papacy than in the nearly 2000 years before." (''Pope John Paul II: An Appreciation: A Visionary Remembered'') | |||
===Jewish "perfidy"=== | |||
===Modern Catholic teachings about Judaism=== | |||
{{main|Good Friday prayer for the Jews}} | |||
On May 4, 2001, at the ''17th International Catholic-Jewish Liaison Committee in NYC'', they stated that they would seek changes in how Judaism is dealt with in Catholic seminaries. In part, they state: | |||
A new understanding of the relationship between Catholics and Jews is also reflected in the revised liturgy of ] in a particular way. The pre-1962 version of the ] of the Roman Rite had Catholics praying that the "''perfidis Judaeis''" might be converted to "the truth". The English cognate "perfidious" had, over the centuries, gradually acquired the sense of "treacherous". In order to eliminate misunderstanding on this point, ] ordered in 1955 that, in Catholic ]s, the Latin word "perfidis" be properly translated "unbelieving", ensuring that the prayer be understood in its original sense: praying for the Jews who remained "unbelieving" concerning the Messiah. Indeed, the same adjective was used in many of the ancient rituals for receiving non-Christian converts into the Catholic Church. | |||
Owing to the enduring potential for confusion and misunderstanding because of the divergence of English usage from the original Latin meaning, ] ordered that the Latin adjective "perfidis" be dropped from the ]; in 1960 he ordered it removed from all rituals for the reception of converts.<ref>See: . '']''. August 15, 1960.</ref> As part of the revision of the ], the prayer was completely rewritten. The current prayer of the Roman Liturgy for Good Friday prays for "the Jewish people, first to hear the word of God, that they may continue to grow in the love of His name and in faithfulness to ]." | |||
:''The curricula of Catholic seminaries and schools of theology should reflect the central importance of the church's new understanding of its relationship to Jews....Courses on Bible, patristics, early church history and liturgy should incorporate recent scholarship on Christian origins. Illumining the complex developments by which both the church and rabbinic Judaism emerged from early Judaism will establish a substantial foundation for ameliorating "the painful ignorance of the history and traditions of Judaism of which only negative aspects and often caricature seem to form part of the stock ideas of many Christians"'' (Notes on the ''Correct Way to Present Jews and Judaism in Catholic Preaching and Catechesis'', #27, 1985). | |||
===Jewish deicide === | |||
:''...Courses dealing with the biblical, historical and theological aspects of relations between Jews and Christians should be an integral part of the seminary and theologate curriculum, and not merely electives. All who graduate from Catholic seminaries and theology schools should have studied the revolution in Catholic teaching on Jews and Judaism from ] to the prayer of Pope John Paul II in Jerusalem at the Western Wall on March 26, 2000....For historic reasons, many Jews find it difficult to overcome generational memories of anti-Semitic oppression. Therefore: Lay and Religious Jewish leaders need to advocate and promote a program of education in our Jewish schools and seminaries - about the history of Catholic-Jewish relations and knowledge of Christianity and its relationship to Judaism....Encouragement of dialogue between the two faiths does involve recognition, understanding and respect for each other's beliefs, without having to accept them. It is particularly important that Jewish schools teach about the ], and subsequent documents and attitudinal changes which opened new perspectives and possibilities for both faiths.'' | |||
In 1962, ] opened the ], a pastoral ] of the ]. It closed under ] in 1965. One of the most revolutionary changes that resulted from interpretations of this council's documents concerned the Church's attitude to Jews and Judaism. | |||
Among other things, the Second Vatican Council addressed the charge of ], repudiating the belief in the collective Jewish guilt for the ] stating that, even though some Jewish authorities and those who followed them called for ]' death, the blame for what happened cannot be laid at the door of all Jews living at that time, nor can the Jews in our time be held guilty. The council issued the declaration '']'' ("In Our Time"), which reads in part: | |||
This new understanding of the relationship between Christians and Jews is reflected in the revised liturgy of ] in a particular way. The 1962 edition of the ] had Catholics praying for the "perfidious Jews" that they might convert to the truth. The current prayer prays for "the Jewish people, first to hear the word of God, that they may continue to grow in the love of his name and in faithfulness to his covenant." | |||
:True, the Jewish authorities and those who followed their lead pressed for the death of Christ; still, what happened in His passion cannot be charged against all the Jews, without distinction, then alive, nor against the Jews of today. The Jews should not be presented as rejected or accursed by God, as if this followed from the Holy Scriptures. All should see to it, then, that in catechetical work or in the preaching of the word of God they do not teach anything that does not conform to the truth of the Gospel and the spirit of Christ. | |||
===The Carmelite Nun convent at Auschwitz=== | |||
The Polish national Catholic bishops conferences supported the attempt of Carmelite Nuns to establish a convent at the former ] ]-run ] located at ], so crucial to ]. Differences over the place of this convent caused some sectors of the Jewish community to become hostile to the idea of building a Catholic institution on the ground where mass ] of the Jews was carried out. Jewish groups believed that this was inappropriate, and some groups engaged in peaceful protest. At one point the nuns at the convent accused ] ] ], of Riverdale, Bronx, NY, of attempting to assault them when he silently protested at the site. The Vatican did not support this convent, but since Vatican II each national bishops conference had local autonomy. Rabbi Leon Klenicki, founding member the of ''Interfaith Theological Forum'' of the ''John Paul II Center'' in Washington, D.C., said: | |||
===Antisemitism{{anchor|Antisemitism}}=== | |||
:''Since Vatican II, each national bishops’ conference has its freedom to deal with local issues. Once the nuns took that place, that was under the jurisdiction of the Polish national bishops’ conference, not the Vatican. The pope couldn’t say anything. The pope intervened when the bishops’ conference was not strong enough to stop the convent. When he realized that nothing was being done, he issued an order for the nuns to move.'' (Lipman, 2005) | |||
]'s 598 Bull wrote of a duty of Christians to protect Jews, which became official Church doctrine.]] | |||
{{see also|Sicut Judaeis}} | |||
'']'' restates the Church attitude to ], and describes the Church's relationship with Jews as a shared patrimony: | |||
:Furthermore, in her rejection of every persecution against any man, the Church, mindful of the patrimony she shares with the Jews and moved not by political reasons but by the Gospel's spiritual love, decries hatred, persecutions, displays of anti-Semitism, directed against Jews at any time and by anyone. | |||
===Visit to the State of Israel=== | |||
In March ], Pope John Paul II went to ] memorial ] in ] and touched the holiest outward remaining shrine of the ]ish people, the ] in ], in the hope of promoting ]-]ish reconciliation. The Pope has said that Jews are "our elder brothers." | |||
The Church attitude to the mistreatment of Jews is not new, though the experience of the Holocaust brought on an urgency to its renewal. Around 400, ], one of the most influential and foundational figures of Catholic theology, preached that the Jews must be protected for their ability to explain the Old Testament. Around 598, in reaction to anti-Jewish attacks by Christians in ], Pope ] (c. 540–604) brought Augustine's teachings into Roman Law, by writing a ] which became the foundation of Catholic ] in relation to the Jews and specified that, although the Jews had not accepted salvation through Christ, and were therefore condemned by God until such time as they accept ], Christians were nevertheless duty-bound to protect the Jews as an important part of Christian civilization.<ref name="ReferenceA">Lecture by Dr ]: The Church and the Jews II: Popes Gregory I and Leo III; published by iTunes, 2009</ref> The Bull said that Jews should be treated equitably and justly, that their property rights should be protected, and that they should keep their own festivals and religious practices.<ref name="newadvent.org">. ''Catholic Encyclopedia''. 22 June 2013</ref> Thus, in the ], Jews enjoyed a level of protection in law.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> | |||
In October ], the ] (ADL) issued a statement congratulating Pope John Paul II on entering the 25th year of his papacy: | |||
:''"His deep commitment to reconciliation between the Catholic Church and the Jewish people has been fundamental to his papacy. Jews throughout the world are deeply grateful to the Pope. He has defended the Jewish people at all times, as a priest in his native Poland and during his pontificate... We pray that he remains healthy for many years to come, that he achieves much success in his holy work and that Catholic-Jewish relations continue to flourish."'' | |||
While a "persecuting spirit" often existed among the general population through the Middle Ages, Jewish communities often had to turn to the ] for protection.<ref name="newadvent.org"/> Papal Bulls reiterating the duty of protection were issued by various Popes, Following attacks on Jews by the ], during which over five thousand Jews were slaughtered in Europe, ] ({{Circa|1120}}) issued "]", which served as a papal charter of protection to Jews. Following further attacks, the bull was reaffirmed by many popes including ], ] (1191–1198), ] (1199), ] (1216), ] (1235), ] (1246), ] (1255), ] (1262), ] (1272 and 1274), ], ] (1281), ] (1285–1287), ] (1288–1292), ] (1348), ] (1365), ] (1389), ] (1422), and ] (1447).<ref>Deutsch, Gotthard; Jacobs, Joseph (1906). in ''The Jewish Encyclopedia'', KTAV Publishing, New York. Accessed 12 July 2013.</ref><ref>Simonsohn, Shlomo (1988). ''The Apostolic See and the Jews, Documents: 492-1404''. Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, pp. 68, 143, 211, 242, 245-246, 249, 254, 260, 265, 396, 430, 507.</ref> The bull forbade Christians, on pain of ], from ], from harming them, from taking their property, from disturbing the ], and from interfering with their cemeteries. After then, the doctrine was maintained in form only, with many anti-Jewish measures being enacted and certain Popes, including ], oppressed the Jews.{{citation needed|date=October 2016}} | |||
===Jewish critiques of Catholic positions: 1980s-2005=== | |||
Given the significant differences between Catholic Christianity and Judaism, it should not be surprising that a number of points of dispute exist between the Catholic Church and the Jewish community. A number of issues supported by John Paul II caused dissension within elements of the Jewish community, including: | |||
==The Second World War and the Holocaust== | |||
*The ] of ], who many Jewish groups believe did little to aid Jews during ]. | |||
In the modern world, anti-Jewish sentiment reached its zenith with the murderous racial antisemitism of the ] ]. In the aftermath of the defeat of Hitler's Germany, and discovery of the extent of Nazi ]s, the long history of Christian ] came to be critically examined by scholars attempting to explain the origins of the Holocaust. | |||
*The Vatican has allowed only partial access to its extensive World War II era archives. Many Jewish groups believe that full access to this archive would show that Pope Pius XII deliberately did not do enough to help the Jews, and that may show some sympathy for Nazi Germany. | |||
*How to deal with baptised Jewish children during the ] who were never returned to their Jewish families and people. | |||
*The canonization of ] as Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. Stein was a Jew who died in the Nazi death camp, ]. | |||
*Jewish groups were grateful for his 1994 ''We Remember: A Reflection on the Shoah'', which offered a ''mea culpa'' for the role of Christians in the Holocaust. However, many Jewish groups felt that this statement was insufficient, as it focused on individual members of the Church who helped the Nazis, portraying them as acting against the teachings of the Church. This portrayal is considered by some to be a "]" defense, as it absolved the Church itself of any blame. | |||
*Vatican positions on some aspects of ]i policy | |||
*The Pope John Paul saw all ] as murder, while for reasons endangering one's physical health, or in some cases one's mental health, Judaism views abortions as permissible. | |||
Pope John XXIII acknowledged the role of the church in creating and perpetuating Christian antisemitism. Prior to his death in 1963, John prepared a document to be read by every Roman Catholic Church on a fixed date: | |||
Nonetheless, the number of issues that divide Jewish groups and the Vatican have dropped significantly during the last forty years. | |||
{{quote|We are conscious today that many many centuries of blindness have cloaked our eyes so that we can no longer either see the beauty of Thy Chosen People nor recognize in their faces the features of our privileged brethren. We realize that the mark of Cain stands upon our foreheads. Across the centuries our brother Abel has lain in the blood which we drew or shed the tears we caused by forgetting Thy Love. Forgive us for the curse we falsely attached to their name as Jews. Forgive us for crucifying Thee a second time in their flesh. For we knew not what we did. .. <ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.commentary.org/articles/fe-cartus/vatican-ii-the-jews/ | title=Vatican II & the Jews | date=January 1965 }}</ref>}} | |||
Following John's death, a movement for ] grew. According to the historian ], "In the following forty years, Christians and Jews were to come together more closely than at perhaps any other time since the half-century after Christ had died.<ref>Geoffrey Blainey; ]; Viking; 2011; pp.501-502</ref> | |||
==External link== | |||
* | |||
*http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08399a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia Article on Judaism. Of particular interest is section four: "Judaism and Church Legislation." | |||
== Modern Catholic teachings about Judaism == | |||
==References== | |||
] praying at the ] in ] on his 2014 visit to Israel]] | |||
* Stewart Ain ''Staying The Course: John Paul II built a closeness between the Vatican and Jewish community, and Jewish leaders don’t expect that to change'', The Jewish Week, April 8, 2005 | |||
To further the goal of reconciliation, the Catholic Church in 1971 established an internal ] and the ]. (This Committee is not a part of the Church's ].) | |||
* Steve Lipman ''The Jewish Critique: Amid the pope’s remarkable record on the Jews, issues linger'', The Jewish Week, April 8, 2005 | |||
On May 4, 2001, at the 17th meeting of the International Liaison Committee in ], Church officials stated that they would change how Judaism is dealt with in Catholic seminaries and schools. In part, they stated: | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
:The curricula of Catholic seminaries and schools of theology should reflect the central importance of the Church's new understanding of its relationship to Jews. ... Courses on Bible, developments by which both the Church and rabbinic Judaism emerged from early Judaism will establish a substantial foundation for ameliorating "the painful ignorance of the history and traditions of Judaism of which only negative aspects and often caricature seem to form part of the stock ideas of many Christians. (See notes on the , #27, 1985<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bc.edu/research/cjl/meta-elements/texts/cjrelations/resources/documents/catholic/Vatican_Notes.htm |title=Vatican Notes |publisher=Bc.edu |access-date=2009-05-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090103113900/http://www.bc.edu/research/cjl/meta-elements/texts/cjrelations/resources/documents/catholic/Vatican_Notes.htm |archive-date=January 3, 2009 }}</ref>) | |||
{{John Paul II}} | |||
:... Courses dealing with the biblical, historical and theological aspects of relations between Jews and Christians should be an integral part of the seminary and theologate curriculum, and not merely electives. All who graduate from Catholic seminaries and theology schools should have studied the revolution in Catholic teaching on Jews and Judaism from '']'' to the prayer of Pope John Paul II in Jerusalem at the Western Wall on March 26, 2000. ... For historic reasons, many Jews find it difficult to overcome generational memories of anti-Semitic oppression. Therefore: Lay and Religious Jewish leaders need to advocate and promote a program of education in our Jewish schools and seminaries – about the history of Catholic-Jewish relations and knowledge of Christianity and its relationship to Judaism. ... Encouragement of dialogue between the two faiths does involve recognition, understanding and respect for each other's beliefs, without having to accept them. It is particularly important that Jewish schools teach about the ], and subsequent documents and attitudinal changes that opened new perspectives and possibilities for both faiths. | |||
In October 2015 the Catholic Church in Poland published a letter referring to antisemitism as a sin against the commandment to love one's neighbor. The letter also acknowledged the heroism of those Poles who risked their lives to shelter Jews as Nazi Germany carried out the Holocaust in occupied Poland. The bishops who signed the letter cited the Polish Pope ] who was opposed to antisemitism, and believed in founding Catholic-Jewish relations.<ref>{{cite web|title=Church in Poland tells Catholics 'antisemitism is a sin' – and condemns 'indifference' of some Christians during holocaust|url=http://antisemitism.org.il/article/100218/church-poland-tells-catholics-%E2%80%98antisemitism-sin%E2%80%99-%E2%80%93-and-condemns-%E2%80%98indifference%E2%80%99-some-c|website=CFCA|publisher=Inside-Poland.com|access-date=30 October 2015|archive-date=18 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151118011034/http://antisemitism.org.il/article/100218/church-poland-tells-catholics-%E2%80%98antisemitism-sin%E2%80%99-%E2%80%93-and-condemns-%E2%80%98indifference%E2%80%99-some-c|url-status=dead}}</ref> | |||
In 2015, the Vatican ] released a theological reflection that, while rejecting the idea of "two different paths toward salvation, the Jewish path without Christ and the path with the Christ", and calling on Christians to "bear witness to their faith in Jesus Christ ... in a humble and sensitive manner" to Jewish people, acknowledged that Jews were "participants in God's salvation" and that the Church views evangelization to Jews "in a different manner from that to people of other religions and world views", rejected the principle of an institutional Jewish mission, and called on Catholics to fight antisemitism.<ref>{{cite press release |author=<!--Not stated--> |title="THE GIFTS AND THE CALLING OF GOD ARE IRREVOCABLE" (Rom 11:29) A Reflection on Theological Questions Pertaining to Catholic-Jewish Relations on the Occasion of the 50th Anniversary of "Nostra ætate" (No. 4) |url=http://www.christianunity.va/content/unitacristiani/en/commissione-per-i-rapporti-religiosi-con-l-ebraismo/commissione-per-i-rapporti-religiosi-con-l-ebraismo-crre/documenti-della-commissione/en.html |location=Vatican City |publisher=Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews |date=2015-12-10 |access-date=2022-12-02}}</ref> | |||
] has been considered to be particularly instrumental in furthering Catholic–Jewish relations. During a visit to a synagogue, Francis echoed Pope John Paul II's statement that Jews are the "elder brothers" of Christians, and further stated: "in fact you are our brothers and sisters in the faith. We all belong to one family, the family of ], who accompanies and protects us, His people."<ref>{{cite web |last=O’Connell |first=Gerard |title=Pope Francis: Relations between Catholics and Jews "are very close to my heart." |url=https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2016/01/17/pope-francis-relations-between-catholics-and-jews-are-very-close-my-heart |date=January 17, 2016 |access-date=September 22, 2022}}</ref> | |||
==Jewish responses== | |||
===Orthodox Rabbinic Statement on Christianity=== | |||
{{Main|To Do the Will of Our Father in Heaven: Toward a Partnership between Jews and Christians}} | |||
On 3 December 2015, fifty years after the issue of ], the ]-based ] (CJCUC) spearheaded a petition of orthodox rabbis from around the world calling for increased partnership between Jews and Christians.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/55561/groundbreaking-petition-signed-leading-rabbis-calls-increased-partnership-between-jews-christians-biblical-zionism/|title=Groundbreaking Petition Signed by Leading Rabbis Calls for Increased Partnership Between Jews and Christians|first=Adam Eliyahu|last=Berkowitz|publisher=Breaking Israel News|date=7 December 2015|access-date=25 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170420062605/https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/55561/groundbreaking-petition-signed-leading-rabbis-calls-increased-partnership-between-jews-christians-biblical-zionism/|archive-date=20 April 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thejewishweek.com/news/national/modern-orthodox-leaders-bless-interfaith-dialogue|title=Modern Orthodox Leaders Bless Interfaith Dialogue |first=Steve|last=Lipman|publisher=]|date=8 December 2015|access-date=25 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160620040507/http://www.thejewishweek.com/news/national/modern-orthodox-leaders-bless-interfaith-dialogue|archive-date=20 June 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/news/nation/2015/12/11/Vatican-Orthodox-rabbis-issue-interfaith-statements-affirming-each-other-s-faith/stories/201512110164|title=Vatican, Orthodox rabbis issue interfaith statements affirming each other's faith|first=Peter|last=Smith|publisher=]|date=11 December 2015|access-date=25 July 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rabbi-shmuly-yanklowitz/towards-jewish-christian-reconciliation_b_9133926.html|title=Towards Jewish-Christian Reconciliation & Partnership|first=Rabbi Shmuly|last=Yanklowitz|publisher=]|date=3 February 2016|access-date=25 July 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jpost.com/Blogs/Intellectual-Judaism/Mutual-Judeo-Christian-spiritual-foundation-of-Judaism-and-Christianity-444183|title=Mutual Judeo-Christian spiritual foundation of Judaism and Christianity|first=Vladimir|last=Minkov|work=]|date=7 February 2016|access-date=25 July 2017}}</ref><ref name="vaticanradio">{{cite web |url=http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/12/10/orthodox_rabbis_issue_groundbreaking_statement_on_christians/1193458|title=Orthodox Rabbis issue groundbreaking statement on Christianity|publisher=]|date=10 December 2015|access-date=25 July 2017}}</ref> | |||
The unprecedented ], entitled "To Do the Will of Our Father in Heaven: Toward a Partnership between Jews and Christians", was initially signed by over 25 prominent Orthodox rabbis in Israel, United States and Europe<ref name="vaticanradio" /> and now has over 60 signatories.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cjcuc.com/site/2015/12/03/orthodox-rabbinic-statement-on-christianity/|title=Orthodox Rabbinic Statement on Christianity - To Do the Will of Our Father in Heaven - Toward a Partnership between Jews and Christians|website=CJCUC|date=3 December 2015|access-date=25 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161016174221/http://cjcuc.com/site/2015/12/03/orthodox-rabbinic-statement-on-christianity/|archive-date=16 October 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> | |||
===Between Jerusalem and Rome=== | |||
On 31 August 2017, representatives of the ], the ], and the Commission of the ] issued and presented the ] with a statement entitled ''Between Jerusalem and Rome''. The document pays particular tribute to the Second Vatican Council's Declaration '']'', whose fourth chapter represents the ] of the Holy See's dialogue with the Jewish world. ''Between Jerusalem and Rome'' does not hide the theological differences that exist between the two faith traditions while all the same it expresses a firm resolve to collaborate more closely, now and in the future.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2017/august/documents/papa-francesco_20170831_delegazione-rabbini.html|title=Address of His Holiness Pope Francis to the Delegation of Rabbis for the Presentation of the Statement 'Between Jerusalem and Rome'|date=31 August 2017|website=]|access-date=3 September 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jcrelations.net/Between_Jerusalem_and_Rome_-.5580.0.html?|title=Between Jerusalem and Rome - כלל ופרט בין ירושלים לרומי|website=Jewish-Christian Relations|date=31 August 2017|access-date=3 September 2017}}</ref> | |||
== Significant outstanding issues == | |||
=== Pius XII === | |||
Some Jewish groups and historians have said ], who was Pope from 1939 to 1958, stayed silent during the Holocaust and did not do enough to save lives.<ref name=VaticanArchives/> They have sought access to Vatican World War II era archives to determine whether or not Pope Pius XII did enough to help Jews before or during the war, or whether he held some sympathy for the Nazi regime. The Vatican has until 2020 maintained a policy of allowing only partial access to the archives. | |||
Jewish groups and historians have argued for years that the Vatican should not move forward with Pius' beatification until the Vatican's full wartime archives were opened.<ref name=VaticanArchives/> | |||
On 2 March 2020, the Vatican opened to historians its archives relating to Pope Pius XII.<ref name=VaticanArchives>{{cite news |last=Oster |first=Marcy |date=3 March 2020 |url=https://www.jpost.com/International/The-Vatican-unseals-secret-archive-on-Holocaust-era-Pope-Pius-XII-619583 |title=The Vatican unseals secret archive on Holocaust-era Pope Pius XII |work=The Jerusalem Post}}</ref> | |||
=== The Church's repentance === | |||
{{unreferenced section|date=July 2019}} | |||
In addition, although the Jewish community appreciated John Paul II's 1994 statement, '']'', which offered a '']'' for the role of Christians in the Holocaust, some Jewish groups felt that the statement was insufficient, as it focused on individual members of the Church who helped the Nazis, portraying them as acting against the teachings of the Church. | |||
Some critics consider the statement irresponsible, because it absolved the Church of any blame. Lingering disputes also remain about some of the practical aftereffects of the Holocaust, including the question of how to deal with Jewish children who were baptized during the ] and were never returned to their Jewish families and people. | |||
===Traditionalist Catholics=== | |||
{{unreferenced section|date=July 2019}} | |||
]s who are particularly devoted to the ancient traditions of the Church, and reject many of the changes made since Vatican II, or regard it as an invalid Council, view interfaith dialogue with Jews as unnecessary and potentially leading to a "watering-down" of the Catholic faith. | |||
=== Arab Catholics === | |||
{{unreferenced section|date=July 2019}} | |||
Continuing tensions in the Middle East impacts on relations between Jews and Catholics in the region and beyond. Relations with ] in ], ] and ] often parallel those relations with ] and remain difficult, especially with regards to the question of ] and ]. | |||
=== The media's treatment of the Church === | |||
In a May 2002 interview with the Italian-Catholic publication ''30 Giorni'', Honduran Cardinal ] claimed that Jews influenced the media to exploit the recent controversy regarding sexual abuse by Catholic priests in order to divert attention from the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. This provoked outrage from the ], especially since Maradiaga has a reputation as a moderate and that he is regarded as a ].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.adl.org/PresRele/ASInt_13/4135_13.asp |title=ADL Outraged by Honduran Cardinal's Jewish Conspiracy Theory |access-date=2009-05-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119042825/http://www.adl.org/PresRele/ASInt_13/4135_13.asp |archive-date=2012-01-19 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The high-profile Don ] of Italy, himself personally accused of sexually abusing a number of young men, put the blame on a nebulous "Jewish radical chic" in an interview with the '']''.<ref name = "Fisher NYT 2008">Fisher, Ian (17 August 2008). . '']''. Retrieved 7 July 2010.</ref><ref name = "Sex Abuse Charges a 'Conspiracy': Priest"> (5 August 2007). ]. Retrieved 7 July 2010.</ref> He later apologized and shifted the blame onto the ].<ref name = "Chiedo scusa agli ebrei"> (7 August 2008). ''Quotidiano.net''. Retrieved 7 July 2010. {{in lang|it}}</ref> The bishop Giacomo Babini described the scandal's exposure as a refined "Zionist attack" in an April 2010 newspaper interview.<ref name = "Kington April 2010">Kington, Tom (11 April 2010). ''The Guardian''. Retrieved 10 July 2010.</ref> | |||
===Catholics in Israel=== | |||
{{See|Catholic Church in Israel}} | |||
The legal system provides for ], and the state recognizes non-Jewish minority religious communities, including Catholics, and allocates funding for the provision of the religious needs of their members. However, in comparison to funding for Orthodox Jewish requirements, minority religious communities do not receive a proportional allocation, in what is viewed as discrimination against these minorities. Recognized religious communities, including Catholics, are granted official status and authority, notably in matters of marriage, burial, and divorce.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Saban |first1=Ilan |title=Minority Rights in Deeply Divided Societies: A Framework for Analysis and the Case of the Arab-Palestinian Minority in Israel |journal=Journal of International Law and Politics |date=2004 |volume=36 |pages=885–1004 |publisher=New York University}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Statman |first1=Daniel |last2=Sapir |first2=Gideon |title=Minority Religions in Israel |journal=Bar-Ilan Law Studies |date=2003 |volume=28 |pages=185–206 |language=he}}</ref> | |||
Despite legal protections for religious minorities, there have been incidents of anti-Christian attacks, including spitting, and so-called "price tag" attacks by violent Jewish extremists vandalizing and damaging Christian property, notably in 2012, at the Catholic monastery at ] and the entrance to the ] on ], in 2013 at a Catholic abbey, and in 2014, an attack at the Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center, the local headquarters of the Catholic Church.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lidman |first1=Melanie |last2=Sharon |first2=Jeremy |title=Vandals desecrate Latrun monastery in price-tag hit |url=https://www.jpost.com/national-news/vandals-desecrate-latrun-monastery-in-price-tag-hit |work=The Jerusalem Post |date=4 September 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Chabin |first1=Michele |title=Vandals Attack Holy Land's Church of Dormition |url=https://www.ncregister.com/news/vandals-attack-holy-land-s-church-of-dormition |work=National Catholic Register |date=17 March 2015 |language=en}}</ref> | |||
The Catholic ] at ], in northern Israel was damaged by arson in 2015 and sixteen yeshiva students were arrested over suspected involvement in the religiously motivated attack. <ref>, '']'', 18 June 2015</ref> | |||
===Intermarriage=== | |||
Pope Francis' '']'' or ''The Joy of Love'', addresses the issue of ]s. While marriages of Catholics to non-Catholics are viewed as "mixed marriages", Francis calls marriages to non-Christians, including Jews, "a privileged place for inter religious dialogue." Piero Stefani, a scholar at the Facoltà Teologica del Nord Italia, a Church-owned institute, noted, "The Church is no longer endorsing a policy of missionary conversion, especially toward Jews. So interfaith marriages are seen as an 'opportunity' to start a positive dialogue with the non-Catholic spouse, rather than an occasion to convert him or her." Francis has frequently stated that Catholics should not try to convert Jews.<ref>. ''Haaretz''. April 10, 2016.</ref> | |||
Intermarriage of Jews is rare in Israel and among the Orthodox.<ref>. BBC, 7 February 2014</ref> In the U.S., Jewish intermarriage is common, and those who do intermarry with someone of a different religion are more likely to marry a Catholic than a ].<ref>. Pew Research Center, May 12, 2015</ref> | |||
== See also == | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
== References == | |||
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}} | |||
==Bibliography== | |||
* Ain, Stewart. "Staying The Course: John Paul II built a closeness between the Vatican and Jewish community, and Jewish leaders don't expect that to change", '']'', April 8, 2005 | |||
* Lipman, Steve. "The Jewish Critique: Amid the pope's remarkable record on the Jews, issues linger", '']'', April 8, 2005. | |||
* Kertzer, David, "The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara", Knopf, New York, 1997. | |||
* Kertzer, David, "The Popes against the Jews", Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2001. | |||
== External links == | |||
* Vatican.va: | |||
* . Of particular interest is section four: "Judaism and Church Legislation". (''The Catholic Encyclopedia'' was written before Vatican II, and may reflect attitudes that no longer characterize the Catholic view of Judaism.) | |||
* – a timeline of recent events in Catholic–Jewish relations (], January 25, 2009) | |||
{{History of the Catholic Church}} | |||
{{Jews and Judaism|state=collapsed}} | |||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Relations Between Catholicism And Judaism}} | |||
] | |||
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The Catholic Church and Judaism have a long and complex history of cooperation and conflict, and have had a strained relationship throughout history, with periods of persecution, violence and discrimination directed towards Jews by Christians, particularly during the Middle Ages.
The Catholic Church, as the largest Christian denomination, traces its roots back to the early Christian community, while Judaism is the oldest monotheistic religion. Christianity started as a movement within Judaism in the mid-1st century. Worshipers of the diverging religions initially co-existed, but began branching out under Paul the Apostle. In 380, Christianity became the state religion of the Roman Empire, and a power on its own after the Fall of Rome. As Christianity grew and became the dominant religion in the Roman Empire, the relationship between the two religions began to change with the Catholic Church, which emerged as the main institution of Christianity, starting to view Judaism as a rival religion. In the 4th century, the Roman Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity and made it the state religion. The Church began to suppress the practice of Judaism and forced many Jews to convert to Christianity. This persecution continued for several centuries, with Jews being subjected to forced conversions, expulsions, and massacres.
During the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church institutionalized antisemitism through the creation of discriminatory laws and the establishment of the Inquisition. This led to widespread persecution of Jews, including forced conversions, expulsions, and pogroms. Jews were expelled from Catholic kingdoms, including England and Spain and many of the principalities and cities of the Holy Roman Empire and Italy.
After the Holocaust in the 20th century, the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s led to improvements in the relationship between the Catholic Church and Judaism, following the Church's repudiation of the Jewish deicide accusation and its addressing the topic of antisemitism. In 1965, the Church issued the document "Nostra aetate" which condemned antisemitism and recognized the shared heritage of Jews and Christians. Since the 1970s, interfaith committees have met regularly to address relations between the religions, and Catholic and Jewish institutions have continued to work together on issues such as social justice, interfaith dialogue, and Holocaust education. The Catholic Church has also taken steps to address the harm caused by past persecution of Jews, such as the establishment of the Vatican Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews and the apology of the Pope John Paul II to the Jewish community.
Background
Further information: Paul the Apostle and Jewish Christianity, Anti-Judaism in early Christianity, and Antisemitism in ChristianityChristianity started as a movement in Second Temple Judaism in the Roman province of Judea in the mid-1st century. The first Christians were Jewish and the early spread of Christianity was aided by the wide extent of the Jewish diaspora in the Roman Empire. Although Jesus was not accepted as the messiah by Jewish leaders, worshipers of the diverging religions initially co-existed within the Jewish synagogues, reading the Jewish scriptures, singing the Psalms and joining in the various rituals of the Jewish calendar. Christians moved away from Jews in subsequent centuries, but modern Catholicism has retained much of its Hebrew literary heritage, the Old Testament (Tanakh).
Even as pagans and gentiles increasingly began to attend Christian worship, the Jewish framework remained strong. Paul the Apostle initially took part in the Jewish persecution of the early Christian movement, but following his conversion, he became a leading exponent for Christianity branching away from Judaism and becoming a religion open to all, which could move away from strict Jewish dietary laws and the requirement of circumcision. Judaism was recognized as a legal religion by Julius Caesar but the relationship was volatile resulting in several Jewish–Roman wars. Christianity did not receive legal recognition until the 313 Edict of Milan. The reign of the Emperor Constantine elevated Christianity to the preferred religion of the Roman State - while reducing the position of paganism and Judaism, with Christianity becoming the State church of the Roman Empire in 380. The dominance of Christianity was to flourish and outlast the Roman Empire.
Following the Fall of Rome, and during the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church became a temporal power in its own right.
The Black Death
See also: Jewish persecutions during the Black DeathThe "Black Death" pandemic swept through Asia and the Middle East and into Europe between 1347 and 1350, and is believed to have killed between a third and two-thirds of Europe's population. Popular opinion blamed the Jews for the plague, and violence directed at them erupted throughout the continent.
In defence of the Jews, Pope Clement VI issued two papal bulls in 1348 (6 July and 26 September), the latter named Quamvis Perfidiam, which condemned the violence and said those who blamed the plague on the Jews had been "seduced by that liar, the Devil." He went on to emphasise that "It cannot be true that the Jews, by such a heinous crime, are the cause or occasion of the plague, because through many parts of the world the same plague, by the hidden judgment of God, has afflicted and afflicts the Jews themselves and many other races who have never lived alongside them." He urged clergy to take action to protect Jews and offered them papal protection in the city of Avignon.
Jewish "perfidy"
Main article: Good Friday prayer for the JewsA new understanding of the relationship between Catholics and Jews is also reflected in the revised liturgy of Good Friday in a particular way. The pre-1962 version of the Good Friday Prayer of the Roman Rite had Catholics praying that the "perfidis Judaeis" might be converted to "the truth". The English cognate "perfidious" had, over the centuries, gradually acquired the sense of "treacherous". In order to eliminate misunderstanding on this point, Pope Pius XII ordered in 1955 that, in Catholic liturgical books, the Latin word "perfidis" be properly translated "unbelieving", ensuring that the prayer be understood in its original sense: praying for the Jews who remained "unbelieving" concerning the Messiah. Indeed, the same adjective was used in many of the ancient rituals for receiving non-Christian converts into the Catholic Church.
Owing to the enduring potential for confusion and misunderstanding because of the divergence of English usage from the original Latin meaning, Pope John XXIII ordered that the Latin adjective "perfidis" be dropped from the Good Friday prayer for the Jews; in 1960 he ordered it removed from all rituals for the reception of converts. As part of the revision of the Roman Missal, the prayer was completely rewritten. The current prayer of the Roman Liturgy for Good Friday prays for "the Jewish people, first to hear the word of God, that they may continue to grow in the love of His name and in faithfulness to His covenant."
Jewish deicide
In 1962, Pope John XXIII opened the Second Vatican Council, a pastoral ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. It closed under Pope Paul VI in 1965. One of the most revolutionary changes that resulted from interpretations of this council's documents concerned the Church's attitude to Jews and Judaism.
Among other things, the Second Vatican Council addressed the charge of Jewish deicide, repudiating the belief in the collective Jewish guilt for the crucifixion of Jesus stating that, even though some Jewish authorities and those who followed them called for Jesus' death, the blame for what happened cannot be laid at the door of all Jews living at that time, nor can the Jews in our time be held guilty. The council issued the declaration Nostra aetate ("In Our Time"), which reads in part:
- True, the Jewish authorities and those who followed their lead pressed for the death of Christ; still, what happened in His passion cannot be charged against all the Jews, without distinction, then alive, nor against the Jews of today. The Jews should not be presented as rejected or accursed by God, as if this followed from the Holy Scriptures. All should see to it, then, that in catechetical work or in the preaching of the word of God they do not teach anything that does not conform to the truth of the Gospel and the spirit of Christ.
Antisemitism
See also: Sicut JudaeisNostra aetate restates the Church attitude to antisemitism, and describes the Church's relationship with Jews as a shared patrimony:
- Furthermore, in her rejection of every persecution against any man, the Church, mindful of the patrimony she shares with the Jews and moved not by political reasons but by the Gospel's spiritual love, decries hatred, persecutions, displays of anti-Semitism, directed against Jews at any time and by anyone.
The Church attitude to the mistreatment of Jews is not new, though the experience of the Holocaust brought on an urgency to its renewal. Around 400, St Augustine, one of the most influential and foundational figures of Catholic theology, preached that the Jews must be protected for their ability to explain the Old Testament. Around 598, in reaction to anti-Jewish attacks by Christians in Palermo, Pope Gregory the Great (c. 540–604) brought Augustine's teachings into Roman Law, by writing a Papal Bull which became the foundation of Catholic doctrine in relation to the Jews and specified that, although the Jews had not accepted salvation through Christ, and were therefore condemned by God until such time as they accept salvation, Christians were nevertheless duty-bound to protect the Jews as an important part of Christian civilization. The Bull said that Jews should be treated equitably and justly, that their property rights should be protected, and that they should keep their own festivals and religious practices. Thus, in the Papal States, Jews enjoyed a level of protection in law.
While a "persecuting spirit" often existed among the general population through the Middle Ages, Jewish communities often had to turn to the Holy See for protection. Papal Bulls reiterating the duty of protection were issued by various Popes, Following attacks on Jews by the First Crusade, during which over five thousand Jews were slaughtered in Europe, Pope Callixtus II (c. 1120) issued "Sicut Judaeis", which served as a papal charter of protection to Jews. Following further attacks, the bull was reaffirmed by many popes including Alexander III, Celestine III (1191–1198), Innocent III (1199), Honorius III (1216), Gregory IX (1235), Innocent IV (1246), Alexander IV (1255), Urban IV (1262), Gregory X (1272 and 1274), Nicholas III, Martin IV (1281), Honorius IV (1285–1287), Nicholas IV (1288–1292), Clement VI (1348), Urban V (1365), Boniface IX (1389), Martin V (1422), and Nicholas V (1447). The bull forbade Christians, on pain of excommunication, from forcing Jews to convert, from harming them, from taking their property, from disturbing the celebration of their festivals, and from interfering with their cemeteries. After then, the doctrine was maintained in form only, with many anti-Jewish measures being enacted and certain Popes, including Paul IV, oppressed the Jews.
The Second World War and the Holocaust
In the modern world, anti-Jewish sentiment reached its zenith with the murderous racial antisemitism of the Nazi Holocaust. In the aftermath of the defeat of Hitler's Germany, and discovery of the extent of Nazi war crimes, the long history of Christian anti-Judaism came to be critically examined by scholars attempting to explain the origins of the Holocaust.
Pope John XXIII acknowledged the role of the church in creating and perpetuating Christian antisemitism. Prior to his death in 1963, John prepared a document to be read by every Roman Catholic Church on a fixed date:
We are conscious today that many many centuries of blindness have cloaked our eyes so that we can no longer either see the beauty of Thy Chosen People nor recognize in their faces the features of our privileged brethren. We realize that the mark of Cain stands upon our foreheads. Across the centuries our brother Abel has lain in the blood which we drew or shed the tears we caused by forgetting Thy Love. Forgive us for the curse we falsely attached to their name as Jews. Forgive us for crucifying Thee a second time in their flesh. For we knew not what we did. ..
Following John's death, a movement for Christian–Jewish reconciliation grew. According to the historian Geoffrey Blainey, "In the following forty years, Christians and Jews were to come together more closely than at perhaps any other time since the half-century after Christ had died.
Modern Catholic teachings about Judaism
To further the goal of reconciliation, the Catholic Church in 1971 established an internal International Catholic-Jewish Liaison Committee and the International Jewish Committee for Interreligious Consultations. (This Committee is not a part of the Church's Magisterium.)
On May 4, 2001, at the 17th meeting of the International Liaison Committee in New York, Church officials stated that they would change how Judaism is dealt with in Catholic seminaries and schools. In part, they stated:
- The curricula of Catholic seminaries and schools of theology should reflect the central importance of the Church's new understanding of its relationship to Jews. ... Courses on Bible, developments by which both the Church and rabbinic Judaism emerged from early Judaism will establish a substantial foundation for ameliorating "the painful ignorance of the history and traditions of Judaism of which only negative aspects and often caricature seem to form part of the stock ideas of many Christians. (See notes on the "Correct Way to Present Jews and Judaism in Catholic Preaching and Catechesis", #27, 1985)
- ... Courses dealing with the biblical, historical and theological aspects of relations between Jews and Christians should be an integral part of the seminary and theologate curriculum, and not merely electives. All who graduate from Catholic seminaries and theology schools should have studied the revolution in Catholic teaching on Jews and Judaism from Nostra aetate to the prayer of Pope John Paul II in Jerusalem at the Western Wall on March 26, 2000. ... For historic reasons, many Jews find it difficult to overcome generational memories of anti-Semitic oppression. Therefore: Lay and Religious Jewish leaders need to advocate and promote a program of education in our Jewish schools and seminaries – about the history of Catholic-Jewish relations and knowledge of Christianity and its relationship to Judaism. ... Encouragement of dialogue between the two faiths does involve recognition, understanding and respect for each other's beliefs, without having to accept them. It is particularly important that Jewish schools teach about the Second Vatican Council, and subsequent documents and attitudinal changes that opened new perspectives and possibilities for both faiths.
In October 2015 the Catholic Church in Poland published a letter referring to antisemitism as a sin against the commandment to love one's neighbor. The letter also acknowledged the heroism of those Poles who risked their lives to shelter Jews as Nazi Germany carried out the Holocaust in occupied Poland. The bishops who signed the letter cited the Polish Pope John Paul II who was opposed to antisemitism, and believed in founding Catholic-Jewish relations.
In 2015, the Vatican Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews released a theological reflection that, while rejecting the idea of "two different paths toward salvation, the Jewish path without Christ and the path with the Christ", and calling on Christians to "bear witness to their faith in Jesus Christ ... in a humble and sensitive manner" to Jewish people, acknowledged that Jews were "participants in God's salvation" and that the Church views evangelization to Jews "in a different manner from that to people of other religions and world views", rejected the principle of an institutional Jewish mission, and called on Catholics to fight antisemitism.
Pope Francis has been considered to be particularly instrumental in furthering Catholic–Jewish relations. During a visit to a synagogue, Francis echoed Pope John Paul II's statement that Jews are the "elder brothers" of Christians, and further stated: "in fact you are our brothers and sisters in the faith. We all belong to one family, the family of God, who accompanies and protects us, His people."
Jewish responses
Orthodox Rabbinic Statement on Christianity
Main article: To Do the Will of Our Father in Heaven: Toward a Partnership between Jews and ChristiansOn 3 December 2015, fifty years after the issue of Nostra aetate, the Israel-based Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation (CJCUC) spearheaded a petition of orthodox rabbis from around the world calling for increased partnership between Jews and Christians. The unprecedented Orthodox Rabbinic Statement on Christianity, entitled "To Do the Will of Our Father in Heaven: Toward a Partnership between Jews and Christians", was initially signed by over 25 prominent Orthodox rabbis in Israel, United States and Europe and now has over 60 signatories.
Between Jerusalem and Rome
On 31 August 2017, representatives of the Conference of European Rabbis, the Rabbinical Council of America, and the Commission of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel issued and presented the Holy See with a statement entitled Between Jerusalem and Rome. The document pays particular tribute to the Second Vatican Council's Declaration Nostra aetate, whose fourth chapter represents the Magna Charta of the Holy See's dialogue with the Jewish world. Between Jerusalem and Rome does not hide the theological differences that exist between the two faith traditions while all the same it expresses a firm resolve to collaborate more closely, now and in the future.
Significant outstanding issues
Pius XII
Some Jewish groups and historians have said Pope Pius XII, who was Pope from 1939 to 1958, stayed silent during the Holocaust and did not do enough to save lives. They have sought access to Vatican World War II era archives to determine whether or not Pope Pius XII did enough to help Jews before or during the war, or whether he held some sympathy for the Nazi regime. The Vatican has until 2020 maintained a policy of allowing only partial access to the archives.
Jewish groups and historians have argued for years that the Vatican should not move forward with Pius' beatification until the Vatican's full wartime archives were opened.
On 2 March 2020, the Vatican opened to historians its archives relating to Pope Pius XII.
The Church's repentance
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In addition, although the Jewish community appreciated John Paul II's 1994 statement, We Remember: A Reflection on the Shoah, which offered a mea culpa for the role of Christians in the Holocaust, some Jewish groups felt that the statement was insufficient, as it focused on individual members of the Church who helped the Nazis, portraying them as acting against the teachings of the Church.
Some critics consider the statement irresponsible, because it absolved the Church of any blame. Lingering disputes also remain about some of the practical aftereffects of the Holocaust, including the question of how to deal with Jewish children who were baptized during the Second World War and were never returned to their Jewish families and people.
Traditionalist Catholics
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Traditionalist Catholics who are particularly devoted to the ancient traditions of the Church, and reject many of the changes made since Vatican II, or regard it as an invalid Council, view interfaith dialogue with Jews as unnecessary and potentially leading to a "watering-down" of the Catholic faith.
Arab Catholics
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Continuing tensions in the Middle East impacts on relations between Jews and Catholics in the region and beyond. Relations with Arab Christians in Lebanon, Jordan and Syria often parallel those relations with Arab Muslims and remain difficult, especially with regards to the question of anti-zionism and Zionism.
The media's treatment of the Church
In a May 2002 interview with the Italian-Catholic publication 30 Giorni, Honduran Cardinal Oscar Maradiaga claimed that Jews influenced the media to exploit the recent controversy regarding sexual abuse by Catholic priests in order to divert attention from the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. This provoked outrage from the Anti-Defamation League, especially since Maradiaga has a reputation as a moderate and that he is regarded as a papabile. The high-profile Don Pierino Gelmini of Italy, himself personally accused of sexually abusing a number of young men, put the blame on a nebulous "Jewish radical chic" in an interview with the Corriere della Sera. He later apologized and shifted the blame onto the Freemasons. The bishop Giacomo Babini described the scandal's exposure as a refined "Zionist attack" in an April 2010 newspaper interview.
Catholics in Israel
Further information: Catholic Church in IsraelThe legal system provides for freedom of religion in Israel, and the state recognizes non-Jewish minority religious communities, including Catholics, and allocates funding for the provision of the religious needs of their members. However, in comparison to funding for Orthodox Jewish requirements, minority religious communities do not receive a proportional allocation, in what is viewed as discrimination against these minorities. Recognized religious communities, including Catholics, are granted official status and authority, notably in matters of marriage, burial, and divorce.
Despite legal protections for religious minorities, there have been incidents of anti-Christian attacks, including spitting, and so-called "price tag" attacks by violent Jewish extremists vandalizing and damaging Christian property, notably in 2012, at the Catholic monastery at Latrun and the entrance to the Church of the Dormition on Mount Zion, in 2013 at a Catholic abbey, and in 2014, an attack at the Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center, the local headquarters of the Catholic Church.
The Catholic Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish at Tabgha, in northern Israel was damaged by arson in 2015 and sixteen yeshiva students were arrested over suspected involvement in the religiously motivated attack.
Intermarriage
Pope Francis' Amoris laetitia or The Joy of Love, addresses the issue of interfaith marriages. While marriages of Catholics to non-Catholics are viewed as "mixed marriages", Francis calls marriages to non-Christians, including Jews, "a privileged place for inter religious dialogue." Piero Stefani, a scholar at the Facoltà Teologica del Nord Italia, a Church-owned institute, noted, "The Church is no longer endorsing a policy of missionary conversion, especially toward Jews. So interfaith marriages are seen as an 'opportunity' to start a positive dialogue with the non-Catholic spouse, rather than an occasion to convert him or her." Francis has frequently stated that Catholics should not try to convert Jews.
Intermarriage of Jews is rare in Israel and among the Orthodox. In the U.S., Jewish intermarriage is common, and those who do intermarry with someone of a different religion are more likely to marry a Catholic than a mainline Protestant.
See also
- Antisemitism in Christianity
- Catholic Church and Islam
- Christianity and Judaism
- Christian–Jewish reconciliation
- Christian Zionism
- Hebrew Catholics
- Holy See–Israel relations
- Interfaith dialogue
- Judaism and Mormonism
- Jules Isaac
- Pope John XXIII and Judaism
- Pope John Paul II and Judaism
- Protestantism and Judaism
- Relations between the Orthodox Church and Judaism
References
- Geoffrey Blainey; A Short History of Christianity; Viking; 2011; pp.32-35
- Geoffrey Blainey; A Short History of Christianity; Viking; 2011; pp.37-38
- Geoffrey Blainey; A Short History of Christianity; Viking; 2011; pp.72-75
- L. Steiman (1997). Paths to Genocide: Antisemitism in Western History. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan UK. p. 37. ISBN 978-0-230-37133-0.
- Skolnik, Fred; Berenbaum, Michael. Encyclopaedia Judaica: Ba-Blo. Granite Hill Publishers. p. 733. ISBN 9780028659312. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
- Simonsohn, Shlomo (1991). Apostolic See and the Jews. Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, Vol. 1: Documents, 492. p. 1404. ISBN 9780888441096.
- See: "Easier for Converts". Time. August 15, 1960.
- ^ Lecture by Dr David Neiman: The Church and the Jews II: Popes Gregory I and Leo III; published by iTunes, 2009
- ^ "History of Toleration". Catholic Encyclopedia. 22 June 2013
- Deutsch, Gotthard; Jacobs, Joseph (1906). "The Popes" in The Jewish Encyclopedia, KTAV Publishing, New York. Accessed 12 July 2013.
- Simonsohn, Shlomo (1988). The Apostolic See and the Jews, Documents: 492-1404. Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, pp. 68, 143, 211, 242, 245-246, 249, 254, 260, 265, 396, 430, 507.
- "Vatican II & the Jews". January 1965.
- Geoffrey Blainey; A Short History of Christianity; Viking; 2011; pp.501-502
- "Vatican Notes". Bc.edu. Archived from the original on January 3, 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-06.
- "Church in Poland tells Catholics 'antisemitism is a sin' – and condemns 'indifference' of some Christians during holocaust". CFCA. Inside-Poland.com. Archived from the original on 18 November 2015. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
- ""THE GIFTS AND THE CALLING OF GOD ARE IRREVOCABLE" (Rom 11:29) A Reflection on Theological Questions Pertaining to Catholic-Jewish Relations on the Occasion of the 50th Anniversary of "Nostra ætate" (No. 4)" (Press release). Vatican City: Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews. 2015-12-10. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- O’Connell, Gerard (January 17, 2016). "Pope Francis: Relations between Catholics and Jews "are very close to my heart."". Retrieved September 22, 2022.
- Berkowitz, Adam Eliyahu (7 December 2015). "Groundbreaking Petition Signed by Leading Rabbis Calls for Increased Partnership Between Jews and Christians". Breaking Israel News. Archived from the original on 20 April 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- Lipman, Steve (8 December 2015). "Modern Orthodox Leaders Bless Interfaith Dialogue". The Jewish Week. Archived from the original on 20 June 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- Smith, Peter (11 December 2015). "Vatican, Orthodox rabbis issue interfaith statements affirming each other's faith". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- Yanklowitz, Rabbi Shmuly (3 February 2016). "Towards Jewish-Christian Reconciliation & Partnership". Huffington Post. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- Minkov, Vladimir (7 February 2016). "Mutual Judeo-Christian spiritual foundation of Judaism and Christianity". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- ^ "Orthodox Rabbis issue groundbreaking statement on Christianity". Vatican Radio. 10 December 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- "Orthodox Rabbinic Statement on Christianity - To Do the Will of Our Father in Heaven - Toward a Partnership between Jews and Christians". CJCUC. 3 December 2015. Archived from the original on 16 October 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- "Address of His Holiness Pope Francis to the Delegation of Rabbis for the Presentation of the Statement 'Between Jerusalem and Rome'". The Vatican. 31 August 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
- "Between Jerusalem and Rome - כלל ופרט בין ירושלים לרומי". Jewish-Christian Relations. 31 August 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
- ^ Oster, Marcy (3 March 2020). "The Vatican unseals secret archive on Holocaust-era Pope Pius XII". The Jerusalem Post.
- "ADL Outraged by Honduran Cardinal's Jewish Conspiracy Theory". Archived from the original on 2012-01-19. Retrieved 2009-05-10.
- Fisher, Ian (17 August 2008). "Vatican Plays Down Meeting That Angered Jewish Groups". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 July 2010.
- "Sex Abuse Charges a 'Conspiracy': Priest" (5 August 2007). Independent Online. Retrieved 7 July 2010.
- "Chiedo scusa agli ebrei" (7 August 2008). Quotidiano.net. Retrieved 7 July 2010. (in Italian)
- Kington, Tom (11 April 2010). "Bishop 'Blames Jews' for Criticism of Catholic Church Record on Abuse". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 July 2010.
- Saban, Ilan (2004). "Minority Rights in Deeply Divided Societies: A Framework for Analysis and the Case of the Arab-Palestinian Minority in Israel". Journal of International Law and Politics. 36. New York University: 885–1004.
- Statman, Daniel; Sapir, Gideon (2003). "Minority Religions in Israel". Bar-Ilan Law Studies (in Hebrew). 28: 185–206.
- Lidman, Melanie; Sharon, Jeremy (4 September 2012). "Vandals desecrate Latrun monastery in price-tag hit". The Jerusalem Post.
- Chabin, Michele (17 March 2015). "Vandals Attack Holy Land's Church of Dormition". National Catholic Register.
- "Netanyahu calls for swift probe into 'Jesus church' arson attack", The Times of Israel, 18 June 2015
- "Pope Francis Just Made It a Little Easier for Catholics to Marry Jews". Haaretz. April 10, 2016.
- "The Jewish fear of intermarriage". BBC, 7 February 2014
- America's Changing Religious Landscape: Chapter 2: "Religious Switching and Intermarriage". Pew Research Center, May 12, 2015
Bibliography
- Ain, Stewart. "Staying The Course: John Paul II built a closeness between the Vatican and Jewish community, and Jewish leaders don't expect that to change", The Jewish Week, April 8, 2005
- Lipman, Steve. "The Jewish Critique: Amid the pope's remarkable record on the Jews, issues linger", The Jewish Week, April 8, 2005.
- Kertzer, David, "The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara", Knopf, New York, 1997.
- Kertzer, David, "The Popes against the Jews", Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2001.
External links
- Vatican.va:Commission of the Holy See for Religious Relations with the Jews
- Catholic Encyclopedia Article on Judaism. Of particular interest is section four: "Judaism and Church Legislation". (The Catholic Encyclopedia was written before Vatican II, and may reflect attitudes that no longer characterize the Catholic view of Judaism.)
- Timeline - Pope Benedict angers Jews – a timeline of recent events in Catholic–Jewish relations (Reuters, January 25, 2009)
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