Christian-Jewish Relations Library

The Center is pleased to make available the following noteworthy essays concerning Christian-Jewish Relations. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of the Center. Articles are arranged in the categories that follow. Some articles may be listed in more than one category.

Categories

• A Sacred Obligation: Rethinking Christian Faith in Relation to Judaism and the Jewish People
• Christian-Jewish Dialogue
• Christian Theology
• Christian efforts to convert Jews to Christianity
• Dabru Emet: A Jewish Statement on Christians and Christianity
• Dominus Iesus
• History, history of relations
• The Jewish People and Their Sacred Scriptures in the Christian Bible
• Jewish Theology
• Middle East
• Reflections on Covenant and Mission
• Religious Education
• Scriptural Interpretation
• Shoah (Holocaust)

 

Christian-Jewish Dialogue (Arranged chronologically)

Norbert J. Hofmann, "Salvation from the Jewish Jesus of Nazareth"
The secretary for the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, prepared this article to mark the annual observance of the "Day of Judaism" in several European countries. Published in the March 21, 2007 issue of L'Osservatore Romano, the article discusses the importance of Catholic dialogue with Judaism, observing that this has internal and external dimensions. Internally, it notes the work of academic centers and the Commission on unresolved theological issues, while externally it considers the Commission's dialogues with IJCIC and the Israeli Rabbinate.

Michael C. Kotzin, "The Catholic-Jewish Scholars Dialogue of Chicago: A Model of Interreligious Dialogue"
Michael C. Kotzin, the Executive Vice President of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, presented this history of the experiences of a noteworthy Chicago dialogue group on September 26, 2005 at the conference "Nostra Aetate Today" held at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. His account shows how events in Catholic-Jewish relations for the past few decades impacted a particularly significant ongoing gathering of Jews and Catholics.

Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, "Peace in the World: The Contribution of Interreligious Relations"
The president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue delivered this essay on February 28, 2005 at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. The archbishop links the principles and practices of interreligious dialogue to four principles of peace outlined in Pope John XXIII's 1963 Pacem in Terris.

William Cardinal Keeler, "Catholic-Jewish Dialogue: A Developing Agenda"
Cardinal Keeler is the Archbishop of Baltimore and the Episcopal Moderator for Catholic-Jewish Relations of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. This address was delivered on June 7, 2004 at a Jewish-Catholic dialogue sponsored by the Brazilian Conference of Catholic Bishop in Salvador, Brazil.

Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik on Interreligious Dialogue - Forty Years Later
A panel discussion of Rabbi Soloveitchik's influential 1964 article "Confrontation" in which he argued that Orthodox Jews should eschew dialogue with Christians on theological matters but ought to engage in social justice and civil rights dialogues. The panelists, three Orthodox rabbis and a Catholic observer, considered the application of Rabbi Soloveitchik's insights in the present.

• Eugene Korn, Seton Hall University
• David Berger, Brooklyn College - CUNY
• Aryeh Klapper, Harvard University Hillel
• Philip A. Cunningham, Boston College
   

Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, "Evangelization and Interreligious Dialogue"
This address was delivered by the president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue on October 25, 2003 at Trinity College in Washington. He distinguishes between "evangelization" and "evangelism," seeing the former as reflection the Catholic understanding of the church's evangelizing mission in a broad sense and the latter as used by some Christian communities to mean the direct preaching of Jesus Christ. He goes on to describe the multi-faceted purposes of interreligious dialogue and how the doctrine of the Trinity impels Christians to engage in dialogue.

William Cardinal Keeler, "The Catholic Church and the Jewish People"
This address was delivered by the archbishop of Baltimore and the U.S. bishops' moderator for Catholic-Jewish relations on July 2, 2003 at the annual meeting of the International Conference of Christians and Jews. Cardinal Keeler recounts developments since Nostra Aetate, praises the personal contributions of Pope John Paul II to Catholic-Jewish rapprochement, and discusses the question of Christian missions to convert Jews.

Philip A. Cunningham, "Recognizing Each Other's Religious Legitimacy: How Far Can We Go?"
This panel discussion, co-sponsored by the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College and the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston on March 13, 2003, explored the topic of how Jews and Christians can construct affirming theologies of each other. Rabbi Dr Eugene Korn suggested that if "the Jewish covenantal commitment is a paradigm for humanity, then it would seem that other peoples are also entitled to their own particular theological commitment (i.e. religion) without denying divergent religious conceptions." After outlining the great reform occurring in Catholic teaching about Jews, Dr. Cunningham argued "that simply affirming that Jews remain in covenant with God is insufficient because Christians can understand 'covenant' in ways that still deny Jewish religious integrity." Rev. Stendahl responded from a Lutheran perspective and warns against certain dangers as Jews and Christians pursue a new relationship.

Eugene Korn, "One God: Many Faiths - A Jewish Theology of Covenantal Pluralism."

Luke Timothy Johnson, "Christians and Jews: Starting Over - Why the Real Dialogue Has Just Begun"
Posted here with the kind permission of Commonweal magazine, the Robert W. Woodruff Professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at Emory University, argues that the proper Christian response to the recognition of the corrosion of supersessionism is neither thinking that "nothing has changed," nor "throwing itself on the same sword it wielded against Jews." He urges Christians instead to adopt three unaccustomed attitudes: theological modesty or humility, patient attentiveness to the gospel, and a willingness to learn from Judaism. (See also "To the Editors" Correspondence between Avery Cardinal Dulles and Luke Timothy Johnson).

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "Address on the 37th Anniversary of Nostra Aetate."
Remarks delivered in Rome on October 28, 2002, which states that "Judaism is as a sacrament of every otherness that as such the Church must learn to discern, recognize and celebrate."

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "Achievements and Further Challenges in the Jewish-Christian Dialogue."
An address delivered at the inauguration of the SIDIC Library Collection and Documentation Centre at the Pontifical Gregorian University, October 17, 2002.

Eugene J. Fisher, "The New Agenda in Catholic-Jewish Relations: A Response to Edward Kessler"
In this article from the summer of 2001, posted with the kind permission of The Tablet, Dr. Fisher, the associate director of the Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of the USCCB, surveys the "state-of-the-question" of Catholic-Jewish relations. He touches especially on education, liturgy, and Jewish conversion to Christianity.

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "Spiritual and Ethical Commitment in Jewish-Christian Dialogue"
Cardinal Kasper's address at the annual meeting of the International Council of Christians and Jews, Montevideo, Uruguay, 12 July 2001.

Leon Klenicki, "Overview of the Past Ten Years"
This pair of essays was presented at the 17th meeting of the International Catholic - Jewish Liaison Committee, held in New York in May, 2001. They offer helpful retrospectives of the previous decade of Catholic-Jewish relations. Cardinal Cassidy is the retiring president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews and Rabbi Leon Klenicki, retired ADL director for interreligious affairs, is a veteran of the dialogue.

Edward Idris Cardinal Cassidy, "Jewish - Catholic Relations: 1990-2001"

Edward Idris Cardinal Cassidy, The Future of Jewish-Christian Relations in the Light of the Visit of Pope John Paul II to the Holy Land
Cardinal Cassidy, retiring president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, surveys the pontificate of John Paul II and offers a vision for future Christian-Jewish relations. This address was delivered in Jerusalem on March 13, 2001 at the tenth annual meeting of the Interreligious Coordinating Council in Israel.

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, "The Heritage of Abraham: The Gift of Christmas"
This article by the president of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is a Christmas message encouraging Christians to be grateful to the Jewish people and tradition.

Michael Signer, "On Christian Teshuvah: The Open Heart of the Jewish People"
This High Holydays sermon by Rabbi Dr. Michael Signer of the University of Notre Dame focuses particularly on Catholic statements calling for Christian teshuvah in response to the Shoah.

Remi Hoeckman, "The Jewish-Christian Encounter: A Matter of Faith?"
Rev. Dr. Remi Hoeckman, O.P., then the Secretary of the Holy See's Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, presented this paper in April 1998 at a conference entitled, "Humanity at the Limit: The Impact of the Holocaust on Jews and Christians" held at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, USA.

Joseph B. Soloveitchik, "Confrontation"
In this influential 1964 essay, the leading rabbi of Orthodox Judaism in the United States, discusses whether it is appropriate for Jews to engage in interreligious dialogue with Christians. He concludes his reflections, published one year before the Second Vatican Council promulgated Nostra Aetate, that so long as Christianity considers itself to have superseded Judaism that Jews should not discuss matters of faith, doctrine, or theology with Christians. They should, however, converse about civil rights, social justice, and religious liberty issues.

Christian Theology (Arranged chronologically)

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "The Relationship of the Old and the New Covenant as One of the Central Issues in Jewish-Christian Dialogue"
A lecture delivered at the Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations in Cambridge, United Kingdom in which the president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews discusses various aspects of covenantal theology.

Cardinal William Keeler, "Reflections on Anti-Semitism and the Church"
Cardinal Keeler is the Archbishop of Baltimore and the Episcopal Moderator for Catholic-Jewish Relations of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. This address was delivered on June 6, 2004 at a Jewish-Catholic dialogue sponsored by the Brazilian Conference of Catholic Bishop in Salvador, Brazil.

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "Antisemitism: A Wound to be Healed."
The article was written in observance of the fourth European Day of Jewish Culture, September 5, 2003. Cardinal Kasper recounts the history of Christian antisemitism, partially based on erroneous uses of the New Testament in both East and West, and urges that concrete efforts for penitence, reconciliation, and reform occur among all Christians. He concludes that true brotherhood between Christians and Jews would mean that "a new springtime for the Church and for the world can bloom once more."

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "The Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews: A Crucial Endeavor of the Catholic Church".
An address delivered at Boston College on Nov. 6, 2002 in which the president of this Vatican Commission recounts its history and mission. He also makes significant comments about the question of the Christian witness to Jews.

Bishop Walter Kasper, "The Unicity and Universality of Jesus Christ."
An important discussion of religious pluralism delivered on Oct. 17, 2000, one month after the issuance of Dominus Iesus (see below).

Anthony J. Saldarini, "Christian Anti- Judaism: The First Century Speaks to the Twenty-First Century"
This Joseph Cardinal Bernardin Jerusalem Lecture was delivered by the late Boston College professor on April 14, 1999 in Chicago. It well represents his extraordinary scholarship and commitment to Christian-Jewish amity.

Converting Jews to Christianity (Arranged chronologically)

Eugene J. Fisher, "The New Agenda in Catholic-Jewish Relations: A Response to Edward Kessler"
In this article from the summer of 2001, posted with the kind permission of The Tablet, Dr. Fisher, the associate director of the Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of the USCCB, surveys the "state-of-the-question" of Catholic-Jewish relations. He touches especially on education, liturgy, and Jewish conversion to Christianity.

Eugene J. Fisher, "Some Thoughts on 'Messianic Judaism'"
These brief reflections on so-called "Messianic Judaism" or "Jews for Jesus" were in response to a question on the Catholic Church's position on the subject.

Michael McGarry, "Can Catholics Make an Exception? - Jews and 'The New Evangelization'"
Fr. McGarry, presently the rector of the Tantur Ecumenical Institute for Theological Studies near Jerusalem, presented this paper during the second REMEMBERING FOR THE FUTURE conference in Berlin, Germany, March 13-17, 1994. It addresses the same back to topic as the preceding Federici essay.

Tommaso Federici, "Study Outline on the Mission and Witness of the Church."
This paper was presented by Prof. Federici at the 1977 meeting in Venice of the International Catholic Jewish Liaison Committee. In it he explores from a Catholic perspective whether efforts to proselytize Jews are appropriate Christian undertakings. His paper remains one of the fullest Catholic treatments of the subject to date.

Dabru Emet (Arranged chronologically)

Michael Signer, "Dabru Emet: Sic et Non"
These two papers were presented as part of a conversation between the authors at the first annual meeting of the Council of Centers on Jewish-Christian Relations in Baltimore, October 28, 2002. Prof. David Berger of Brooklyn College is a respected Orthodox Jewish scholar who expresses some concerns about Dabru Emet. Prof. Michael Signer of the University of Notre Dame is a renowned Reform rabbi and medievalist, and one of the four authors of Dabru Emet. He provides an overview of agreements and disagreements with the document that have been expressed since its publication.

David Berger, "Dabru Emet: Some Reservations"

David Rosen, "Dabru Emet: Its Significance for the Jewish-Christian Dialogue"
Rabbi David Rosen, the International Interreligious Affairs Director of the American Jewish Committee and President of the International Council of Christians and Jews, offered these remarks at the 20th anniversary celebration of the Dutch Council of Christians and Jews (OJEC) at Tilburg, The Netherlands, Nov. 6, 2001.

Michael Signer, "Some Reflections on Dabru Emet"
This address was given by Rabbi Signer, one of the four authors of Dabru Emet, at the Institut Kirche und Judentum in Berlin on July 26, 2001. It provides useful background information about the document's origins, purview, and future.

Dominus Iesus (Arranged chronologically)

Dr. David Berger: "On Dominus Iesus and the Jews"
This is pair of essays was delivered at the 17th meeting of the International Catholic - Jewish Liaison Committee, held in New York in May, 2001. Cardinal Kasper is the newly appointed president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews. Orthodox Rabbi Berger is Professor of History at Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Cardinal Kasper explains Catholic magisterial thinking about other religions, while Rabbi Berger discerns perils for Christian - Jewish theological dialogue in Dominus Iesus.

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "Dominus Iesus".
See also his earlier essay in "Christian Theology" above.

History, history of relations (Arranged chronologically by subject)

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "Disarming Terror: A Role for Believers"
This is a translation of an address delivered by Cardinal Kasper on September 7, 2004 in Milan as part of a conference co-sponsored by the Community of Sant' Egidio and the Archdiocese of Milan, entitled "Religions and Cultures: The Courage to Forge a New Spiritual Humanism." The president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity calls upon all religions to critically re-examine their history and to "wake up and galvanize their own spiritual resources of resistance to terrorist violence."

Frederick James Murphy, "Ancient Judaism, the Humanity of Jesus, and Catholic Biblical Scholarship"
The annual Joseph Lecture delivered at Boston College on November 15, 2004. Professor Murphy discusses how Christians have distorted essential aspects of Judaism in the time of Jesus, the importance of historical Jesus research, and the contributions of biblical criticism to theology and the church.

Franz Cardinal Konig, "It Must Be the Holy Spirit"
Cardinal Konig is the emeritus Archbishop of Vienna and was one of the leading figures at the Second Vatican Council. His article describes some key moments of the Council, most notably the composition of Nostra Aetate. The article is reprinted with the kind permission of The Tablet, published in London, from the December 21, 2002 issue.

Jenny Goldstein, "Transcending Boundaries: Boston's Catholics and Jews, 1929-1965"
The Center is pleased to make available this outstanding senior thesis, completed in the History Department of Brandeis University by a 2001 graduate. Ms. Goldstein provides an excellent description of the history of Catholic - Jewish relations in Boston. Our congratulations to her and our thanks to her director Prof. Jonathan Sarna.

James Bernauer, "The Holocaust and the Catholic Church's Search for Forgiveness"
This overview of the Catholic Church's engagement with the horrors of the Shoah offers a number of interesting considerations, including the changing response of German bishops after the Second World War and the efforts of the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits, to deal with the antisemitic aspects of their own history.

Martin Rhonheimer, "The Holocaust: What Was Not Said"
In this article from First Things, a Swiss priest and professor of ethics and political philosophy steers a middle course in the controversy about the role of the Catholic Church during the Second World War. He criticizes both those who simply attack or simplistically defend Catholic leaders and argues that a distinction must be made between the Church's relationship with National Socialism and its relationship with Jews. He concludes that "in view of all that Christians have done to Jews in history, it is Christians who should take the lead in the purification of memory and conscience."

Daniel J. Lasker, "Competing Claims for Truth: Medieval Judaism and Christianity in Conflict"
In this lecture delivered at Boston College on February 6, 2003, Prof. Lasker from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev describes the polemical interactions between Jews and Christians in the Middle Ages. He concludes that polemicizing medieval Christians and Jews could only talk past one another because they had different theological premises and because they had no common methodology with which to conduct their debate.

Michael J. Cook, "References to Jesus in Early Rabbinic Literature (200-500 c.e.)"
An article in the October 3, 2003 issue of The Jewish Week raises the question of whether the Talmud and other rabbinic literature provides historical information about the role played by Jewish individuals or institutions in the death of Jesus. Prof. Michael Cook here explains that these materials were shaped by the circumstances of Jews and Christians centuries after the crucifixion and so provide no historical data about that event itself.

Mark Weitzman, "The Inverted Image: Antisemitism and Anti-Catholicism on the Internet"
This article was originally presented at the Fifth Biennial Conference On Christianity and the Holocaust on October 18-19, 1998. The author, on the staff of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, reviews the growth of hate sites on the Internet, paying special attention to antisemitic and anti-Catholic themes. The essay provides an overview of the state of affairs in the late 1990s.

The Jewish People and Their Sacred Scripture in the Christian Bible (Arranged chronologically)

Joan E. Cook, "The New PBC Document: Continuity, Discontinuity, and Progression Revisited"
Joan E. Cook, S.C., from the Washington Theological Union, presented this paper on August 5, 2003 at the annual meeting of the Catholic Biblical Association. In its she analyzes thirteen studies on the PBC document that have appeared since April 2002. She spotlights three significant contributions that the document makes according to the thirteen commentators, and also surveys those parts of the document that have received the most attention.

John R. Donahue, "Joined by Word and Covenant: Reflections on a Recent Vatican Document on Jewish Christian Relations"
John R. Donahue, the Raymond E. Brown Distinguished Professor of New Testament Studies at St. Mary's Seminary and University in Baltimore, in address given on March 16, 2003, offers a trenchant analysis of The Jewish People and Their Sacred Scriptures in the Christian Bible.

Donald Senior, "Rome Has Spoken: A New Catholic Approach to Judaism"
Donald Senior, C.P., is president of the Catholic Theological Union at Chicago and was recently appointed by Pope John Paul II to the Pontifical Biblical Commission. This article on the Pontifical Biblical Commission study is based on a presentation to the Catholic Biblical Association of America at its annual meeting in August 2002. Posted with the kind permission of of Commonweal Magazine.

Philip A. Cunningham, "The Pontifical Biblical Commission's 2001 Study on The Jewish People and Their Sacred Scriptures in the Christian Bible: Selected Important Quotations with Comments."
A summary and analysis of the important 2001 study of the Pontifical Biblical Commission.

Jewish Theology (Arranged chronologically)

Meir Y. Soloveitchik, "The Virtue of Hate"
In this article from First Things, Rabbi Meir Y. Soloveichik, Resident Scholar at the Jewish Center in Manhattan and a Beren Fellow at Yeshiva University, compares and contrasts Jewish and Christian understandings of forgiveness. He argues that a core distinction between the two religions is Judaism's acceptance of the occasional and limited necessity to hate the enemy, while Christianity urges the constant possibility of divine forgiveness.

Gilbert S. Rosenthal, "Some Are Chosen, All Are Loved"
Rabbi Gilbert Rosenthal, executive director of the National Council of Synagogues, offers a helpful overview of how the concepts of "chosenness" and mission have developed in the Jewish tradition over the centuries.

Shira Lander, "Martyrdom in Jewish Traditions."
This paper was delivered by Rabbi Dr. Shira Lander at the December 2003 meeting of the Catholic-Jewish Consultation Committee, composed of delegates from the National Council of Synagogues and the bishops' Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs.

Eugene Korn, "One God: Many Faiths - A Jewish Theology of Covenantal Pluralism."
At an event co-sponsored by the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College and the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston on March 13, 2003, Rabbi Dr Eugene Korn suggested that if "the Jewish covenantal commitment is a paradigm for humanity, then it would seem that other peoples are also entitled to their own particular theological commitment (i.e. religion) without denying divergent religious conceptions."

Alan Brill, "Judaism and Other Religions: An Orthodox perspective."
Rabbi Dr. Alan Brill teaches at Yeshiva University and Yeshivat Chovevei Torah and is also the Founder and Director of Kavvanah: Center for Jewish Thought. A summary and sample of a forthcoming book on the topic, this paper was commissioned by the World Jewish Congress for the "World Symposium of Catholic Cardinals and Jewish Leaders," January 19-20, 2004 in New York City. It surveys a wide range of Jewish theological approaches to non-Jews, categorizing them "as exclusivist, inclusivist, or universalist / pluralistic."

Middle East (Arranged chronologically)

Philip A. Cunningham, "Reflections from a Roman Catholic on 'Understanding Christian Support for Israel"
These comments from the director of the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning were delivered during a March 14, 2007 panel discussion, "Understanding Christian Support for Israel," which compared Evangelical and Roman Catholic perspectives. The remarks set forth the Holy See's approach, which includes affirming the human rights of all the relevant parties, advocating a "two-state solution," and distinguishing among the interlocking realities of the People of Israel, the Land of Israel, and the State of Israel. They conclude with cautions against antisemitism and Islamophobia.

F. Michael Perko, SJ, "'Jerusalem in Slavery:' Christians, the Bible, and Contemporary Israeli/Palestinian Polticis"
Prof. Perko is Director of the Center for the Advanced Study of Christianity and Culture at Loyola University of Chicago. This paper, posted with the author's kind permission, was presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Israel Studies, April, 2003.

Francesco Rossi de Gasperis, SJ, "The Interreligious Dialogue in Jerusalem"
This essay offers interesting discussions of the different ways in which eastern and western Christianity have responded to the Shoah, as well as a discussion about the relative influence of supersessionist in Christianity and Islam. Fr. de Gasperis teaches at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Jerusalem.

Reflections on Covenant and Mission (Arranged chronologically.) 

Edward Idris Cardinal Cassidy, "Reflections on Covenant and Mission."
The president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews from 1989-2000 discusses the statement in his 2005 book, Ecumenism and Interreligious Dialogue.

Three essays from a Boston College Panel held on February 9, 2005: Should Catholics Seek to Convert Jews (If Jews Are in True Covenant with God)?

Philip A. Cunningham, "Reflecting on the Reflections"
Michael J. Himes, "Evangelization and Interreligious Dialogue"
Fred Lawrence, "On Conversion"
 

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "The Relationship of the Old and the New Covenant as One of the Central Issues in Jewish-Christian Dialogue"
A lecture delivered at the Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations in Cambridge, United Kingdom in which the president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews discusses various aspects of covenantal theology.

Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, "Evangelization and Interreligious Dialogue"
This address was delivered by the president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue on October 25, 2003 at Trinity College in Washington. He distinguishes between "evangelization" and "evangelism," seeing the former as reflection the Catholic understanding of the church's evangelizing mission in a broad sense and the latter as used by some Christian communities to mean the direct preaching of Jesus Christ. He goes on to describe the multi-faceted purposes of interreligious dialogue and how the doctrine of the Trinity impels Christians to engage in dialogue.

William Cardinal Keeler, "The Catholic Church and the Jewish People"
This address was delivered by the archbishop of Baltimore and the U.S. bishops' moderator for Catholic-Jewish relations on July 2, 2003 at the annual meeting of the International Conference of Christians and Jews. Cardinal Keeler recounts developments since Nostra Aetate, praises the personal contributions of Pope John Paul II to Catholic-Jewish rapprochement, and discusses the question of Christian missions to convert Jews.

Pope John Paul II, Ecclesia in Europa on Interreligious Dialogue - June 28, 2003
In this excerpt, John Paul II links the "new evangelization" with "a profound a perceptive interreligious dialogue, particularly with Judaism and Islam." Earlier in the text, the pope had stated that "that the new evangelization is in no way to be confused with proselytism, without prejudice to the duty of respect for truth, for freedom and for the dignity of every person" [32]. Throughout the text, "new evangelization" encompasses all aspects of Christian life.

"To the Editors" Correspondence between Avery Cardinal Dulles and Luke Timothy Johnson
In this exchange of letters to the editors of the magazine Commonweal (see Johnson's article above under "Christian-Jewish Dialogue"), the authors disagree on the interpretation of the Letter to the Hebrews and what it means for Christian-Jewish relations today.

Philip A. Cunningham, "Recognizing Each Other's Religious Legitimacy: How Far Can We Go?"
At an event co-sponsored by the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College and the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston on March 13, 2003, Dr. Cunningham outlined the great reform occurring in Catholic teaching about Jews, but argued " that simply affirming that Jews remain in covenant with God is insufficient because Christians can understand 'covenant' in ways that still deny Jewish religious integrity."

Walter Cardinal Kasper, "The Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews: A Crucial Endeavor of the Catholic Church".
An address delivered at Boston College on Nov. 6, 2002 in which the president of this Vatican Commission recounts its history and mission. He also makes significant comments about the question of the Christian witness to Jews.

The following pair of essays from the October 21, 2002 issue of America magazine present contrasting views of the 2002 BCEIA/NCS joint statement Reflections on Covenant and Mission. Cardinal Dulles takes exception to its conclusion that Christians should not target Jews for conversionary campaigns and its broad use of the term "evangelization". The three respondents assert that the Reflections are in direct continuity with the post-Nostra Aetate magisterial tradition.

Avery Cardinal Dulles, "Covenant and Mission"
Mary C. Boys, Philip A. Cunningham, and John T. Pawlikowski, "Theology's 'Sacred Obligation': A Reply to Cardinal Avery Dulles on Evangelization"

Francis Martin, "All Israel Will Be Saved," National Catholic Register, Oct. 6-12, 2002
A brief essay that suggests that Judaism's relationship to Christianity be understood using Bernard Lonergan's concept of "sublation."

Religious Education

Mark Stover, "A Kinder, Gentler Teaching of Contempt? Jews and Judaism in Contemporary Protestant Evangelical Children's Fiction," Journal of Religion and Society Vol 7 (2005)
This article analyzes contemporary American evangelical children's fiction with respect to the portrayal of Jews and Judaism. The author argues that these books, many of which contain conversion narratives, reflect the ambivalence of modern Protestant evangelical Christianity concerning Jews and Judaism. Evangelicals respect Jews and condemn all forms of anti-Semitism, but also promote and encourage the conversion of Jews to Christianity, which seems to imply a lack of respect or even a subtle contempt for Jewish faith and practice.

"Religious Traditions in Conversation: The Work of the Catholic-Jewish Colloquium," a special issue of Religious Education 91/4 (Fall, 1996)

Scriptural Interpretation 

Gregory Mobley, "Protestant and Jewish Approaches to the Scriptures (Or What I Learned ... from Inter-faith Bible Study)
The following is a revised form of a presentation given at the May 19, 2004 meeting of the Jewish-Christian Dialogue sponsored by the American Jewish Committee and the Massachusetts Council or Churches at Temple Mishkan Tefila in Newton, MA. The author is Associate Professor of Old Testament at Andover Newton Theological School and an ordained American Baptist minister.

The Shoah (Holocaust)

His Beatitude Christodoulos, "The Church Embraces All People"
The Archbishop of Athens and all Greece delivered this tribute to the late Archbishop Damaskinos of Athens at a commemoration organized by the Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece on January 28, 2007. Damaskinos had taken heroic steps to save Greek Jews during the Nazi Occupation. His Beatitude declares that Christians must stand "against terrorism, racism, xenophobia, the disappearance of differences, [and] the homogenization of everything into a syncretistic view of life."

Dietrich Bonhoeffer for Our Times

The following essays were delivered in panel discussions during the centenary conference, Dietrich Bonhoeffer for Our Times: Jewish and Christian Perspectives, cosponsored by the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Hebrew College, and Andover-Newton Theological School, September 17-18, 2006.

Donald Dietrich, "The Catholic Context: The Churches' Response to Nazism"

David P. Gushee, "Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Evangelical Moment in American Public Life"

Stephen J. Pope, "Moral Formation as Transformation: The Contribution of Dietrich Bonhoeffer"

Background Information

• Some Principles for Interreligious Dialogue
• A History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
• Criteria for Assessing the Presentation of Jews and Judaism in Christian Teaching and Homiletic Materials
• Do's and Don't When Teaching or Preaching About Jesus' Ministry
• Ten New Christian Convictions About Jews and Judaism
• "The Christian Teaching of Contempt for Jews and Judaism: A Primary Source Sampler"

Advent Resources

• The Birth of Jesus: Two Gospel Narratives (an online mini-course)
• Suggested Revised Lyrics for "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" and Commentary
• Advent Preaching Guidelines from U.S. Bishops' Committee on the Liturgy

Lenten and Holy Week Resources

• Lenten Resources
• The Death of Jesus: Four Gospel Accounts (an online mini-course)
• Suggested Passion Narrative Readings for Liturgical Use during Holy Week
• Criteria for the Evaluation of Dramatizations of the Passion
• Resources on the Mel Gibson movie production, The Passion of Christ

Multimedia

• Walking God's Paths: Christians and Jews in Candid Conversation (a six session multimedia dialogue curriculum)
• The Theological Contributions of Pope John Paul II to Catholic-Jewish Relations (a slide show)
• Open Doors, Open Minds (a seven-part curriculum for Christian-Jewish dialogue prepared by the Union for Reform Judaism)