The Center for Christian-Jewish Understanding (CCJU) of Sacred Heart University, sponsored its first Annual Institute for Seminarians and Rabbinical Students on June 12-14, 2000. The event took place on the University's Fairfield campus and gathered 20 future religious leaders from the Jewish and Christian faiths to study and discuss the advances made in Christian-Jewish dialogue over the last 35 years, and to explore possibilities for future progress.
Rabbi Joseph H. Ehrenkranz, executive director of the Center for Christian-Jewish Understanding, said that this was some of the best work that the Center could do—to educate the religious leaders of the future. “This is a most worthwhile experience for Jewish and Christian seminarians. We are convinced that such efforts will help us all to secure a future of peace and understanding,” he said.

David L. Coppola, Ph.D., director of conferences and publications for the CCJU, said he hopes that over the next ten years, there will be more than 200 religious leaders who will be a part of this positive experience of interreligious understanding and can support one another in their work and ministry.

The Institute was inspired by the Catholic Church's vision presented in the 1965 Vatican II document, Nostra Aetate, which repudiated historic Christian teachings of contempt towards Jews and positively asserted the ongoing validity and common spiritual heritage that Christians and Jews share. The CCJU chose to use this Institute as one vehicle to promote interreligious dialogue, education and understanding among future religious leaders. All costs for meals and overnight accommodations, speakers, books, articles and materials for the Institute were underwritten by the CCJU. Students attending the Institute came from Hebrew Union College—Jewish Institute of Religion, Los Angeles; Jewish Theological Seminary, New York, City; Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, Connecticut; Saint Mary's Seminary and University, Baltimore; and Union Theological Seminary, New York City.

Conference Summary
The Institute began with remarks by Anthony J. Cernera, Ph.D., president of Sacred Heart University, and Rabbi Joseph H. Ehrenkranz, executive director of the Center for Christian-Jewish Understanding. Each relayed personal experiences of his life that led him to be a person of faith. Dr. Cernera said, “My journey in interreligious dialogue began when I was a young boy growing up in the Bronx where many of my friends were Jewish. But my deep faith as a Christian has been enriched because of my relationship and friendship with Rabbi Ehrenkranz.” Rabbi Ehrenkranz concurred that his faith as a Jew has also been broadened because of his relationship with Dr. Cernera. He said, “I have come to appreciate Judaism even more by working with Christians, and I hope that you can also experience such a blessing over the next couple of days and in your ministry.”

After dinner, the keynote address was delivered by Rabbi Irving (Yitz) Greenberg, president of CHAverlim kol yisrael/Jewish Life Network of New York City. Rabbi Greenberg's topic was “Theology of the Image of God in Interreligious Dialogue.” He affirmed that a fundamental starting point in interreligious dialogue is acknowledging that all people are created in the image of God and are endowed with equality, uniqueness and inestimable worth. He said, “Dialogue is for the sake of truth, not moral superiority. Disequilibrium is possible at times, but honest, respectful discussions rooted in care will lead us to deeper expressions of our own and others' traditions and beliefs. There will always be unfinished business and future opportunities for discussion.” Rabbi Greenberg said that no one rabbi, priest or religious leader is expected to know and defend his or her entire tradition. “One cannot reduce a tradition to simple statements. Religion is grounded in the holy and profound experiences of living, rituals, family, feelings and mystery that is beyond us.”

The following morning session and discussion on the history of the Christian-Jewish relationship was facilitated by Reverend Lawrence Frizzell, Ph.D., director of the Institute of Judaeo-Christian Studies at Seton Hall University, New Jersey. Father Frizzell focused on the Word of God and the community of faith and the ways that people have used Scripture to justify their violent actions. He said, “It is imperative to remember that some Scriptural texts are time-conditioned. Nonetheless, the Biblical heritage provides insight and salutary values. Unfortunately, prooftexting and the power of preaching in allegorical or dramatic ways have led from moralistic story to deadly history.” Father Frizzell recounted many preachers who went too far in their rhetorical condemnations. For example, in 386 Saint John Chrysostom in Antioch (John “Goldenmouth”) in an attempt to stop Christians from visiting the synagogue, referred to Jews in a sermon as “diabolical” whose worship was “impious.” Father Frizzell commented, “Because of the rhetoric of preaching, Jews and Christians began as siblings and ended up as bitter rivals. Furthermore, our education must include study of all of the texts, not merely the ones that are convenient or easy to understand. Otherwise those neglected or suppressed texts will come back to haunt us later.” Father Frizzell also discussed the Crusades and the Inquisition as well as the continued need for dialogue. He noted—especially for the Christian seminarians—that it is important to study history to clearly understand why so many Jews are scarred by the past. He said, “The historical memory has led to a diversity of responses to Christianity among Jews. But honest, humble and respectful encounters with our brothers and sisters can lead to healing and common pursuits in the future.”

The afternoon session of the second day was led by Eugene Fisher, Ph.D., associate director of the Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs for the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. His address was entitled, “Catholics and Jews Confront the Holocaust and Each Other.” Dr. Fisher spoke about the importance and challenges of Holocaust education and how Pope John Paul II has tried to actively work for healing between Christians and Jews.

Dr. Fisher said that there has been significant anti-Judaism in Christianity since its early days, which resulted in many Christians thinking that they were supposed to try to convert Jews. He noted, however, that racial anti-Semitism was not a part of mainline Christian teaching. He said, “The only logical result of racial anti-Semitism is annihilation. Especially in the first millennium, Christians had the power to exterminate others (and they did in the unfortunate case of the pantheists), but the Christian religion did not do so with the Jewish people.”

Turning to the topic of the Holocaust, Dr. Fisher said, “Experiences of suffering, pain and exile are common human experiences, but they cannot be minimized when considering the atrocities of the Shoah during the Nazi regime of World War II. Suffering can be redemptive, but the Jewish people are witnesses and prophets beyond their suffering. Catholics are not trying to co-opt or “christianize” the Holocaust when canonizing someone like Edith Stein, who was killed because she was Jewish. Rather, it is only one way that this Pope wants Catholics to remember, pray and repent in a Catholic way for the sins of the Holocaust.”

Dr. Fisher also noted that the process of Jewish forgiveness is different from that of Catholic forgiveness. The difficulty in Christian-Jewish dialogue is trusting that the other is doing the best that he or she can within his or her tradition. He said, “Dialogue is about trust—believing that the other is doing his or her best. Catholics, for example, express their repentance in sacramental contexts, as was the case with this Pope's mea culpa this year.”

He concluded by saying that when Jews critique Christians and their statements, they are actually treating Christians with the same respect they show their own texts and scholars. He said, “This may seem difficult to appreciate at times. For example, a healthy style of discourse is different in New York City—at times the discourse is almost too loud to be heard—than perhaps in Michigan. Nonetheless, it is clear that the dialogue process is strong when honesty and the pursuit for truth prevail.”

The final day, Sister Mary C. Boys, Ph.D., professor at Union Theological Seminary, New York City, was scheduled to speak on “Recent Progress in Jewish-Christian Understanding” but was unable to attend because of a family emergency. Garth Katner, Ph.D., of Sacred Heart University, spoke in her stead about conflict resolution and leadership possibilities between religions, especially in the Middle East.

The final session was conducted by Dr. Coppola, who spoke about the educational and liturgical possibilities in interreligious relations. His presentation was followed by a group discussion on “What Do We Want the Other to Teach about Us?”

Participants at the Institute said that they appreciated the informative and moving sessions which gave them a good basis for interfaith and interpersonal dialogue. One Jewish participant said that he was surprised that the program also offered an opportunity for intrafaith dialogue. He said, “I spoke more with Conservative Jews about their views than I ever have in my life. This informal conversation has led me to feel more at ease around my Jewish colleagues. This program was very rich—the immediate influence was very humbling—to be in the presence of and to listen to the ‘other' is a privilege. The experience was also expansive. Real encounters are always better than the hypothetical conversations of like-minded people.”

Another participant remarked, “The presenters were catalysts to help more thoughtful reflection on the faith and on the history of Jewish-Christian dialogue. The small number of participants was perfect because it allowed us direct access to these internationally renowned figures.” She continued, “The Holocaust discussion—I was afraid it would explode, but I think it actually went very well. People were open about their pain which is important.”

A Christian student commented, “The readings, combined with presentations, helped me to think deeply about my own faith and theology. I enjoyed having experts set the tone for the dialogue. This is much different from the seminarians' interacting experience and equally important. I found the experience to be a supportive and non-threatening environment which inspired inquiry. I would like to go even deeper in dialogue.”

The next Institute is scheduled for June 4-6, 2001, at Sacred Heart University. For more information or to register, please contact Dr. David L. Coppola, director of conferences and publications, at 203-365-7592 or email coppolad@sacredheart.edu.

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