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TheCatholic Church and Judaism have a long and complex history of cooperation and conflict, and have had a strained relationship throughout history, with periods ofpersecution, violence anddiscrimination directed towards Jews by Christians, particularly during theMiddle Ages.
The Catholic Church, as the largestChristian denomination, traces its roots back to theearly Christian community, whileJudaism is the oldestmonotheistic religion.Christianity started as a movement within Judaism in the mid-1st century. Worshipers of the diverging religions initially co-existed, but began branching out underPaul the Apostle. In 313, theRoman EmperorConstantine converted to Christianity and legalized it through theEdict of Milan. In 380, Christianity became the state religion of theRoman Empire, and a power on its own after theFall of Rome. As Christianity grew and became the dominant religion in the Roman Empire, the relationship between the two religions began to change with the Catholic Church, which emerged as the main institution of Christianity, starting to view Judaism as a rival religion. The Church began to suppress the practice of Judaism and forced many Jews to convert to Christianity. This persecution continued for several centuries, with Jews being subjected toforced conversions,expulsions, and massacres.
During the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church institutionalizedantisemitism through the creation of discriminatory laws and the establishment of theInquisition.[dubious –discuss] This led to widespread persecution of Jews, including forced conversions, expulsions, andpogroms. Jews were expelled from Catholic kingdoms, includingEngland andSpain and many of the principalities and cities of theHoly Roman Empire and Italy.
Afterthe Holocaust in the 20th century, theSecond Vatican Council in the 1960s led to improvements in the relationship between the Catholic Church and Judaism, following the Church's repudiation of theJewish deicide accusation and its addressing the topic of antisemitism. In 1965, the Church issued the document "Nostra aetate" which condemned antisemitism and recognized the shared heritage of Jews and Christians. Since the 1970s, interfaith committees have met regularly to address relations between the religions, and Catholic and Jewish institutions have continued to work together on issues such as social justice, interfaith dialogue, and Holocaust education. The Catholic Church has also taken steps to address the harm caused by past persecution of Jews, such as the establishment of theVatican Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews and theapology of the Pope John Paul II to the Jewish community.
Christianity started as amovement inSecond Temple Judaism in the Roman province ofJudea in the mid-1st century. The first Christians wereJewish and theearly spread of Christianity was aided by the wide extent of theJewish diaspora in the Roman Empire. AlthoughJesus was not accepted as themessiah by Jewish leaders, worshipers of the diverging religions initially co-existed within the Jewish synagogues, reading the Jewish scriptures, singing thePsalms and joining in the various rituals of theJewish calendar.Christians moved away from Jews in subsequent centuries, but modern Catholicism has retained much of its Hebrew literary heritage, the Old Testament (Tanakh).[1]
Even aspagans andgentiles increasingly began to attend Christian worship, the Jewish framework remained strong.Paul the Apostle initially took part in theJewish persecution of the early Christian movement, but following hisconversion, he became a leading exponent for Christianity branching away from Judaism and becoming a religion open to all, which could move away fromstrict Jewish dietary laws and therequirement of circumcision.[2] Subsequently Paul portrayed the Jews as Christ's killers, writing they had "killed Christ and the prophets" (Thessalonians 2:14-15).[3] Judaism was recognized as a legal religion byJulius Caesar but the relationship was volatile resulting in severalJewish–Roman wars. Christianity did not receive legal recognition until the 313Edict of Milan. The reign of theEmperor Constantine elevated Christianity to the preferred religion of the Roman State - while reducing the position of paganism and Judaism, with Christianity becoming theState church of the Roman Empire in 380. The dominance of Christianity was to flourish and outlast the Roman Empire.[4]
Following theFall of Rome, and during theMiddle Ages, the Catholic Church became a temporal power in its own right.
The "Black Death"pandemic swept through Asia and the Middle East and into Europe between 1347 and 1350, and is believed to have killed between a third and two-thirds ofEurope's population. Popular opinion blamed the Jews for the plague, and violence directed at them erupted throughout the continent.[5]
In defence of the Jews,Pope Clement VI issued twopapal bulls in 1348 (6 July and 26 September), the latter namedQuamvis Perfidiam, which condemned the violence and said those who blamed the plague on the Jews had been "seduced by that liar, the Devil."[6] He went on to emphasise that "It cannot be true that the Jews, by such a heinous crime, are the cause or occasion of the plague, because through many parts of the world the same plague, by the hidden judgment of God, has afflicted and afflicts the Jews themselves and many other races who have never lived alongside them."[7] He urged clergy to take action to protect Jews and offered them papal protection in the city ofAvignon.
Nostra aetate restates the Church attitude toantisemitism, and describes the Church's relationship with Jews as a shared patrimony:
The Church attitude to the mistreatment of Jews is not new, though the experience of the Holocaust brought on an urgency to its renewal. Around 400,St Augustine, one of the most influential and foundational figures of Catholic theology, preached that the Jews must be protected for their ability to explain the Old Testament. Around 598, in reaction to anti-Jewish attacks by Christians inPalermo, PopeGregory the Great (c. 540–604) brought Augustine's teachings into Roman Law, by writing aPapal Bull which became the foundation of Catholicdoctrine in relation to the Jews and specified that, although the Jews had not accepted salvation through Christ, and were therefore condemned by God until such time as they acceptsalvation, Christians were nevertheless duty-bound to protect the Jews as an important part of Christian civilization.[8] The Bull said that Jews should be treated equitably and justly, that their property rights should be protected, and that they should keep their own festivals and religious practices.[9] Thus, in thePapal States, Jews enjoyed a level of protection in law.[8]
At the same time, Pope Gregory I held that Jews should be restrained from exercising any semblance of authority over Christians, or from enjoying equal status with Christians, or any privilegesbeyond those guaranteed them by existing Roman law. He also expressed openly negative views of Jews. They were full ofperfidia (treachery) and unbelief. Only twice in his letters does he speak of Judaism as areligio; most often he calls it asupersitio, one which would "pollute" Christian faith.[10]
While a "persecuting spirit" often existed among the general population through the Middle Ages, Jewish communities often had to turn to theHoly See for protection.[9] Papal Bulls reiterating the duty of protection were issued by various Popes, Following attacks on Jews by theFirst Crusade, during which over five thousand Jews were slaughtered in Europe,Pope Callixtus II (c. 1120) issued "Sicut Judaeis", which served as a papal charter of protection to Jews. Following further attacks, the bull was reaffirmed by many popes includingAlexander III,Celestine III (1191–1198),Innocent III (1199),Honorius III (1216),Gregory IX (1235),Innocent IV (1246),Alexander IV (1255),Urban IV (1262),Gregory X (1272 and 1274),Nicholas III,Martin IV (1281),Honorius IV (1285–1287),Nicholas IV (1288–1292),Clement VI (1348),Urban V (1365),Boniface IX (1389),Martin V (1422), andNicholas V (1447).[11][12] The bull forbade Christians, on pain ofexcommunication, fromforcing Jews to convert, from harming them, from taking their property, from disturbing thecelebration of their festivals, and from interfering with their cemeteries. After then, the doctrine was maintained in form only, with many anti-Jewish measures being enacted and certain Popes, includingPaul IV, oppressed the Jews.[citation needed]
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While some popes offered protection to Jews, others implemented restrictive policies and actions that contributed to their marginalization and persecution. A key role was played byPope Innocent III who justified his calls for lay and Church authorities to restrict Jewish "insolence" by claiming God made Jews slaves for rejecting and killing Christ. He proclaimed them to be the enemies of Christ, who must be kept in a position of social inferiority and prevented from exercising power over Christians.[13]
Devaluing testimony of Jews: TheThird Lateran Council, convened byPope Alexander III in 1179, declared the testimony of Christians should be always accepted over the testimony of Jews, that those who believe the testimony of Jews should beanathemized, and that Jews should be subject to Christians.[14] It forbade Christians serving Jews and Muslims in their homes, calling for the excommunication of those who do.
Prohibitions on holding public office. TheFourth Lateran Council, of 1215, convened byPope Innocent III, declared: "Since it is absurd that a blasphemer of Christ exercise authority over Christians, we ... renew in this general council what the Synod of Toledo (589) wisely enacted in this matter, prohibiting Jews from being given preference in the matter of public offices, since in such capacity they are most troublesome to the Christians"[15] These prohibitions remained in effect for centuries.[16][17][18]
Distinctive clothing and badges: TheFourth Lateran Council required Jews to wear distinctive clothing or badges to distinguish them from Christians. The reason given for this was to enforce prohibitions against sexual intercourse between Christians and Jews and Muslims.[14] This practice of requiring Jews to wear distinctive clothing and badges was reinforced by subsequent popes and became widespread across Europe.[19] Such markings led to threats, extortion and violence against Jews.[20] This requirement was only removed with theJewish Emancipation followingthe Enlightenment, but the Nazis revived it. The Council also forbade Jews and Muslims from appearing in public during the last three days of Easter.
Condemnations and burning of the Talmund: In 1239,Pope Gregory IX sent a letter to priest in France with accusations against theTalmund by aFranciscan. He ordered the confiscation of Jewish books while Jews were gathered in synagogue, and that all such books be "burned at the stake.” Similar instructions were conveyed to the kings of France, England, Spain, and Portugal. 24 wagons of Jewish books were burned in Paris. Additional condemnations of the Talmud were issued by PopesInnocent IV in his bull of 1244,Alexander IV,John XXII in 1320, andAlexander V in 1409.Pope Eugenius IV issued a bull prohibiting Jews from studying the Talmud following the Council of Basle, 1431–43.[21]
Spanish Inquisition: In 1478Pope Sixtus IV issued a bull which authorized the Spanish Inquisition.[22] This institutionalized the persecution of Jews who had converted to Christianity (conversos), due to mass violence against Jews by Catholics (e.g. theMassacre of 1391). The Inquisition employed torture and property confiscation, thousands were burned at the stake. In 1492 Jews were given the choice of either baptism or expulsion, as a result more than 160,000 Jews were expelled.[22]
Portuguese Inquisition: In 1536Pope Paul III established thePortuguese Inquisition with a papal bull. The major target of the Portuguese Inquisition were Jewish converts toCatholicism, who were suspected ofsecretly practicing Judaism. Many of these were originallySpanish Jews who had left Spain for Portugal, when Spain forced Jews to convert to Christianity or leave. The number of these victims (between 1540 and 1765) is estimated at around 40,000.[23]
Ghettos: In 1555,Pope Paul IV issued the papal bullCum nimis absurdum, which forced Jews in thePapal States to live inghettos. It declared "absurd" that Jews, condemned by God to slavery for their faults, had "invaded" the Papal States and were living freely among Christians. It justified restrictions by asserting that Jews were "slaves" for their deeds, while Christians were "freed" by Jesus, and that Jews should see "the true light" and convert to Catholicism. This policy was later adopted in other parts of Europe. TheRoman Ghetto, established in 1555, was one of the best-known Jewish ghettos, existing until the Papal States were abolished in 1870, and Jews were no longer restricted[24]
Forced conversions and expulsions: Some popes supported or initiated forced conversions and expulsions of Jews. For example,Pope Pius V expelled Jews from the Papal States in 1569, with the exception of Rome and Ancona. In 1593Pope Clement VIII expelled the Jews from thePapal States with the bull,Caeca et Obdurata Hebraeorum perfidia (meaningThe blind and obdurate perfidy of the Hebrews[25])Pope Innocent III in 1201 authorized the forced baptism of Jews in southern France, declaring that those who had been forcibly baptized must remain Christian.[26]
Restrictions on Jewish economic activities: Various popes imposed restrictions on Jewish economic activities, limiting their professions and ability to own property. In 1555Pope Paul IV, in his bullCum nimis absurdum, prohibited Jews from engaging in most professions, restricting them primarily to moneylending and selling second-hand goods. This bull also forbade Jews from owning real estate and limited them to one synagogue per city. Previously the Fourth Lateran Council, sought"to protect the Christians against cruel oppression by the Jews", who extort Christians with "oppressive and immoderate" interest rates.[14]
In the modern world, anti-Jewish sentiment reached its zenith with the murderous racial antisemitism of theNaziHolocaust. In the aftermath of the defeat of Hitler's Germany, and discovery of the extent of Naziwar crimes, the long history of Christiananti-Judaism came to be critically examined by scholars attempting to explain the origins of the Holocaust.
Pope John XXIII acknowledged the role of the church in creating and perpetuating Christian antisemitism. Prior to his death in 1963, John prepared a document to be read by every Roman Catholic Church on a fixed date:
We are conscious today that many many centuries of blindness have cloaked our eyes so that we can no longer either see the beauty of Thy Chosen People nor recognize in their faces the features of our privileged brethren. We realize that the mark of Cain stands upon our foreheads. Across the centuries our brother Abel has lain in the blood which we drew or shed the tears we caused by forgetting Thy Love. Forgive us for the curse we falsely attached to their name as Jews. Forgive us for crucifying Thee a second time in their flesh. For we knew not what we did. ..[27]
Following John's death, a movement forChristian–Jewish reconciliation grew. According to the historianGeoffrey Blainey, "In the following forty years, Christians and Jews were to come together more closely than at perhaps any other time since the half-century after Christ had died.[28]
A new understanding of the relationship between Catholics and Jews is also reflected in the revised liturgy ofGood Friday in a particular way. The pre-1962 version of theGood Friday Prayer of the Roman Rite had Catholics praying that the "perfidis Judaeis" might be converted to "the truth". The English cognate "perfidious" had, over the centuries, gradually acquired the sense of "treacherous". In order to eliminate misunderstanding on this point,Pope Pius XII ordered in 1955 that, in Catholicliturgical books, the Latin word "perfidis" be properly translated "unbelieving", ensuring that the prayer be understood in its original sense: praying for the Jews who remained "unbelieving" concerning the Messiah. Indeed, the same adjective was used in many of the ancient rituals for receiving non-Christian converts into the Catholic Church.
Owing to the enduring potential for confusion and misunderstanding because of the divergence of English usage from the original Latin meaning,Pope John XXIII ordered that the Latin adjective "perfidis" be dropped from theGood Friday prayer for the Jews; in 1960 he ordered it removed from all rituals for the reception of converts.[29] As part of the revision of theRoman Missal, the prayer was completely rewritten. The current prayer of the Roman Liturgy for Good Friday prays for "the Jewish people, first to hear the word of God, that they may continue to grow in the love of His name and in faithfulness toHis covenant."
In 1962,Pope John XXIII opened theSecond Vatican Council, a pastoralecumenical council of theCatholic Church. It closed underPope Paul VI in 1965. One of the most revolutionary changes that resulted from interpretations of this council's documents concerned the Church's attitude to Jews and Judaism.
Among other things, the Second Vatican Council addressed the charge ofJewish deicide, repudiating the belief in the collective Jewish guilt for thecrucifixion of Jesus stating that, even though some Jewish authorities and those who followed them called forJesus' death, the blame for what happened cannot be laid at the door of all Jews living at that time, nor can the Jews in our time be held guilty. The council issued the declarationNostra aetate ("In Our Time"), which reads in part:
To further the goal of reconciliation, the Catholic Church in 1971 established an internalInternational Catholic-Jewish Liaison Committee and theInternational Jewish Committee for Interreligious Consultations. (This Committee is not a part of the Church'sMagisterium.)
On May 4, 2001, at the 17th meeting of the International Liaison Committee inNew York, Church officials stated that they would change how Judaism is dealt with in Catholic seminaries and schools. In part, they stated:
In October 2015 the Catholic Church in Poland published a letter referring to antisemitism as a sin against the commandment to love one's neighbor. The letter also acknowledged the heroism of those Poles who risked their lives to shelter Jews as Nazi Germany carried out the Holocaust in occupied Poland. The bishops who signed the letter cited the Polish PopeJohn Paul II who was opposed to antisemitism, and believed in founding Catholic-Jewish relations.[31]
In 2015, the VaticanCommission for Religious Relations with the Jews released a theological reflection that, while rejecting the idea of "two different paths toward salvation, the Jewish path without Christ and the path with the Christ", and calling on Christians to "bear witness to their faith in Jesus Christ ... in a humble and sensitive manner" to Jewish people, acknowledged that Jews were "participants in God's salvation" and that the Church views evangelization to Jews "in a different manner from that to people of other religions and world views", rejected the principle of an institutional Jewish mission, and called on Catholics to fight antisemitism.[32]
Pope Francis has been considered to be particularly instrumental in furthering Catholic–Jewish relations. During a visit to a synagogue, Francis echoed Pope John Paul II's statement that Jews are the "elder brothers" of Christians, and further stated: "in fact you are our brothers and sisters in the faith. We all belong to one family, the family ofGod, who accompanies and protects us, His people."[33]
On 3 December 2015, fifty years after the issue ofNostra aetate, theIsrael-basedCenter for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation (CJCUC) spearheaded a petition of orthodox rabbis from around the world calling for increased partnership between Jews and Christians.[34][35][36][37][38][39]The unprecedentedOrthodox Rabbinic Statement on Christianity, entitled "To Do the Will of Our Father in Heaven: Toward a Partnership between Jews and Christians", was initially signed by over 25 prominent Orthodox rabbis in Israel, United States and Europe[39] and now has over 60 signatories.[40]
On 31 August 2017, representatives of theConference of European Rabbis, theRabbinical Council of America, and the Commission of theChief Rabbinate of Israel issued and presented theHoly See with a statement entitledBetween Jerusalem and Rome. The document pays particular tribute to the Second Vatican Council's DeclarationNostra aetate, whose fourth chapter represents theMagna Charta of the Holy See's dialogue with the Jewish world.Between Jerusalem and Rome does not hide the theological differences that exist between the two faith traditions while all the same it expresses a firm resolve to collaborate more closely, now and in the future.[41][42]
Some Jewish groups and historians have saidPope Pius XII, who was Pope from 1939 to 1958, stayed silent during the Holocaust and did not do enough to save lives.[43] They have sought access to Vatican World War II era archives to determine whether or not Pope Pius XII did enough to help Jews before or during the war, or whether he held some sympathy for the Nazi regime. The Vatican has until 2020 maintained a policy of allowing only partial access to the archives.
Jewish groups and historians have argued for years that the Vatican should not move forward with Pius' beatification until the Vatican's full wartime archives were opened.[43]
On 2 March 2020, the Vatican opened to historians its archives relating to Pope Pius XII.[43]
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In addition, although the Jewish community appreciated John Paul II's 1994 statement,We Remember: A Reflection on the Shoah, which offered amea culpa for the role of Christians in the Holocaust, some Jewish groups felt that the statement was insufficient, as it focused on individual members of the Church who helped the Nazis, portraying them as acting against the teachings of the Church.
Some critics consider the statement irresponsible, because it absolved the Church of any blame. Lingering disputes also remain about some of the practical aftereffects of the Holocaust, including the question of how to deal with Jewish children who were baptized during theSecond World War and were never returned to their Jewish families and people.
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Traditionalist Catholics who are particularly devoted to the ancient traditions of the Church, and reject many of the changes made since Vatican II, or regard it as an invalid Council, view interfaith dialogue with Jews as unnecessary and potentially leading to a "watering-down" of the Catholic faith. TheGood Friday prayer for the Jews has been a point of particular contention.
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Continuing tensions in the Middle East impacts on relations between Jews and Catholics in the region and beyond. Relations withArab Christians inLebanon,Jordan andSyria often parallel those relations withArab Muslims and remain difficult, especially with regards to the question ofanti-zionism andZionism.
In a May 2002 interview with the Italian-Catholic publication30 Giorni, Honduran CardinalOscar Maradiaga claimed that Jews influenced the media to exploit the recent controversy regarding sexual abuse by Catholic priests in order to divert attention from the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. This provoked outrage from theAnti-Defamation League, especially since Maradiaga has a reputation as a moderate and that he is regarded as apapabile.[44] The high-profile DonPierino Gelmini of Italy, himself personally accused of sexually abusing a number of young men, put the blame on a nebulous "Jewish radical chic" in an interview with theCorriere della Sera.[45][46] He later apologized and shifted the blame onto theFreemasons.[47] The bishop Giacomo Babini described the scandal's exposure as a refined "Zionist attack" in an April 2010 newspaper interview.[48]
The legal system provides forfreedom of religion in Israel, and the state recognizes non-Jewish minority religious communities, including Catholics, and allocates funding for the provision of the religious needs of their members. However, in comparison to funding for Orthodox Jewish requirements, minority religious communities do not receive a proportional allocation, in what is viewed as discrimination against these minorities. Recognized religious communities, including Catholics, are granted official status and authority, notably in matters of marriage, burial, and divorce.[49][50]
Despite legal protections for religious minorities, there have been incidents of anti-Christian attacks, including spitting, and so-called "price tag" attacks by violent Jewish extremists vandalizing and damaging Christian property, notably in 2012, at the Catholic monastery atLatrun and the entrance to theChurch of the Dormition onMount Zion, in 2013 at a Catholic abbey, and in 2014, an attack at the Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center, the local headquarters of the Catholic Church.[51][52]
The CatholicChurch of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish atTabgha, in northern Israel was damaged by arson in 2015 and sixteen yeshiva students were arrested over suspected involvement in the religiously motivated attack.[53]
Pope Francis'Amoris laetitia orThe Joy of Love, addresses the issue ofinterfaith marriages. While marriages of Catholics to non-Catholics are viewed as "mixed marriages", Francis calls marriages to non-Christians, including Jews, "a privileged place for inter religious dialogue." Piero Stefani, a scholar at the Facoltà Teologica del Nord Italia, a Church-owned institute, noted, "The Church is no longer endorsing a policy of missionary conversion, especially toward Jews. So interfaith marriages are seen as an 'opportunity' to start a positive dialogue [about faith] with the non-Catholic spouse, rather than an occasion to convert him or her."[54]
Intermarriage of Jews is rare in Israel and among the Orthodox.[55] In the U.S., Jewish intermarriage is common, and those who do intermarry with someone of a different religion are more likely to marry a Catholic than amainline Protestant.[56]
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