By Rebecca Cohen
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Day for Jewish-Christian Dialogue is celebrated Jan. 17 in Italy, as well as in several other European countries, as an “opportunity (for Christians) to remember with gratitude the Jewish roots of their faith, and to become aware of the dialogue currently ongoing with Judaism,” writes Father Norbert Hofmann, secretary of the Holy See’s Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews. While this day is not traditionally marked in the United States, it offers a particularly poignant moment to reflect on the hope that Jewish-Christian Dialogue offers the world today, especially in light of recent events.
The Day for Jewish-Christian Dialogue was first observed in 1990, nearly 25 years after the promulgation of “Nostra Aetate,” the Second Vatican Council’s Declaration on the Relation of the Church to Non-Christian Religions. Chapter 4 of the document is dedicated to Jewish-Christian relations. This document provided the foundation for Jewish-Catholic dialogue and took the necessary steps towards the rapprochement that we experience today. It rejected the charge that the Jewish people as a whole were responsible for the death of Jesus Christ and recognized the importance of our shared spiritual patrimony: “Since the spiritual patrimony common to Christians and Jews is thus so great, this sacred synod wants to foster and recommend that mutual understanding and respect which is the fruit, above all, of biblical and theological studies as well as of fraternal dialogues” (“Nostra Aetate,”4).
Importantly, after a quarter-century, and even more so today, the paradigmatic shift that occurred in Jewish-Christian relations through this document is often lost on younger generations, who have known nothing but a post-Conciliar Church. While nothing in “Nostra Aetate” is alien to Catholic tradition, the positive evaluation of Judaism and the Jewish people was certainly understated and overwhelmed by a predominant narrative of supersessionism — the theological argument that Christians replaced Jews as the people of God — that has now been repudiated. Yet, the importance of this document for the friendship among Jews and Christians today cannot be overstated. It is the soil in which that friendship has taken root and it continues to deepen through the decades.
The Day of Jewish-Christian Dialogue is also the opportunity to take note of this progress. Today, the relationship among Jews and Christians has grown, so that even those most heinous moments of our history can be confronted together. In this, hope for even the most broken of relationships can be found. I think of the difficult times the United States is facing, after the brazen attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6. In the following days, politicians, public figures, and average Americans recognize the need for healing and reconciliation.
I cannot help but think of the long road Jews and Catholics have taken together — one of lament, penance, and transformation, healing and reconciliation. We can now recognize one another as brothers and sisters. It has not been an easy road, and it is not always clear, but as today’s friendships can attest, it is possible and well worth the effort.
“I am Joseph, your brother.” (Gen 45:4)
Rebecca Cohen is currently the Program and Research Specialist in the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs. In this capacity, she represents the USCCB in multilateral coalitions such as the National Council of Churches in the USA, the Shoulder to Shoulder Campaign, and Religions for Peace – USA. She also staffs the bishops’ three dialogues with the American Jewish community. Rebecca Cohen is a Lay Centre alumna (2013-16) and a Russell Berrie alumna (Cohort VI, USA).
Photo courtesy Paul Haring/CNS - Pope Francis walks with Argentine Rabbi Abraham Skorka, left, and Omar Abboud, a Muslim leader from Argentina, as he leaves after praying at the Western Wall in Jerusalem in this May 26, 2014.
