STRENGTHENING CATHOLIC – JEWISH DIALOGUE.
Summary of talk given at Hinsley Hall to members of the Diocesan Interreligious
Relations Commission on November 1st 2003 by SISTER MARGARET SHEPHERD
(Sister of Sion Community)
Director of the Council of Christian and Jews.
“God never takes back his gifts or revokes his choice” (Romans 11: 29)
God of our fathers, you chose Abraham and his descendants to bring your name to the
nations: we are deeply saddened by the behaviour of those who in the course of
history have caused these children of yours to suffer, and asking your forgiveness we
wish to commit ourselves to genuine brotherhood with the people of the Covenant.
Prayer placed in the Western Wall by Pope John Paul
What brings passion and commitment to the whole of interfaith dialogue is personal
experience and face to face encounters. This is certainly true of recent Catholic –
Jewish relations. Pope John 23rd was prompted by a close friendship with a Jew from
his time in Istanbul to put Jewish relations on the agenda of the Second Vatican
Council. The Church has moved to positive dialogue with the Jews, first outlined in
“Nostra Aetate”(1965) because of person to person relationships. Pope John Paul’s
passion for dialogue with the Jews is shaped by his long friendships with Jews in his
native Poland. In Jerusalem in 2000 at the Holocaust memorial Yad Vashem he talked
with elderly Holocaust survivors from his home town of Wadowice.
Sister Margaret told us how this was also true in her own life. It was turned inside out
by meeting Jews as friends during her three years of study at a Rabbinical College in
London. She described her work at the Council of Christians and Jews. She spoke
about the work of the Bishops’ Committee for Catholic – Jewish relations. Slowly
since Vatican II the Catholic Church has begun the step by step journey towards a
better understanding with the Jews. A recent leaflet; “A Deeper Understanding
between Christians and Jews” has been sent out to all clergy. Sister Margaret left us
with a wealth of materials designed to support and strengthen local Catholic – Jewish
dialogue in our own Diocese, where the identity and history of the city of Leeds has
been positively shaped by its Jewish community.
There is much to do. Anti-Semitism is not a dead threat. The situation in Israel /
Palestine has repercussions here as everywhere. We are blessed with resources in the
Diocese to help anyone wishing to become involved in Catholic-Jewish relations, in
parish and school. Mgr Kieran Heskin is an acknowledged expert in Jewish relations.
Sister Edna, a Sister of Sion, is a member of the Diocesan Interreligious Commission
and lives and works in Leeds. Copies of the literature given to us by Sister Margaret
can be obtained from the Interreligious Office at Hinsley Hall.
Holocaust Memorial Day falls on 27th January 2004. Perhaps this could be the prompt
for those Catholics who wish to acknowledge in practical ways the fact that “We are
sisters and brothers” (Pope John Paul) of our Jewish neighbours. The Holocaust
happened – therefore it can happen again. Understanding, a desire to seek
reconciliation and forgiveness, a desire to aid those who work for peace – Jew,
Muslim and Christian Arab – in the Near East –we can humbly pray and work for
justice and peace.