Learn to draw inspiration from post-biblical Jewish sources in preparing homilies

Vatican II’s

Nostra Aetate and Beyond

A new era in Christian-Jewish relations

THIS MONTH marks the 40th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council's Declaration on the Relationship of the Church to Non-Christian Religions, Nostra Aetate, which signaled a revolutionary turn in Roman Catholic teaching about Judaism and Christianity’s relationship to it.

Traditionally, the Catholic Church, like other Christian churches, taught that the validity of Judaism came to an end with the emergence of Christianity as the one valid pathway to God. For this claim to be considered true by Christians, Judaism had to be presented as something inferior to Christianity, as an outmoded religion that deserved to be replaced by Christianity.

This teaching not only failed to account for Judaism’s ongoing spiritual vitality down through the ages; it also fostered persecution of Jews for remaining faithful to the tradition that Christianity supposedly replaced, preparing the ground on which Nazi genocidal anti-Semitism flourished.

In the wake of the Holocaust, in which six million Jews were murdered and countless more terrorized, some Jews and Christians called upon church leaders to reconsider traditional Christian teachings about the Jewish people and their tradition, and about Christianity in relation to Judaism.  Pope John XXIII heeded that call and placed Christian-Jewish relations on the agenda of Vatican Council II.

Vatican II was, in the counting of the Roman Catholic Church, the 21st ecumenical (worldwide) council of the church.  While ecumenical councils, which are gatherings of bishops from throughout the Catholic world, have been held in order to respond to doctrinal disputes, to determine official ecclesiastical teachings, and to take disciplinary measures, Pope John convened Vatican II for the purpose of aggiornamento, "updating."  It was in this spirit that the council issued 16 documents initiating church reform by, among other things, affirming the primary importance of Scripture, encouraging greater participation of the laity in public worship, permitting the celebration of the liturgy in the vernacular, acknowledging that members of other churches were true Christians, and recognizing truth in other religions.

            The 16 documents were comprised of four constitutions," nine "decrees," and three "declarations." Constitutions are more authoritative than decrees and declarations, but from the standpoint of their effect on the church, decrees and declarations may be as important as constitutions.  This is the case with the declaration Nostra Aetate, which has produced one of the most significant changes in the history of the church. Nearly a year before Nostra Aetate, the council in its Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium (November 1964) declared that the Jewish people “remains most dear to God.”

            Thus, Vatican 11 signaled a reversal of traditional Church teaching about Jews being outside God's grace for clinging to Judaism rather than accepting Christianity.

            Nostra Aetate contains four significant items about Jews, Judaism, and Christian-Jewish relations: 1) It repudiates the timeworn charge of collective Jewish guilt for the crucifixion of Jesus; 2) it recognizes "the spiritual bond” linking Christians and Jews; 3) it claims that “the Jews should not be presented as repudiated or cursed by God”; and 4) it promotes “mutual understanding and respect” between Christians and Jews.  While the final version of Nostra Aetate is considerably weaker than earlier drafts in admitting the churches anti-Jewish teachings and in affirming the abiding validity of Judaism, it paved the way for stronger post Vatican II documents.

            In its 1975 “Statement on Catholic-Jewish Relations,” the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) acknowledged that much of the alienation between Christian and Jew found its origins in anti-Judaic theology which over the centuries has led not only to social friction with Jews but often to their oppression."

In its 1985 "Guidelines for Catholic-Jewish Relations," the NCCB recognized "the permanent vocation of the Jews as God's people" and claimed, “Together, the church and the Jewish people are called upon to witness to the whole world.” In the same year, the Vatican Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews issued a document affirming “the permanence of Israel” (the Jewish people and their covenant) as "a sign to be interpreted within God's design,” and it reminded Catholics that the permanence of Israel is accompanied by a continuous spiritual fecundity.”

This new Catholic perspective had largely to do with Pope John Paul II, who spoke frequently of the abiding validity of God's covenant with the Jews and pointed out how Catholics can find “help in better understanding certain aspects of the church’s life by taking into account the faith and religious life of the Jewish people.”

SIGNIFICANT steps have been taken to foster this new Catholic perspective, but much more needs to be done to realize the vision of John Paul II, who said, “It is the task of every local church to promote cooperation between Christians and Jews.”

            One area that needs special attention is liturgy.

The very structure of the lectionary that assigns scriptural readings for Mass perpetuates the traditional Christian view that the Hebrew Scriptures have value merely as a prelude to the New Testament; that Judaism is simply the religion of the Old Testament that only finds its fulfillment in Christianity.

            Inclusion of readings from the Hebrew Scriptures has the potential to inspire appreciation for Judaism, but the choice of some texts and the way they are used can do the opposite. Clearly, texts from the Hebrew Scriptures are chosen for the lectionary because in some way (quite vague at times) they relate to the Gospel texts that have been chosen for Sunday Masses.  This means that many of the most inspiring portions of the Hebrew Bible are not read in our liturgies.

And some of the passages that are read can, without a reminder of their ancient contexts, leave churchgoers with a negative impression of the “religion of the Old Testament.”

One of the ways that Christian theologians have attempted to demonstrate the superiority of Christianity over Judaism has been to suggest that the Christian view of God is superior to the Jewish view, claiming that Judaism teaches a God of wrath, Christianity a God of love.  Such a contrast is obviously false.  Not only does it fail to acknowledge that in the Hebrew Bible God is repeatedly referred to as loving and compassionate; it also ignores the fact that Jewish views of God have developed well beyond those found in ancient Israelite religion.  Post-biblical Jewish understandings of God, no less than developed Christian views, call into question some of the accounts of God's action found in both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament.

Some recent church documents (for example, “The Jewish People and Their Sacred Scriptures in the Christian Bible,” by the Pontifical Biblical Commission, 2002) insist that the Hebrew Scriptures should be appreciated in their own right and not simply as background for the New Testament.

But the promise-fulfillment paradigm operative in the lectionary fails to convey the spiritual richness and abiding significance of the Hebrew Scriptures.

learn to draw inspiration from post-biblical Jewish sources in preparing their homilies

Also, since Christian liturgies include readings from Israel's ancient Scriptures, it would be appropriate, as also recommended in recent church documents, for preachers to learn to draw inspiration from post-biblical Jewish sources in preparing their homilies, and to share those sources with their congregants.  This would drive home the point that Judaism is not just the “religion of the Old Testament.”

Something else worth noting about the use of the Hebrew Bible in Christian liturgies is that some of its texts point to the failings of Israelites to live up to their covenantal responsibilities.

Instead of appreciating the fact that the Hebrew Scriptures are honest about the sins committed by Israelites, many Christians have turned this prophetic self-criticism into a condemnation of Jews and Judaism in general.  Christian preachers have a moral responsibility to counter such moves by showing that the church needs to heed the criticism of the prophets.

Even more troubling than the approach to the Hebrew Scriptures in many Christian liturgies is how Jews are often depicted in many New Testament texts used in liturgical contexts.  For example, Jews are portrayed as preoccupied with the letter rather than the spirit of the law, and as guilty of the death of Christ, and homilies based on these texts often reinforce such negative portrayals.  Recent church documents (for example, “Notes on the Correct Way to Present Jews and Judaism in Preaching and Catechesis in the Roman Catholic Church,” by the Vatican Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, 1985) have warned Christians against false depictions of Jews and Judaism.

These warnings obviously have not been heeded by those who have created the lectionary or by many preachers who continue to place Jesus in opposition to Judaism. Nor to misrepresent Jewish groups (especially the Pharisees); nor to suggest that Jews were responsible for the death of Christ, and to foster the impression that Christianity has replaced Judaism.

These erroneous depictions have contributed greatly to the anti-Semitism that has plagued Jews for centuries.  Pope John Paul 11 and other church leaders have acknowledged the suffering that many Christians have inflicted on Jews, and they have called for repentance and a new Christian attitude toward Jews and Judaism.

One of the most effective ways to promote this is to reform our liturgies so that they foster the newfound appreciation for Jews and Judaism already articulated in recent church documents.

Purging our liturgies of anti-Judaism

While purging our liturgies of anti-Judaism must be done to help reduce Jewish suffering caused by anti-Semitism, it must also be done for the spiritual health of Christians and for the credibility of Christianity.  For far too long, Christians have defined Christianity over against a misrepresented Judaism.  But those of us who have been spiritually enriched through interfaith encounters with Jews must agree with Cardinal Walter Kasper that the churches rediscovered bond with the Jewish people allows "a new springtime for the church' to bloom."  Most Christians will only be able to enjoy this new springtime after the fruits of liturgical reform have enabled them to perceive the spiritual grandeur of Judaism and to discover, in the spirit of friendship with Jews, an enhanced way of worshiping God. +

John Merkle is professor of theology at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University, and he is associate director of the jay Phillips Center for Jewish-Christian Learning.  His most recent book is "Faith Transformed. - Christian Encounters with Jews and Judaism" (Liturgical Press).