Bearing Faithful Witness, The United Church of Canada PREAMBLE: WHY THIS PAPER? Because many of us grew up thinking that Jesus had invented the Last Supper; Because in our churches Jesus is rarely referred to as a Jew; Because there is rising anti-Judaism, antisemitism, white supremacy, and neo-Nazism in Canada and other countries in the name of Jesus Christ; Because we are finally understanding that Christian denial of Jesus’ Jewishness contributed to pogroms, the Holocaust, the refusal to admit refugees, and other horrors against Jewish people; Because a Jewish friend visiting in our churches could feel attacked by some of our scriptures and interpretation of them; Because there is little general knowledge of the context in which the scriptures were written and edited, and Bible study is not a priority for most United Church adults; Because our language and interpretation of scripture have not kept pace with our evolving faith; Because there is little reaction from the Christian community when synagogues and Jewish cemeteries are desecrated; Because there is a growing interest in exploring other faith traditions, and Christianity has a special relationship with Judaism; Because many of us make the erroneous assumption that, having read the Bible, we know much about Judaism, both historical and contemporary; THEREFORE we believe it is time to throw open the questions: Is our handling of the Bible consistent with the faith of Jesus? Is our handling of the New Testament consciously reflective of Christianity’s Jewish roots? Do our Sunday morning services bear false witness against our Jewish neighbours today? 3 Bearing Faithful Witness, The United Church of Canada Contents Preamble: Why This Paper?...................................................................................................3 Contents ....................................................................................................................................4 Introduction..............................................................................................................................6 Part One: Statement on United Church–Jewish Relations Today ......................................8 Part Two: Where We Are......................................................................................................14 A. The Relationship of the Two Testaments ...................................................................14 B. The Old Testament......................................................................................................18 C. The New Testament....................................................................................................22 1. The Gospel according to Matthew.................................................................23 2. The Gospel according to Mark ......................................................................27 3. The Gospel according to Luke and Luke’s Acts of the Apostles ..................28 4. The Gospel according to John .......................................................................30 5. The Letters of the Apostle Paul .....................................................................34 6. The Letter to the Hebrews .............................................................................36 7. Revelation or the Apocalypse........................................................................36 D. Conclusion ..................................................................................................................37 Part Three: Guidelines for the Use of Scripture .................................................................39 A. Public Worship ...........................................................................................................39 B. Sunday School and Bible Study .................................................................................45 C. Personal Devotion.......................................................................................................48 Part Four: Resources for Getting Started............................................................................50 A. Glossary of Terms.......................................................................................................50 B. Recommended Reading and Audio-Visual Resources ...............................................58 C. A Sermon for Good Friday (Sample) .........................................................................68 Appendices A. From Petition 81 of the 32nd General Council, 1988, to the Present .........................72 B. What is Anti-Judaism?................................................................................................75 C. What about Christian Jews or Jewish Christians? ......................................................76 D. Antisemitism: An Enduring Problem In Western Society, by Prof. Alan T. Davies ..............................................................................................80 E. The United Church Record, by Prof. Alan T. Davies.................................................85 F. Anti-Judaism in Feminist Writings and Theology, by The Very Rev. Lois M. Wilson .............................................................................87 Acknowledgments ..................................................................................................................89 4 Bearing Faithful Witness, The United Church of Canada Bearing Faithful Witness: A Six-Session Study Guide .......................................................90 Notes for the Leader.................................................................................................................91 Session 1: Introductory Session ...............................................................................................92 Session 2: The Relationship of the Two Testaments ...............................................................95 Session 3: Matthew, Mark, and Luke.......................................................................................98 Session 4: John and Acts........................................................................................................102 Session 5: Paul’s Letters and Revelation ...............................................................................106 Session 6: Guidelines, Appendices, and Closing ...................................................................110 Bearing Faithful Witness: A Quicker Study Guide ..........................................................113 Notes for the Leader...............................................................................................................114 Session 1 ................................................................................................................................115 Session 2 ................................................................................................................................117 Session 3 ................................................................................................................................119 5 Bearing Faithful Witness, The United Church of Canada INTRODUCTION Early in its history, the church came to see itself as the new Israel, displacing and superseding the Jews as the people of God. It took this stance from a narrow interpretation of its gospels and especially from its passion narratives. The Jews were portrayed as the enemies of Jesus, blind to his fulfillment of God’s promises, stubbornly rebellious in the face of his work, and responsible for his death. Since the 1960s the Roman Catholic Church and most of the larger Protestant churches have made statements revising their theology, saying unequivocally that God’s covenant with the Jewish people has not been revoked through the appearance of Jesus. There is now wide recognition that the church’s rejection of Jews was an act of disobedience to God. A number of churches have made changes in their confessional statements and in their constitutions to reflect this awareness. Prior to the development of this document The United Church of Canada had, from time to time, clearly opposed antisemitism in its own ranks and outside the church. Voices had been raised in our church asking for an apology for lack of action before, during, and after World War II. Some suggested that the Basis of Union should make explicit reference to the Jewishness of Jesus and to Judaism. Nevertheless, we had never made a theological statement about our relationship to Judaism; we had not made an apology to the Jewish community; we had not amended our constitution through changes to the Basis of Union. Due to the lack of theological guidance there was still the danger of anti-Judaic teaching and preaching in our church. The United Church needed to begin to address these concerns through adopting theological guidelines to guard against anti-Judaism. This document was originally mandated for study by the 36th General Council; in 2000 the 37th General Council invited further feedback to a revised proposed statement on United Church–Jewish relations. Responses from this study came from congregations across Canada. After a total of six years of faithful study and feedback, the final report and statement were approved by the 38th General Council in 2003. The final statement has been included as Part One with these study materials. The United Church, in its support of multiculturalism, pluralism, and a more inclusive ecumenism, has an interest in interfaith dialogue with all religions. However, no