Partners once more by Sklba

Originally published in the Catholic Herald, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, on March 11, 1999.
PARTNERS ONCE MORE:
ON OUR NEED FOR THE JEWISH COMMUNITY

by Bishop Richard J. Sklba

As we enter more fully into the spirit and stories of Lent, we find ourselves hearing once more the ancient, yet familiar, Gospel accounts of the final weeks of Christ's earthly ministry. The liturgy builds a sense of drama into its memory by selecting stories that illustrate the escalating conflict of Jesus with the political and religious leaders of his day. Bitter arguments, sharp disagreements over the interpretation of the Torah and harsh condemnations create a liturgical mood of increasingly inevitable confrontation.

The result over so many centuries has been a distorted Christian picture of first-century Judaism and a seriously flawed sense of our relationship to our Jewish sisters and brothers today. As we approach the solemn renewal of the great events which laid the foundation for our faith, it becomes imperative that we use other lenses prescribed by the church for viewing correctly the existence and spiritual contribution which Judaism has continued to make to us and our world for two millennia.

There were many reform movements in first-century Judea. They shared a common heritage and differed in their respective programs for renewing the holiness of the nation. Whatever disagreements may have existed, they were all Jews – Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians, and disciples of Jesus alike. Today's readers of the Gospels must never forget that.

Although the Pharisees became the major leaders after the destruction of the temple by the Romans in 70 A.D., they were but one group among many in earlier decades. They shared the convictions of Jesus regarding the two great commandments, the resurrection of the just, etc. They warned him of danger from the followers of Herod. They were good and holy people, respected by the general populace for their sincerity and commitment to the will of God.

Proclaiming the imminent kingdom of God, as Jesus did, inevitably implied a judgement against the political rulers of his day, many of them associated with the scribes, who often held administrative posts under the Romans, and with priestly authorities of the temple. The cleansing of the temple on the part of Jesus was almost a deliberate confrontation with them and, therefore, with Roman authorities like Pilate who would brook no threat of sedition or political unrest. Separation of church and state was nonexistent.

Pilate was so notoriously cruel during his tenure that he was finally recalled to Rome and removed from authority. He alone, however, could condemn to death. He did so by crucifixion in hundreds of cases, and indeed in the case of this prophetic Nazarene who insisted on the supreme authority of God.

These are very complicated questions to sort out after all these years, especially given the nature of the Gospels, namely, to proclaim faith in a Risen Lord. The exact details of the historical events are no longer available to us.

Later generations of Christians tried to demonstrate their value as peaceable citizens of the empire and to distance themselves from the Jewish revolt. In Christian oral tradition then, it became customary to highlight the role of those religious leaders who joined the Romans in the death of Jesus and to recall a more benign Pilate than extra-biblical sources would allow. The image of Judaism suffered as a result.

There were sharp disagreements between Christians and some Jewish leaders toward the end of the first century, especially after the destruction of the temple, when each group forged its distinctive identity as successor to Israel. Before the entrance of Gentile converts, however, virtually all Christians were all Jews. Many became disciples of Jesus and his Way; others did not.

As we enter the last weeks of Lent, it becomes crucial that we recall again that only a few of the people of Jerusalem were active in procuring the death of Jesus. The Jewish nation as a whole was never responsible for the death of Jesus, in spite of the famous scene of Pilate washing his hands (Mt. 27:24) before a small crowd in his courtyard.

Moreover, as the Apostle Paul reminds us, it is we, the Gentiles, who are "the wild olive shoot" grafted into the rich root of Judaism (Rom. 11:17). The election of Israel remains forever, "for the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable" (v. 29).

There are signs of harsh polemic between early Christians and Jews, but, for the most part, only after the Resurrection. The attitudes of the evangelists were read back into history. To have continued those polemics for all these centuries has been a violation of the Lord's supreme command of charity.

Pope John Paul II's 1980 address in Mainz, Germany, reaffirmed our faith that the Jewish community remains bound to God in an "irrevocable covenant . . . which has never been revoked by God!" As Catholics, then, we are bound to respect the ongoing mission of Israel in our midst today. Without the presence of a synagogue in our community we risk forgetting our Jewish origins, the total Jewishness of Jesus himself and the fullness of God's love for our fragile world.

Today, even though 50 years have passed since the discovery of the horrors of Auschwitz, the smoke from those ovens continues to pollute the moral atmosphere of our world. So many centuries of distortion contributed to that unspeakable blight on our human consciences. But it is not enough to ask pardon for our indirect complicity in that terror, or seek forgiveness and reconciliation – if such can be given by any other than the victims themselves. We are called to become partners once more in service to the One God, the Lord of History, who chooses nations and makes us each his own.

I pray that this Lent and this Easter will be profoundly different for us all.

Bishop Richard J. Sklba is the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.