A stage of in-depth study in the Jubilee path - Rino Fisichella
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THE ROOTS OF ANTI-JUDAISM IN THE CHRISTIAN ENVIRONMENT

A STAGE OF IN-DEPTH STUDY IN THE JUBILEE PATH

Rino Fisichella

Over the last few weeks the press have given a great deal of space to the Symposium on «The Roots of Anti-Judaism in the Christian Milieu» organized by the Historical-Theological Commission of the Great Jubilee for the Year 2000. To tell the truth, as often happens in the excitement of the moment, some news and topics that are and remain distinct get confused. The objective of the Symposium was to do what the Holy Father had asked in his apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente; that is, make a serious examination of conscience in order to purify the memory of our past history and in this way enter the next millennium with more readiness and enthusiasm in proclaiming and bearing witness to the faith.

As you know, it intended to be a concrete sign of immediate preparation for the Jubilee through the serious, scientific study of a theme that has touched the life of the Church since the very beginning. It is a serious issue and no one can allow themselves to tackle it in a few strokes. The past centuries saw the incomprehension and the suffering of two peoples, Jews and Christians, due to a lack of dialogue regarding the peculiarities of the two faiths. Disputes often arose out of preconceived ideas and not out of direct knowledge of sources, creating misunderstandings that have left their mark in languages and behaviour. In the end, the tragic event of the Shoah, though not directly concerning religious matters, surely showed the whole world where obtuseness and the blind treacherousness of hatred can lead.

The Symposium we have celebrated certainly had a deep symbolic value. It was held within Vatican City and this showed John Paul II's sincere and determined desire to clarify some «historical obstacles» in the relations between the two peoples. These days of study were also characterized by the fact that it was an inter-ecclesial reflection, that is, carried out by Christians with methods that characterize the particular study of sacred texts. This, among other things, was the real reason why only Catholic experts were invited together with some of our Christian brethren. The Symposium theme dealt with the roots of anti-Judaism. A term chosen with discernment in order to stress the religious dimension and not to discuss the merits of other equally important questions (such as the racial and political horizon that are tinged with the term anti-Semitism), but which were not within the province of the Historical-Theological Commission charged with overseeing the preparation of some specific themes and responsible for their application only for the Jubilee celebration. On the other hand the stress on «roots» was meant essentially to specify the context on which they would work: the New Testament texts which are the basis and foundation of the life of the Church and the action of believers.

I can attest that the three days of study - it can never be stressed sufficiently that everything was done seriously and scientifically - were lived by the sixty participants with exemplary attention and with an equally free and uninhibited discussion. This was what had been proposed, because we started with the conviction that «serving the truth is serving Christ himself and his Church», as John Paul II had reminded us. Much space was taken up with an exegesis of the New Testament texts. More directly we analyzed the texts present above all in Matthew, the Acts and St. Paul that have been given an anti-Jewish interpretation over the centuries. By way of example we only need to mention Peter's discourses in which the expression «You killed him», or «You crucified him» (cf. Acts 2:23; 2:36; 3:15; 4:10; 5:20) recur several times. We have seen that over the centuries these passages have been given a meaning they did not have and that neither Peter nor the sacred authors had ever intended. As a correct exegesis maintains, the direct reference in these texts is made in order to draw attention to a historical event, to remember a fact and a circumstance without charging it with other meanings or with culpability. A proof of this is the fact that in all these cases Peter addresses the Jews by calling them «brethren». Other cases that could be cited are quotations from the prophets, which could never have contained an anti-Jewish meaning. The Pauline texts themselves are to be considered within the context of a theological and religious dispute; if you like, also with strong controversial tones, but never in an anti-Jewish key. If this were so, the texts would be in contradiction to the various expressions of forgiveness that constitute the most coherent context in which they are written.

Therefore anti-Judaism does not belong to the sacred texts. Only a foreign culture, determined more by social, political and economic conditions than by religious conditions could introduce meanings that contradict the very essence of the Christian faith. In this context it will not be out of keeping to take another look at the unfounded accusations of deicide that have continued for decades and that have no place nor any justification. Israel remains the people whom God chose and established to be a sign of waiting for the fulfilment and with whom he made «a covenant never revoked», as John Paul II said very forcefully in 1981.

Therefore the roots of anti-Semitism cannot be found in the New Testament. This does not mean that there are no texts in the writings of Christian authors that have shifted the accent to what a believer would never or could never have thought or written. Anti-Jewish texts are found in some of the apologists, in several texts of theological writings and even in the discourses of some saints... all this should be put into context and dismissed. What did matter to the Symposium, however, was trying to find out whether this feeling was at the basis of our being believers, but no one is allowed to say this. Political, social and economic conditions as well as ignorance have often prevailed when we have departed from the source of faith: the Word of God. In any case, it must be repeated strongly that in no profession of faith and in no text of the Church's Magisterium - the original sources that constitute the contents of the Christian faith - is there a single anti-Jewish word. A testimony to this is the very death of Jesus which the professions of faith indicate with the words: «He was crucified under Pontius Pilate». This is a sign that the thought of Christians could never go against that people on whom, in any case, it had been grafted; they were the root, whereas we remain the branches that have been grafted in (Rom 11:19).

Finally, it is well to stress that the objective of the Symposium was not to reach an act of forgiveness, but rather to find out whether the conditions for this exist. So it was a moment for reflection, serious study and scientific analysis of texts in order to reach some conclusions to present to the Holy Father. We are all called to make this serious examination of conscience, believers and «laity». To be sure, it cannot be imposed; and yet, the impulse to reflect on one's own history is such a positive fact that everyone should agree with it. At this point I am sorry to say that many passages of the apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente have been forgotten by observers. In fact, in the first instance the Holy Father asks that first of all it should be national leaders who examine their consciences: «After 1989 however there arose new dangers and threats. In the countries of the former Eastern bloc, after the fall of Communism, there appeared the serious threat of exaggerated nationalism, as is evident from events in the Balkans and other neighbouring areas. This obliges the European nations to make a serious examination of conscience, and to acknowledge faults and errors, both economic and political, resulting from imperialist policies carried out in the previous and present centuries vis-à-vis nations whose rights have been systematically violated» (TMA 27). It does not seem to me that any comment has ever been made on this passage by those who have devoted themselves recently to pursuing the faults of Christians with dossiers of dubious scientific value demanding in a loud voice that the Church acknowledge her faults. It is symptomatic that these people do not feel the least embarrassed before such a distortion of texts. After all we know that on questions that concern the Church and her doctrine there are always many more professors than students... above all among those who love to claim they are non-believers! They may console themselves, however, because even when the Church does perform a gesture whereby she asks pardon for the sins of her children, she will never be guilty of those deeds. Even the least knowledgeable in theological and ecclesial matters should understand the difference between asking forgiveness for someone and being guilty of the sin.

Undoubtedly we must conclude that the whole matter has brought a further positive thrust to dialogue between Catholics and Jews in these last decades. In any case, the very fact that the issue was raised shows an act of great courage and a firm desire to look to the future with more commitment and responsibility. The Church that reads the history of the past and the present in the light of a request for forgiveness offers a sign of extreme efficaciousness before a culture that tends to hide its responsibilities and prefer revenge and hatred to pardon. Knowing how to ask for forgiveness, do not forget, is not an act of weakness; on the contrary, it expresses great freedom and is what constitutes the experience of joy, this is why it is an indication of real progress.

By studying the roots of anti-Judaism we believe we have made our own contribution to overcoming the misunderstandings that may have divided us in the past and that we have also helped to discover the peculiarities of the two faiths. Thus we can look to the future with greater serenity without withdrawing into limited confines that should never have existed. Therefore, the challenge lies in our ability to create new cultural expressions with new languages and forms of behaviour that will be able to help above all the new generations to look towards every person and every people because of the riches they possess and not because of the limits that are arbitrarily established.

What remains to be seen is the possibility of a meeting point in prayer. Christians have the Jewish Bible and they read it in the light of Christ who is its fulfilment and definitive interpretative key. This is our faith and this characterizes us and separates us. According to the expression of one Jewish author, cited by Card. Etchegaray during the Symposium: «Faith in Jesus unites us and faith in Jesus separates us». Words which touch the heart of the problem. God's fatherhood is seen in all the books of the Old Testament, for us Christians it becomes the start of a new life which overcomes racial barriers to open to the universality of God's call. The newness brought by Jesus Christ is surely the challenge that will always be on the horizon, but at the same time it marks the irrenounceable Christian identity. In any case we have much in common and we are children of the same promise which we see already fulfilled even though it still awaits its eschatological completion. So we could turn our attention to the faith of Abraham, the Patriarchs, the prophets and those who throughout the history of salvation bore witness that life has meaning only if we abandon ourselves into God's hands. It could be the prayer of the Roman Canon that allows us to verify the continuity of a sacred tradition and our own place in the history of salvation: «Look with favour on these offerings and accept them as once you accepted the gifts of your servant Abel, the sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith, and the bread and wine offered by your priest Melchisedech».

The best conclusion to this Symposium, however, was given significantly by John Paul II himself when he said in his discourse to participants: «Your lucid examination of the past, in view of a purification of memory, is particularly appropriate for clearly showing that anti-Semitism has no justification and is absolutely reprehensible».

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