This past Saturday, a synod of bishops in Rome tossed the theological equivalent of a hand grenade, threatening to blow up decades of efforts to improve Catholic- Jewish relations.
In a press conference at the Vatican, Monsignor Cyril Salim Bustros, a Greek Melkite archbishop from Boston and president of the Church’s Commission for the Message, launched a blistering attack against the very foundation of Jewish belief.
“The Holy Scriptures,” Bustros declared, “cannot be used to justify the return of Jews to Israel and the displacement of the Palestinians, to justify the occupation by Israel of Palestinian lands.”
Not stopping there, he went on to state that “we Christians cannot speak of the ‘promised land’ as an exclusive right for a privileged Jewish people… There is no longer a chosen people.”
And so, in one fell swoop, a senior Church official sought to deny the unique, covenantal relationship between God and the Jews, rejecting the divine promise to restore the people of Israel to their Land. One cannot help but wonder: What Bible is the Vatican reading? Whichever one it is, it must be missing a few pages, as even a cursory glance at the Scriptures makes clear that the Jewish people’s right to the Land of Israel is indisputably ordained.
Take, for example, Isaiah 14:1-2: “The Lord will have compassion on Jacob; once again He will choose Israel and will settle them in their own land.” Or how about Jeremiah 11:5, where God says: “I will fulfill the oath I swore to your forefathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey…” And then there’s Ezekiel 34: 11-13. And Hosea 3:4-5. And Amos 9:14-15. And Obadiah 1:17, Zephaniah 3:19-20 and Zechariah 8:7-8.
YOU GET the point. But it doesn’t seem that the Catholic Church does.
After the Lebanese-born Bustros’s remarks caused a furor, the Vatican spokesman waited two days before issuing a mealy-mouthed statement which did little to calm the storm.
“If one wants a summary of the synod’s position, attention must currently be paid to the ‘Message,’ which is the only written text approved by the synod in the last few days,” the Vatican’s Father Federico Lombardi said. “There is also a great richness and variety in the contributions made by the fathers, but which as such should not all be considered as the voice of the synod as a whole.”
Lombardi’s efforts to contain the fallout won’t fool anyone. There is no getting around the fact that this convocation of bishops was called by the pope himself. Moreover, the perception around the world was that the Vatican had officially delegitimized Israel while assaulting Judaism itself. As Catholic writer William Doino Jr. noted: “In a statement meant to be fully and intensely Christian, Israel was singled out for blame and criticism. That’s not fair, much less Christian.”
Indeed, this entire episode is little more than a cheap bit of politics wrapping itself in the robes of religion. Bustros and his colleagues clearly have a political ax to grind with the Jewish state, and they shamefully do not hesitate to invoke the sacred for this most profane of goals.
My Christian friends tell me that the words “Palestine” and “Palestinians” do not even appear in the New Testament. So the learned bishops could not have come up with the idea of the “occupation of Palestine” while attending Sunday school.
Furthermore, by Bustros’s own definition, the founder of Christianity would also have to be considered an “occupier” and a “settler,” for according to Christian belief, Jesus the Jew was born and raised in Bethlehem.
That is the very same Bethlehem that Bustros would now like to see become part of a Palestinian state.
No matter how one looks at it, the synod’s unbridled insult to Israel and the Jewish people cannot be allowed to stand. If it is not denounced and corrected forthwith, it will quickly be exploited by Israel’s enemies to stir up still more hatred.
IN A letter to Cardinal-elect Kurt Koch, the newly-appointed head of the Vatican’s Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, the Anti-Defamation League rightly singled out Bustros’s remarks as “the worst kind of anti-Judaism, bordering on anti-Semitism.”
It called on Koch to “swiftly and publicly correct Archbishop Bustros’s shocking and damaging statements,” and to clarify whether his “interpretation of the synod’s final report reflects the intention of the synod on these profound theological matters.”
I would take it one step further. Given the Catholic Church’s long and dark history of anti-Jewish persecution, it is only fitting that the pope himself speak out loudly and clearly on this issue. It is incumbent upon Pope Benedict to transform this turn of events into a profound opportunity to atone for what the Church has done to the Jewish people through the centuries.
Ironically, it was 45 years ago today, on October 28, 1965, that the Second Vatican Council approved a document known as Nostra Aetate, which heralded a sea change in the Church’s position toward Jews. In its wake, much has been accomplished in enhancing relations.
But Bustros and his hate-filled rhetoric now threaten to undermine nearly half a century of dialogue and progress. What a terrible shame that would be.
For while the Church may pride itself on preaching love and tolerance, when it comes to its attitude toward the Jews, it still has a long way to go.
This is no surprise. It is an historical fact that Roman Catholics were not encouraged to read the Bible. Indeed some who did were burned at the stake as heretics. The RC Church objected to the Bible published in the vernacular. When all else failed, the RC Church published the Catholic Bible. I have not read it so have no idea what it contains or omits. I prefer the KJV as an accurate record of Jewish history and belief; as a guide to the beliefs of Our Lord, Jesus Christ the Jew.
However, on moving to the Republic of Ireland – until recently a fiercely repressive Roman Catholic state – I find myself shocked and angered by sometimes casual, often vicious and hateful anti-Semitism masquerading as anti-Israel propaganda. This was highlighted by the patently uninformed Irish Foreign Minister posturing as a significant figure on the world stage and a friend of Palestinian “justice” when he publicly denounced Israel (without one shred of evidence) and demanded the delightful and erudite Israeli Ambassador to Ireland present himself at the Irish Foreign Office to be accused of “stealing” Irish passports.
Compare and contrast: Irish passports were used by Russian spies uncovered in America. Did the Foreign Minister of Ireland demand the presence of the Russian Ambassador? Bet your bottom dollar he did not. NOT ONE WORD OF DENIGRATION OF RUSSIA issued forth from his lips.
Having lived in Northern Ireland (British jurisdiction) during the 30 year terrorist war endured by that majority Protestant state, I was impressed throughout by the stalwart support of Israel prevailing across the board in the Protestant community. Indeed, it is a fact seldom acknowledged but, Protestant areas in Northern Ireland were distinguished by their flying the Israeli flag as a symbol of their resistance to Provisional IRA terrorism.
As a Protestant I was taught from childhood the importance of the Jewish people in God’s plan. Taught to love and honour the People of Our Lord Jesus Christ and support at all times God’s covenant with the people of Israel.
Remember, Pius XII negotiated and signed the Reichskonkordat with the Nazis (1933) and remained silent as Italian Jews were marched to their deaths. It is therefore no surprise that there will be secret accords and public statements such as this, to placate the enemies of Israel.
The Catholic church puts itself above the Bible, it can teach anything it wants and all Catholics are bound to believe it.
I am a devout Catholic. I love the Jewish people and Israel. I will live and die supporting Israel. These Bishops do not represent me or the true Catholic church. I have attended Catholic school my whole life and everything I have been taught has been pro Israel and very supportive of Jews. I am not a minority….this is what all Catholics SHOULD believe! Those who say otherwise should not call themselves Catholic or Christian! At this WE ALL need to set aside our differences and focus on the threat that has been made on the Jewish people and Israel. There are people out there who want to kill off a whole race of people and there are people who will stand by them for there own political gain! This is evil and we need to stand together and prevent this from happening.