Pope Francis marked the anniversary of the beginning of the war in Israel after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack by calling a day of prayer and fasting for peace.

On October 6, Francis presided over a rosary for peace, without mentioning that the anniversary coincides with another significant event in the history of inter-religious relations.

During the Counter-Reformation, popes gave the rosary a role in explaining the triumph of Christians in the Holy League over the superior Ottoman forces at the Battle of Lepanto on October 7, 1571, an event still evoked today by neo-traditionalists opposing Islam.

In 1572, Pius V established the feast of Our Lady of Victories on October 7 to give thanks for the victory, and in 1573, Gregory XIII dedicated the day to the Virgin of the Rosary, merging her iconography with that of the Virgin of Victory.

There was much that Pope Francis could not mention.

And there was something that he should not have mentioned in his "Letter to Catholics in the Middle East," for example, the passage from the Gospel of John 8:44, which some consider the single most antisemitic line in the New Testament.

This is just one example of the disastrous effects of the events of October 7, 2023, and their aftermath on relations between Christians, Jews, and Muslims.

Globalisation and the future of Catholicism

The war also impacts church politics. The war in the Middle East since October 2023 has amplified the effects of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

It has brought to the forefront three Italian cardinals on the international stage: Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state; Cardinal Matteo Zuppi of Bologna and Francis' special envoy for peace in Ukraine; and Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem.

Whatever happens between now and the next conclave, there is an Italianisation of the leading figures in the Catholic Church dealing with these major international crises.

Between the end of the Middle Ages and the early modern age, the Italianisation of the papacy and the Roman Curia was a response to the challenges brought to the church by the European powers and their support for schismatic demands.

We will see how the cardinals in the next conclave will respond to the challenges coming from the 21st-century world disorder.

"Having more cardinals from "the peripheries" means a college of cardinals more representative of the global Church, but also means a much higher number of cardinals physically distant from Rome and therefore potentially less able to advise the pope and the Curia."

The second effect is on the institutional responses of the Catholic Church and the Vatican in this age of geopolitical uncertainties. The globalisation of Catholicism means also a de-Europeanisation of the historical and religious narratives on the character and identity of the Church.

There have been previous phases of internationalization of the leadership of the Church in the College of Cardinals, especially since the 19th century, but today's diversification takes place in a situation Church in the Americas, especially in the United States.

This is visible in the list of the 21 new cardinals that Pope Francis will create in his tenth consistory of December 8.

This list sends strong signals to the countries that influence the destinies of the world: for example, creating as a cardinal Belgian missionary Dominique Joseph Mathieu, OFM Cap., archbishop of Tehran-Ispahan in Iran — a clear gesture to the United States and Israel at this time of serious risk of all-out war between Iran and an Israel supported by the United States.

But this internationalisation of the College of Cardinals also means the risk of overstretching the global institutional capacity of Catholicism.

Having more cardinals from "the peripheries" means a college of cardinals more representative of the global church, but also means a much higher number of cardinals physically distant from Rome and, therefore, potentially less able to advise the Pope and the Curia.

The strain on inter-religious relations

The third, most delicate, and disastrous series of effects concerns the future of the relations between the Catholic Church, Judaism and Islam.

This war in the Middle East broke out during the pontificate of Pope Francis, who is trying to do for the relations between the Church and Islam what John Paul II did for the relations with Judaism.

But now Catholicism must face the reality that institutionalised Christianity has been replaced as a source of antisemitism by some radical groups within Islam.

On the other side, there are Israel's political and constitutional trajectories under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

In many ways, the State of Israel now faces the challenge of developing a modernity that reconciles religion and politics, a challenge that became more evident after the Holy See and Israel established full diplomatic relations in 1993.

Netanyahu's response to October 7 and his framing of relations between the Jewish state and Judaism are cementing a political theology of enmity between Jews and Muslims.

This challenges the post-Vatican II project of dialogue between the three Abrahamic religions as fundamental for peace-building, not only in the Middle East but as a paradigm for a new world order.

Vatican II set Catholic-Jewish dialogue in the context of European history, but that context is no longer the dominating working frame for interreligious relations, and not even for Jewish-Catholic relations.

The issue is not only that the moral lessons of World War II are now being sidelined or sometimes disregarded in secular post-colonial and de-colonial discourse.

In inter-religious dialogue, Jews and Muslims strongly committed to dialogue with the Catholic Church now feel that there is a growing set of issues that are not being acknowledged and understood in Rome.

This is paradoxically one of the fruits of the de-Europeanisation of the Vatican and global Catholicism. Vatican II set Catholic-Jewish dialogue in the context of European history, but that context is no longer the dominating working frame for inter-religious relations and not even for Jewish-Catholic relations.

On the other hand, the suffering of Palestinians and Christians in Gaza and Lebanon serves as yet another reminder of the challenges to fostering a culture of peace in today's high-tech warfare, where so-called pinpoint precision often accompanies indiscriminate bombings, leading to more innocent victims.

It also casts a dark shadow on the viability of the theology of liberation in the face of 21st-century state power and in the midst of wars and occupations where religion is manipulated into a "clash of civilizations."

The war unleashed by the events of October 7, 2023 risks squandering the journey made since the Second Vatican Council.

These events are happening during a time of the minimisation, in militant Catholic circles, of the theology of inter-religious dialogue within a Catholic Church that is more global but also far removed from Vatican II after 60 years.

After the conciliar declaration Nostra Aetate and especially after John Paul II, it was a common assumption that fighting antisemitism was an entry-level requirement for Catholics.

Sadly, this is no longer always true. It is not only the theology of new Catholic influencers but a broader process of de-theologisation and deculturation that reveals the marginalisation of Vatican II and its key documents on inter-religious relations, including Nostra Aetate and Dignitatis Humanae on religious liberty.

Impact of the war on the Catholic Church

One enormous problem is posed by radical traditionalist Catholic groups, but there are also the progressive Catholics who think that Vatican II is passé, the last gasp of a Church not inclusive enough, too Catholic to be modern.

There are some parallels between today's leftist progressivism and the blindness of socialists, communists, and radicals to antisemitism in the 20th century.

In many Western universities, the way administrators have handled the conflict and its aftermath has revealed that the religious diversity of Jews and Muslims and their protected status as minorities often does not align with the prevailing focus framed as sexual diversity and in ethnic-racial terms, particularly in the fight against "white supremacy," which tends to overlook religious considerations.

"One enormous problem is posed by radical traditionalist Catholic groups, but there are also the progressive Catholics who think that Vatican II is passé, the last gasp of a church not inclusive enough, too Catholic to be modern."

There is an irresponsible complacency that takes Vatican II for granted, but at times, there is also a programmatic liquidation of that chapter of our magisterial and theological tradition, becoming particularly problematic when on display in Catholic schools and universities.

Nostra Aetate and Christian-Jewish relations built many bridges in the post-Vatican II period, but many of these bridges now need to be inspected and, in some cases, rebuilt, also within Catholicism.

This war redefines the contours of what Karma Ben-Johanan, a professor of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, called in her 2022 book on Christian-Jewish relations after Vatican II "the new covenant between Jews and Christians as the edict of the hour".

The new war in the Middle East represents a critical moment for that new covenant. October 7, 2023, and its aftermath affect the Catholic Church at the most profound institutional, theological and religious levels, with internal, international, and diplomatic dimensions that we have just begun to see.

• First published in La Croix International
• Massimo Faggioli is an Italian academic, Church historian, professor of theology and religious studies at Villanova University, columnist for La Croix

Owens, an American far-right activist with a history of antisemitic, Islamophobic and homophobic comments, is visiting Auckland in November as part of a speaking tour which will also take her to Australia.

While Jewish groups across the Tasman have urged their government to reject Owens' visa application, views are more split in New Zealand. Read more

The RIAS group said it recorded 994 incidents, which is an average of 29 incidents per day and an increase of 320% compared to the same period in 2022. The group looked at incidents from Oct 7 to Nov 9.

Among the 994 antisemitic incidents, there were three cases of extreme violence, 29 attacks, targeted damage to 72 properties, 32 threats, four mass mailings and 854 cases of offensive behaviour.

Many Jews in Germany experienced antisemitic incidents in their everyday lives, and even those who weren't exposed to any antisemitic incidents reported feelings of insecurity and fear, said RIAS.

Read More

More than two dozen incidents occur every day on average, according to the group's calculations.

The ADL said in a press release on Monday that according to preliminary data, "in the month following Hamas' terror attack on Israel, antisemitic incidents in the US increased by 316% compared [with] the same time period last year."

Hamas' attack on Israel unfolded Oct 7 when the terror group invaded Israel, killing over 1,000 and taking hundreds of hostages. Israel quickly declared war on Hamas, with the two sides fighting throughout the region throughout October and into November.

Read More

Since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict on 7th October, the UK Jewish charity the Community Security Trust (CST), has recorded approximately 800 incidents of antisemitism.

Particularly alarming is the spike in antisemitic incidents in London. More than 400 such offences occurred between 1st and 27th October compared to 28 during the same period last year, according to the Metropolitan Police.

Fr Jan Nowotnik, Secretary of the Committee for Catholic-Jewish Relations, expressed his deep concern:

"As followers of Christ, we are a people of peace, and the figures recorded by the Metropolitan Police for these crimes in London are alarming. Antisemitism has absolutely no place in our society."

He also condemned any faith-related crimes, emphasising the need for unity.

Increase in Islamophobic offences

Fr Nowotnik is also Secretary for the Office for Relations with Other Religions and highlighted the "disturbing rise" in crimes against Muslims.

The Metropolitan Police reported a 140% increase in Islamophobic offences between 1st-18th October compared to the previous year.

Fr Nowotnik stressed "It is important to remember that we are all made in the image and likeness of God and recognise that violence begets violence." He called on all believers to pray for peace in our troubled world.

These concerns align with Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the archbishop of Westminster, who recently appealed for "restraint" following violent responses to the war in London and across the UK.

"At home, I appeal for restraint and the total avoidance of hateful language and action, as the impact of this conflict is felt in communities here," Cardinal Nichols said.

Sources

Universe Weekly

CathNews New Zealand

Fr Alfred Wierzbicki, a professor at the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, will appear before a university disciplinary committee on Friday. He will answer the allegation that he "violated the duties of a teacher in the church faculty of a Catholic university".

Wierzbicki is accused of vociferously condemning anti-Semitism, homophobia and racism in a series of interviews with the Polish media.

One of the six charges brought against Wierzbicki concerns his scathing criticisms of his colleague Fr Tadeusz Guz, a professor of philosophy. Guz endorsed the anti-Semitic "blood libel" in a 2018 public lecture.

Fr Guz is also known for comparing mass vaccination programs to counter the COVID-19 pandemic to the Nazi regime's crimes against humanity.

"We know, dear people, that the facts of ritual murder cannot be erased from history," Guz told an audience in Warsaw during a 2018 public lecture.

"Why? Because we, the Polish state, in our archives, in the surviving documents, have had over the centuries, when Jews lived together with our Polish nation, we have legally valid sentences for ritual murders."

Asked about the stances taken by Guz in an interview last April, Wierzbicki responded: "You can be a university professor, but you can also be a total fool."

Wierzbicki declared it "scandalous" that the calumny underlying the medieval "blood libel" — that Jews use the blood of Christian victims in their religious rituals — had been deemed worthy of "scientific discussion."

Fr Wierzbicki then charged that the university's disciplinary committee had similarly promoted "outrageous anti-Semitic slurs. As if its members really believed that ritual murders had taken place at one time."

In its ruling on Guz, the disciplinary committee decided that his views were based not on "slander or lies, but knowledge gained as a result of scientific analyses based on the available source materials."

Such views "may be difficult for Jewish communities to accept," the committee added.

In an interview with Polish broadcaster Tok FM this week, Wierzbicki said that he was being "treated like a criminal" by the same university authorities.

"I love the Catholic University of Lublin a great deal; it has given me so much," Wierzbicki reflected. "But at the moment, it's difficult for me to identify with it. My university has become alien to me."

Sources

The Algemeiner

"Do you see it now? The Vatican is run by the Jesuits, the Real Mafia of this world, but even they have Overlords..."

But the man whose hand Pope Francis is holding in the photo is neither a Rothschild nor a Rockefeller, it's Holocaust survivor Eliezer Grynfeld. Read more

It has moved "from being a right-wing phenomenon to a left-wing phenomenon, from being a Christian phenomenon to a radical Islamic phenomenon, and from being a religiously based phenomenon to an anti-Zionist phenomenon," he says.

Lippman is the President of the Institute for Study of Global Anti-Semitism and the founder and CEO of Genesis10, which is a leading US IT company.

"The pope agrees with us that trust is the foundation of a productive dialogue," he said.

"With his moral authority, he can play a tremendous role in enlisting nations of the free world to join him in telling the Arab world that the time has come to accept Israel." Read more

So says a manifesto denouncing "a new antisemitism marked by Islamist radicalisation."

The manifesto has been signed by over 300 French dignitaries and stars.

The manifesto was drafted by Philippe Val, a former editor at Charlie Hebdo, after a number of Jewish murders.

It says the "fight against this democratic failure … antisemitism" should become a national cause before it's too late. "Before France is no longer France."

The signatories condemn what they called a "quiet ethnic purging" which they say is driven by rising Islamist radicalism, particularly in working-class neighbourhoods.

They accuse the media of remaining silent on the matter.

"Why the silence?" asks the manifesto.

"It is because radical Islam is considered exclusively by some of the elite French parties as an expression of social revolt...

"… because the old antisemitism of the extreme Right is added to the antisemitism of the radical Left, which has found anti-Zionism as their alibi for transforming the executioners of Jews as victims in society."

The manifesto also says "In our recent history [since 2006] 11 Jews have been assassinated - and some tortured - by radical Islamists because they were Jewish."

The dead include three children and a teacher who were shot at a Jewish school in 2012 and four people shot at a Jewish supermarket in Paris in 2015.

A year ago a Jewish woman in her sixties was thrown out of the window of her Paris flat by a neighbour shouting, "Allahu Akbar" (God is great).

The most recent attack took place last month when an 85-year old Jewish woman was stabbed and set alight. The crime is being treated as antisemitic.

Thirty-thousand people marched in her memory.

France's President, Emmanuel Macron, says he is determined to fight antisemitism.

During the past 20 years, France's Jewish community has been leaving the country for Israel.

The manifesto says this is partly because of antisemitism in predominantly immigrant neighbourhoods.

Source

• Euronews
• Haaretz
• The Guardian
• Image: The Commentator

In his view, next year's 500th anniversary of Luther's break from the Catholic church would be a perfect time to right past wrongs.

Cooper, who is the associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles says this would involve the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) apologising for its antisemitic views and behaviours.

The EKD combines the Lutheran, Reformed and United Protestant regional and denominational groups. About 23 million people belong to the EKD in Germany.

"It would be appropriate, especially when antisemitism is so rife in Europe for Protestant leaders and groups, like the World Council of Churches, to directly address the issue [of Luther's antisemitism] in the overall context of what they're celebrating in terms of this anniversary," Cooper said.

In fact, some work has already been done to right this wrong.

The leader of the Baptist World Alliance has praised the EKD in Germany for denouncing Luther's antisemitism.

"One of the important actions taken by the EKD as it prepared for the celebration was to issue … a declaration distancing itself from Luther's anti-Jewish stance," BWA General Secretary Neville Callam said. He was commenting in a blog post "Towards Closer Communion".

Another supporter of the church apologising for its antisemitic past is David Michaels. He is the director of United Nations and Intercommunal Affairs with B'nai B'rith, which is the oldest Jewish service organization in the world.

Michaels believes the Lutheran church should acknowledge its past and repudiate Martin Luther's antisemitism.

"A number of individual Lutheran church bodies and figures have taken steps over the years to acknowledge, grapple with and repudiate the antisemitism that Luther ultimately promoted ... which was still felt in the implementation of the Holocaust," he said.

Although Luther didn't initially come out as being antisemitic, by 1543 he had completed and published a treatise "On Jews and their Lies".

Besides denouncing them, it also suggests murdering them, burning their temples and religious works, destroying their houses and ruining their businesses.

The Catholic Church apologised for its antisemitic stance in 1965 during the Second Vatican Council.

Source

• Christian Examiner
• Baptist News Global
• Image: The Forward

Jewish Co-chair Dave Moskovitz said that the Council had welcomed Muslims at all meetings since 2007, and it was now time to make the relationship more formal.

'The three Abrahamic religions share a great deal of common history, theology, ethics, and practice. We have important and significant differences too.

Making peace begins with each of us, and is our collective responsibility."

"It's too important to leave to world leaders," he said.

The Council's aim is to foster understanding, friendship and trust between the Abrahamic faiths of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

Sultan Eusoff is the CEO of the Federation of Islamic Associations NZ and will become the Muslim Co-chair on 14 April.

The name "Abrahamic" comes from our common prophet Abraham, who according to our traditions proclaimed monotheism some 3800 years ago.

Sultan Eusoff is the CEO of the Federation of Islamic Associations NZ and will become the Muslim Co-chair on 14 April.

Eusoff said, "We are happy and excited to cement our already strong relationships with our Jewish and Christian brothers and sisters."

"We have learned a lot about each other, and there is plenty more to learn and share."
Christian Co-chair Rev Jenny Chalmers added, "There has never been a more important time to join together."

"Islamophobia and antisemitism are on the rise, against a backdrop of global tensions that are attributed to religious differences."

"Mutual understanding is the key to effective communication and progress in our relationships. It's not always easy, but we're all committed to this sacred work," she said.

The Launch of the Wellington Abrahamic Council of Jews, Christians and Muslims will take place at Parliament House in Wellington at 5:30pm on Tuesday 14 April.
Source

• Supplied - The Wellington Council of Christians and Jews
• Image: dippost.com