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Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations Volume 1 (2005-2006): 53-66 Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations Volume 1 (2005-2006): 53-66 Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations A peer-reviewed e-journal of the Council of Centers in Jewish-Christian Relations Published by the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College “Jewish-Christian Dialogue and the Theology of Religions” Christian M. Rutishauser, S.J. Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome Volume 1 (2005-2006): 53-66 http://escholarship.bc.edu/scjr/vol1/iss1/art7 Rutishauser, “Jewish-Christian Dialogue and the Theology of Religions” 53 http://escholarship.bc.edu/scjr/vol1/iss1/art7 Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations Volume 1 (2005-2006): 53-66 1. Nostra Aetate’s Inherent Theological Stating of the From the beginning this text stood in a crossfire of forces Problem trying to overcome traditional anti-Jewish attitudes and the conflict in the Near East, as well as the attempt to find a new A. From the Decree on Judaism to the Declaration on vision of the Church within a pluralistic world. The first draft the World Religions mainly dealt with the relationship between the Church and Judaism from the perspective of the history of salvation, both It is common knowledge that at the start of the Second systematically and with special attention to the alleged Vatican Council no separate document on the relationship of responsibility of the Jewish people for the death of Christ. the Church to non-Christian religions was envisioned. However, a Decretum de Judaeis was supposed to give a In the first session of the Council the “Wardi Affair” new foundation for the relationship between the Catholic prevented the presentation of the text.2 When in November Church and Judaism. After the horror of the Shoah and the 1963 the draft was eventually presented as the fourth unacceptable “teaching of contempt” (Jules Isaac) that had chapter of the Conciliar decree on ecumenism, it received a dominated the Christian-Jewish relationship for centuries, highly antagonistic reaction. The representatives of the Arab Pope John XXIII made it his personal quest to abolish the States considered the project to be a Zionist conspiracy and existing negative image of the Jewish people and to demanded that the relationship to Islam should also be emphasize their theological importance for the Church. It addressed. The Bishops of Asia, however, considered the was Cardinal Bea, head of the newly formed Secretariat for “Jewish decree” to be a strictly European problem in order to Christian Unity, who was entrusted with this task.1 deal with that continent’s disastrous history. In fact, they demanded that the Council define the Church’s relationship to the Asian religions. In view of the opposition to this text, 1 Prior history includes the cancellation ordered by John XXIII in 1959 of as well as to the one on religious freedom, it was placed at the word “perfidious,” the designation of Jews in the Good Friday the end of the ecumenism decree. intercession. His legendary welcome to American Jews in 1960, “I am Joseph, your brother!” also indicated a newer spirit. For more detailed In addition to discussions about the draft of the text itself, information on the prior history see: Das Zweite Vatikanische Konzil: the encyclical Ecclesiam Suam of the new Pope Paul VI, his Dokumente und Kommentare, Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche, vol. II (Freiburg Basel Wien: Herder, 1967): 406-478; Stjepan Schmidt, visit to the Holy Land and subsequently to the Eucharistic Augustin Bea: Der Kardinal der Einheit (Graz: Styria, 1989), 640-689, World Congress in India in 1964, as well as the development 738-808; Otto H. Pesch, Das Zweite Vatikanische Konzil (1962-1965): of further Conciliar documents, especially the Declaration on Vorgeschichte.- Verlauf – Ergebnisse – Nachgeschichte, 2nd ed. Religious Freedom, led to the presentation of a separate text (Würzburg: Echter 1994); Giuseppe Alberigo and Klaus Wittstadt, eds., dealing with the attitude of the Church towards non-Christian Geschichte des Zweiten Vatikanischen Konzils 1959-1965, vol. 1-3 (Mainz Leuven: Grünewald, 1997-2002): I, 437-456; II, 513-520; III, 66- 68, 299-343, 393-400, 437-441, 500-507; Bohlen Reinhold, “Wende und 2 The World Jewish Congress had announced that Dr. Chaim Wardi, an Neubeginn: Die Erklärung des Zweiten Vatikanischen Konzils zu den official in the State of Israel’s Ministry of Religious Affairs, was to be Juden Nostra Aetate, §4“ in Katholizismus und Judentum: sent to the Council as its representative. This immediately led the Arab Gemeinsamkeiten und Verwerfungen vom 16. bis zum 20. Jahrhundert, governments to protest against a seemingly special treatment of the eds. Schuller Florian, Veltri Giuseppe, Wolf Huber (Regensburg: Pustet, Jews. The controversy took the Vatican by surprise. Wardi never 2005), 297-308. attended the Council. Rutishauser, “Jewish-Christian Dialogue and the Theology of Religions” 54 http://escholarship.bc.edu/scjr/vol1/iss1/art7 Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations Volume 1 (2005-2006): 53-66 religions. However, since the September 1964 version had that led to a newly modified identity of the Church in a world lost so much of its original essence, a stronger revised where humanity is constantly drawn together in pluralistic version was presented in November of the same year when and global unity. Nevertheless, the historic fact remains that it received basic approval. Then, as a decree in its own right, – when the conciliar writing and editing process was finished expanded to consider the fundamental position of the – the declaration on the relationship of the Church to the Church towards all other important World Religions, it was Jewish people was no longer part of the decree on Christian presented for approval under the name Nostra Aetate, ecumenism but rather was placed in the same context as the bearing the title Declaratio de Ecclesiae Habitudine ad relationship to other religions. Thus, the reforming Christian- Religiones Non-christianas.3 It was accepted by the Council Jewish relationship led to a document on a theology of Fathers on October 28, 1965 by a vote of 2221 to 88. religions. Nostra Aetate, §4 on Judaism is still the central part of the document. It differs in form and content from B. History and Structure of Nostra Aetate as a Theological statements in §2 on Hinduism and Buddhism, and in §3 on Concept? Islam. Furthermore, the statement on Judaism is seen as the “heart”4 of the declaration, which assesses the human The history of the origin of Nostra Aetate conveys the searching for religious truth and values the rays of Truth degree to which the changing attitude of the Church towards which enlightens all people, including in Hinduism and Judaism served as a catalyst for a foundational exploration Buddhism. As regards Islam, Nostra Aetate respects the of the Church in relation to other religions. Obviously the faith in one God, so dear to Muslims in their adherence to new initiatives in Jewish-Christian dialogue must not be Abraham. But concerning the Jewish people, after recalling considered as the sole originating force of Nostra Aetate, for the common spiritual heritage and rejecting unjustified this process was part of the more comprehensive self- Christian accusations, the Church recommends a fraternal reflection of the Church and her relationship towards the dialogue. The reconciliation with the Jews and the world as it came to be expressed in such Conciliar recognition of Christianity’s own roots in the people of the constitutions as Lumen Gentium and Gaudium et Spes. ancient and everlasting Covenant re-establishes the Similarly, the documents concerning Christian ecumenism constitutive bond between the Church and Judaism.5 From a and religious liberty issued from the same turbulent history salvation history perspective, the text affirms that both await the day when all people on earth will worship the one God, as promised by the Hebrew prophets. 3 Roman A. Siebenrock correctly points out that the common German translation: ‘declaration about the relationship of the Church and non- Christian religions’ is imprecise because the word habitudo does not describe the relationship between the Church and non-Christian 4 religions but far more the attitude of the Church towards the non- Otto H. Pesch, fn.1, 305. Christian religions, which the decree wants to highlight paradigmatically. 5 The “unrevoked covenant” has been discussed further since the See his “Das Senfkorn des Konzils: Vorläufige Überlegungen auf dem Council. See: Hubert Frankemölle, ed., Der ungekündigte Bund? Weg zu einem erneuerten Verständnis der Konzilserklärung ‘Nostra Antworten des Neuen Testaments, Qestiones Disputatae 172 (Freiburg, Aetate’,“ in Zweites Vatikanum - vergessene Anstösse, gegenwärtige Basel, Wien: Herder, 1998); John T. Pawlikowski and Hayim Goren Fortschreibungen, Questiones Disputatae 207, ed. Günther Perelmuter, eds., Reinterpreting Revelation and Tradition: Jews and Wassilowsky,(Freiburg, Basel, Wien: Herder, 2004), 168-170. Christians in Conversation (Franklin, WI: Sheed & Ward, 2000). Rutishauser, “Jewish-Christian Dialogue and the Theology of Religions” 55 http://escholarship.bc.edu/scjr/vol1/iss1/art7 Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations Volume 1 (2005-2006): 53-66 This biblical perspective of the history of salvation in §4 As it is clear from Nostra Aetate, §4 Jews stand side by marks Nostra Aetate as a whole. The growing union of all side with the Church as chosen by God for service to the people into a world culture in our time is seen in the world. The Church finds herself linked to Judaism through framework of the history of salvation, which itself demands the history of salvation even before she approaches the that the Church promote unity, love and justice among all the other non-Christian religions. Judaism is not looked upon as people of the human race and spread the truth of the Gospel the first “foreign” religion when the Church initiates (§1). God’s providence as uniting all people, as witnessed by interreligious dialogue.
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