I only remind readers that many - scholars, lay people, priests, and other organizations - have charged the Church with antisemitism. Certianly, Her history towards the Jews is not to be imitated - before, during, and after the Holocaust, She has not exactly been welcoming towards those whom She charged with Deicide. Her public, global status has opened Her to great criticism on Her attitudes regarding Christ's ancestral people. Whether or not such criticism is just is outside my purview.
All the same, great strides have been made towards welcoming the Jews, be it on an institutional level or in individual Catholics. Some, such as Dr. Michael Phayer (a Catholic), have placed Nostra Aetate as the fulcrum of this shift. Unfortunately, I think the years since have caused the document to be cast aside. All the same, things have changed for the better, even if slightly. We have the secular state of Israel, which the Church has tacitly accepted to be a legitimate state.
Where do you stand on the Jews? I am neither a Zionist nor an antisemite. I am part of Christ's Church, while also accepting those who have come before me in the grand scheme of things. As for the Jews themselves, I think casting aspersions on them (and anyone else) is to divert attention away from the reality that I myself am a wretched sinner, and have nothing to boast of.
May the light of Jesus Christ be felt by all.
 |
| The Boy Jesus in the Temple |
