40 years after landmark paper, religious leaders stress unity
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
10/06/2005
Religious leaders discuss the 40th anniversary of Nostra Aetate.
(Edward Linsmier/P-D)
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St. Louis archbishop Raymond Burke and several other local religious leaders announced Thursday a handful of interfaith initiatives to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Nostra Aetate, the landmark Roman Catholic document that redefined the church's view on other religions,
especially Judaism.
At a press conference at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in Shrewsbury organized by the Interfaith Partnership of Metropolitan St. Louis, Burke said that 40 years after Nostra Aetate the church "still holds near our common call to build loving relationships with our fellow brothers and sisters from different faiths as we unite to promote a just and peaceful world."
Burke was joined by Batya Abramson-Goldstein, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council; Sheikh Mohammed Nur Abdullah, Imam and director of the Islamic Foundation of Greater St. Louis; the Rev. Charles Bouchard, president of Aquinas Institute of Theology; the Rev. Tim Carson, pastor of Webster Groves Christian Church; the Rev. Vincent Heire, director of the archdiocese's office of ecumenical and interreligious affairs; and the Rev. Penny Holste, pastor of Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church in Webster Groves.
Nostra Aetate, named for the first three words ("in our time") in the document, was proclaimed by Pope Paul VI on Oct. 28, 1965, and dealt with the centuries-old problems the church had encountered with other religions.
The document, which came out of the Second Vatican Council, was especially important to Catholic-Jewish relations. Nostra Aetate made it clear that the church did not blame all Jews for the death of Jesus - either at the time of his death or afterward.
"... in her rejection of every persecution against any man, the Church, mindful of the patrimony she shares with the Jews and moved not by political reasons, but by the Gospel's spiritual love, decries hatred, persecutions, displays of anti-Semitism, directed against Jews at any time and by anyone," reads part of the four-page document.
That the St. Louis commemoration of the document's anniversary took place during the Jewish high holidays and the Islamic month of Ramadan made it especially poignant for the Jewish and Muslim religious leaders.
"These are days of introspection and days of soul-searching" for Jews, said Abramson-Goldstein. "The message of Nostra Aetate is a powerful one, but it is not a document written and then sealed away in a vault. It has to be a living document - that's the message I get in commemorating the 40th anniversary of Nostra Aetate during the high holy days."
Abdullah said the document was an important bridge to building relationships between Muslims and Catholics "especially during a time of fasting when we are closer to the almighty God, and we can share that faith with our neighbors in this season."
Burke said the official public event to commemorate Nostra Aetate will be held on Oct. 27 at St. Francis Xavier (College) Church. Other initiatives include an interfaith delegation to the Middle East, a lecture series and a youth program. For more information, call the Interfaith Partnership of Metropolitan St. Louis at 314-531-4787 or go to www. interfaithpartnership.org
