On Sunday Francis became the third pope to visit the Grand Synagogue of Rome. Welcoming the Pontiff, Rabbi Riccardo Di Segni noted that, according to rabbinic tradition, “an act repeated three times becomes chazaqà, a habit”. By following in the footsteps of John Paul II and Benedict XVI, Francis has confirmed that it is a custom for the Bishop of Rome to visit the city’s main synagogue.
During his visit Francis spoke of a “veritable transformation of Christian-Jewish relations in these 50 years”. We have become so used to healthy relations between Catholics and Jews that it is easy to forget that the relationship was toxic for most of the past 2,000 years.
What happened 50 years ago? The fathers of the Second Vatican Council issued Nostra Aetate, a declaration on non-Christian religions. On Sunday, Francis offered a pithy summary. The text, he said, “has indicated the way: ‘yes’ to rediscovering Christianity’s Jewish roots; ‘no’ to every form of anti-Semitism and blame for every wrong, discrimination and persecution deriving from it”.
Two developments last month suggest that Catholic-Jewish ties can be deepened further. On December 3 Orthodox rabbis from Europe, Israel and the United States issued an unprecedented statement, declaring that Christians and Jews have a “common covenantal mission”. The document also acknowledged “the ongoing constructive validity of Christianity as our partner in world redemption”. Then on December 10 a Vatican commission issued a theological reflection which underlined that “the Catholic Church neither conducts nor supports any specific institutional mission work directed towards Jews”.
Greater solidarity is not a mere nicety;
it may be a matter of life and death
Pope Francis is well placed to seize on these promising new signs. He comes from Argentina, home to the largest Jewish community in Latin America. He was a frequent visitor to Buenos Aires synagogues and was the first public figure to sign a petition calling for justice for victims of the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community centre that killed 85 people. As Pope, he is admired throughout the Jewish world for his simplicity and service of the poor. If anyone can bring Catholics and Jews together in a “common covenantal mission”, he can.
Greater solidarity between Christians and Jews is not a mere nicety; it may be a matter of life and death. The situation of Europe’s 1.4 million Jews looks increasingly precarious. Anti-Semitic attacks increased by 84 per cent in France last year and by 53 per cent in Britain in the first six months of 2015. Meanwhile, the past year was the worst in modern history for anti-Christian persecution, according to the American group Open Doors. In many cases, Christians and Jews share a common persecutor: Islamic extremists. They must, wherever possible, protect each other and never tire of denouncing violence in the name of God – alongside Muslims who are also appalled by the destruction of God-given lives.
But rapprochement between Christians and Jews is not simply a defensive manoeuvre. As Rabbi David Rosen, one of the signatories of the Orthodox leaders’ statement, has pointed out, the two faiths face other grave challenges, such as moral relativism and “the assault of radical secularism”. In the early 21st century it is clear that the West is dangerously adrift. The moment has come for a new Judaeo-Christian enrichment of our civilisation.
One of Britain’s leading Catholic peers has criticised the British Government for the way it treats Christian refugees from Syria and Iraq. Lord Alton expressed concern that Britain was overlooking one of the region’s most vulnerable groups because there was no political capital to be gained by helping them.
This is indeed the case: as religious persecution has escalated this century, as documented by groups such as Aid to the Church in Need, Britain has consistently ignored the plight of Christians, even when, in the case of Iraq, we played a role in their destruction. Syrian Christians now have a particular problem because, finding the Jordanian and Lebanese camps unsafe for non-Muslims, they miss out on help from Western powers. Just 2.2 per cent of Syrians settled in the US since 2011 have come from a minority that constituted 10 per cent of the population before the war started. Britain’s record is even worse.
Christians are in a sense victims of Christianity’s own message. With secularisation, the West has retained many of Christianity’s core values, including the idea of universalism: that is, the idea that it is wrong to help members of one faith over another. So while in the Middle East Sunni, Shia and Jews are defended by powers that represent their interests, Christians are left to fend for themselves.
British politicians are also scared of being seen as “crusaders” by appearing to confront Islamism: far easier to look at fashionable, if just, causes such as the persecution of gay people. Yet politicians do this because they think there are no electoral rewards for speaking out for Christians. We must change that, by asking questions, writing letters, using the networks of our parishes to make politicians take notice, and reminding them that every Sunday millions of voters still attend church.
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