Office of Catholic-Jewish Relations

Mission: To promote unity, love, and mutual respect between Catholics and Jews by building relationships and offering education.

Since the spiritual patrimony common to Christians and Jews is thus so great, the Archdiocese of Denver seeks to contribute to the Holy See’s 55 year example of intentionally fostering that mutual understanding and respect which is the fruit, above all, of biblical and theological studies as well as of fraternal dialogues.

Free Seminar Sunday February 21, 2021
Interreligious Dialogue about the Land (Israel): Development & Diversity

“Fighting together against anti-Semitism and anti-Judaism.”

On February 1, the Permanent Council of the French Episcopate, whose President is Bishop de Moulin- Beaufort and representatives of French Judaism, Haim Korsia, Chief Rabbi of France, the President of the Consistory and the President of the Crif met in order to work together at the premises of the French Bishops’ Conference in Paris.

At the end of this working meeting, Bishop Moulin-Beaufort, before handing over to the Jewish authorities an official declaration entitled “Fighting together against anti-Semitism and anti- Judaism will be the touchstone of any real fraternity” retraced the main stages of the Judeo-Christian dialogue in France, he particularly remembered 23 November 2015 when during a ceremony at the Collège des Bernardins, the Chief Rabbi Haïm Korsia had presented Cardinal Vingt-Trois, on the occasion of the 50 years of Nostra Aetate, a “Declaration for the Coming Jubilee of Fraternity” signed by a number of prominent Jewish figures. This declaration recognized the fruits of the conciliar declaration and particularly noted the change in outlook of Christians on the Jews, it invited Jews and Christians to work together in the service of fraternity. Bishop de Moulin-Beaufort particularly insisted on the worrying resurgence of anti-Semitism in France, he called on priests and faithful to be very vigilant, urging them to get rid of any ready-made image of Judaism.

The statement was read out and then handed over to the Jewish authorities. By this declaration, the Church of France wants to show her firm will to work with all those who are engaged in the fight against any form of political and religious anti-Semitism, she urges Catholics to “live an authentic fraternity with the people of the Alliance ”. It is thus recalled that for “us Catholics, this concern finds its origin in our unique‘ spiritual bond with Judaism. More than ever we must remember the importance of the Jewish roots of Christianity : ‘We cannot consider Judaism simply as another religion : the Jews are our’ elder brothers ‘ (St John Paul II), our’ fathers in the faith ” (Benedict XVI). Let us remember that Jesus the Word of God himself prayed the Psalms, read the Law and the Prophets. At the very heart of our liturgical actions and of our personal prayer, by receiving and proclaiming the texts of the Old Testament, with the apostle Paul, we remember that “the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable” ( Rom 11.29). If faith in Jesus distinguishes us and separates us, it also obliges us, in memory of the terribly dark hours of history and keeping in mind the victims of the Shoah and the anti-Semitic assassinations of recent decades, to recognize this : healing from anti-Semitism and anti-Judaism is the indispensable foundation of true brotherhood on a universal scale. This healing is a demanding journey in which all humans must help one another. It begins with “spiritual resistance to anti-Semitism”.

In our world fractured on all sides, fraternity between Jews and Christians can be a model, a sign showing that fraternity is still possible even after heavy divisions.