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The Southern Cross, Page 4 Thursday, October 26, 2000 Catholics and Jews: How do we understand each other today? By Father Michael J. Kavanaugh n her book, Has God Only One Blessing?, Mary C. Boys enters into the highly challeng ing arena of Jewish-Christian relations, bringing with her years of personal and professional experience. A professor at Union Theological Seminary in New York, Ms. Boys presents a brief but reveal ing survey of the reality of the oppression of the Jews by Christians, Catholic and non-Catholic, throughout the last 20 centuries. Beginning with the polemics employed by the writers of scrip ture and ending with a call to on-going educa tion and conversion among Christians of today, she aims to help her readers adopt a less politi cized and, therefore, a more accurate under standing of the unique place held by the Jewish community in salvation history. Subtitled “Judaism as a Source of Christian Self-Under standing,” the book also intends to help Chris tians find greater self-awareness and understand ing of who we are as a body of believers “graft ed on to” the good root that is Judaism (see Romans 11:17-24). Near the end of her book, Ms. Boys notes that a great deal of education is needed in both the Christian and the Jewish communities to elicit greater appreciation for the enormous changes that have taken place in Jewish-Catholic rela tions in the last 40 or 50 years. In 1959 Pope John XXIII ordered that the prayers for the Jews in the Good Friday Liturgy be rewritten, and that the reference to the “perfidious” (“treacherous”) Jews be dropped. In 1965 the Second Vatican Council published Nostra Aetate, the Decla ration on the Relations of the Catholic Church to Non-Christian Religions, which included the brief but powerful statement, “Indeed, the Church reproves every form of persecution against whomsoever it may be directed. Remem bering, then, her common heritage with the Jews and moved not by any political consideration, but solely by the religious motivation of Christian charity, she deplores all hatreds, perse cutions, displays of antisemitism leveled at any time or from any source against the Jews” (Nostra Aetate, 4). This was an extraordinary repudiation of not only the hatred shown toward the Jews from without the Church, but also the cruel and unjust persecutions and condemnations that began within the Church. Since the Second Vatican Council, the Catho lic Church has been engaged in dialogue with the Jewish people on the local, national, and international level. We have been a leader among the Christian churches in this dialogue, especially here in the United States where reli gious pluralism, established and guaranteed by the Constitution, allows people of all faiths to (Continued on page I I) 601 E. Liberty St. Savannah, GA 31401-5196 Savannah 2000 Dear Editor: Several years ago I faced a parental dilemma — my 13-year-old daughter did not want to be confirmed because she said that she really did n’t believe all that the Church taught. I applau ded her integrity for not receiving a sacrament by rote and invited her friends to attend a Youth 2000 retreat in Atlanta that I had just read about. The weekend proved to be as spiritually powerful for the adult chaperones as for the young adults present. Retreatants changed from indifferent, even mildly disruptive, on Friday night to truly engrossed in prayer and filled with holy joy by Sunday. What made the differ ence? The presence of the Living God poured out through the sacraments of the Church. Jesus in the Eucharist was enthroned and processed. Youth and adults were washed clean in Con fession. Radiant, holy priests spoke the truth in love. The Mother of God was invoked and hon ored. Youth testified to the power of God in their lives. The retreat did not use the cutesy games and psychological ploys of some retreats. Rather, it proclaimed the Gospel unabashedly and bore much fruit. Well, my daughter was confirmed and my family has attended many Youth 2000s since then. Youth 2000 is designed to be a spring board for dioceses and parishes to have their own Eucharistic retreats and prayer groups. I am very happy that the Diocese of Savannah Vocations Office will be sponsoring just such a retreat called Savannah 2000 to be held in Augusta at Saint Teresa’s on November 17, 18, 19. [The fee is $20, including lunch and dinner on Saturday ] Among the priests who will be speaking are: Father Ted Hochstetter, spiritual director for Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity; the Diocesan Director of Vocations, Father Brett Brannen; and Father Ken Molley of Saint Petersburg, Florida. I would urge par ents, teachers, youth ministers, and coaches to Letters make the sacrifice and use their influence to bring as many youth as possible to this graced event. In the end they will discover it wasn’t a sacrifice at all—it was a gift. For more information about Savannah 2000, call Aaron Killips at 912-743-1454. Kathy Edry Augusta *** Chewing gum in Church Dear Editor: I recently had an occasion to go to Mass at Sacred Heart [in Savannah] on Sunday after noon at 6:00 p.m. There was a lady sitting in front of me chewing gum and another a few pews up chewing gum also. Now this lady went to Communion, and when she came back she was still chewing gum. I cannot say for sure that she took the gum out and returned it when she returned to her pew. To me this borders on scandal. Also I have observed some men going to communion with their hands in their pockets. To treat the receiving of Jesus into the body and soul in this manner is wrong, wrong, wrong. This is the central act of our celebration and it should be carried out in a holy and digni fied manner. Would you consider writing an article in The Southern Cross on this matter? Not all will lis ten, but maybe some will and in doing so they will become better Catholics and closer to Jesus. LaVeme South, Jr. Tybee Island More comments on Dominus Iesus Dear Editor: Many evidently learned and knowledgeable people have written about the recent Vatican document Dominus Iesus. I’m neither. But this I believe absolutely—Jesus welcomed and loved all people. He asked them to follow him. He taught about God, his Father. He didn’t stip- FAX: (912) 238-2339 E-mail: DClark5735@aol.com ulate any particular denomination. God is a God of love, mercy, justice and compasion. All people who try to please God and do his will will be welcome in his Kingdom. Margot Bradley Columbus Dear Editor: The letters in The Southern Cross (21 and 28 September) either attacking Cardinal Ratzinger or rejecting the Vatican declaration, need to be responded [to]... Here is my view on this mat ter: one must be aware that there are pseudo- Catholics in the Catholic Church... Having said this, let me come to some points in the letters: Why attack the messenger? Is it because they cannot attack the pope directly— Cardinal Ratzinger is merely fulfilling his duty, entrusted to him by the pope, as guardian of Catholic doctrine? The Vatican statement was issued with the approval of the pope. The state ment, far from being an insult to anyone, is a reassertion of the teaching of Lumen Gentium 5, II: “This Church, constituted and organized in the world as a society, subsists in the Catholic Church, which is governed by the suc cessor of Peter and by the bishops in union with that successor, although many elements of sanctification and truths can be found outside of her visible structure.” Please read all the chapters of the above document before criticiz ing Cardinal Ratzinger. How does Pansy Bird know that Cardinal Ratzinger hates anyone? It is unjust to falsely impute “hate” to him for the declaration that does not hate anyone. “Inspired word came before the Church”: So what? As for the New Testament, historians say the oral tradition came first and then only by a.d. 50. Saint Paul wrote his letters and later by a.d. 70 the Gospels and the rest of the N.T. were written. Here lies the difference between Catholics and Protestants: unlike Protestants: (Continued on page I I)