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catechetical work or in the preaching of the word of God, they do not teach anything that does not
conform to the truth of the Gospel and the spirit of Christ.
These recommendations have been followed in the United States by the Department of Education
of the United States Catholic Conference. Together with the Anti-Defamation League, special
courses on Jews and Judaism for Catholic teachers were developed. The Nostra Aetate educational
recommendation was expanded in the Vatican II 1985 document Notes on the Correct Way to
Present the Jews and Judaism in Preaching and Catechesis of the Roman Catholic Church. The
Notes stress that “Jesus was and always remained a Jew”, urging Catholic teachers and preachers
to take special care in their reading of the New Testament:
Hence it cannot be ruled out that some references hostile or less than favorable to the Jews have
their historical context in conflicts with the nascent Church and the Jewish community. Certain
controversies reflect Christian-Jewish relations long after the time of Jesus. To establish this is of
capital importance if we wish to bring out the meaning of certain Gospel texts for the Christians of
today. All this should be taken into account when preparing catechesis and homilies for the last
week of Lent and Holy Week.
The Notes remind the catechists that “the Pharisees are not mentioned in the accounts of the
Passion” and echo Nostra Aetate and the Guidelines in the condemnation of anti-Semitism.
The Notes state that “catechesis should help in understanding the meaning for the Jews of the
extermination during the years 1939-1945, and its consequences.” The Holocaust, however,
should be understood by humanity, especially all who profess faith in a living God. The Holocaust
occurred in Christian Europe, in the midst of Western Christian civilization, in an almost complete
silence from Christians and Christian religious organizations.
Two paragraphs refer to Israel, the land and the state. To our knowledge, it is the first time that the
Vatican referred to the State of Israel in an official document.
The Notes resonate from a Jewish understanding with both positive and negative dimensions.
They also resonate with apparent contradictions. It is well that the Notes accord to Jews and
Judaism - historically and currently - a fuller recognition of Israel’s being and mission. In addition,
the Notes go further than any prior Catholic document in pointing to Jesus’ Jewishness and his
close relationship to Pharisaism. Yet, on the other hand, the Notes echo several elements of the
teaching of contempt: positing merely preparatory roles for Jews and Judaism in God’s plan;
continuing advice to read the Hebrew Bible through typological-Christian lenses; denial of
Judaism as a way of salvation; and repeating the spurious charge of guilt in Jesus’ death against
unnamed and unknowable “Jewish authorities.”
Nostra Aetate and Anti-Semitism
The Vatican Council’s concern with the historical reality of anti-Semitism became evident in the
general discussions and the preparation of Nostra Aetate. The first draft had a line “condemning”
anti-Semitism. Some council fathers considered that the word “condemn” should only be
employed by a Vatican Council in problems relating to dogma. Cardinal Bea, however, reminded
the council of the March 25, 1928, declaration by the Vatican Congregation of the Holy Office
that specifically used “condemnation” in relation to the Catholic Church’s position on anti-
Semitism. Nostra Aetate points out:
Furthermore, in her rejection of every persecution against any man, the Church, mindful of her
patrimony she shares with the Jews and moved not by political reasons but by the Gospel’s
spiritual love, decries hatred, persecutions, and displays of anti-Semitism, directed against Jews at
any time and by anyone.
Zionism and Anti-Zionism
There is one aspect that both Nostra Aetate and the Vatican Guidelines do not consider in their
striving “to learn by what essential traits the Jews define themselves in the light of their own
religious experience.” One central trait is Zionism, an essential part of the Jewish vocation since
biblical days (Gen 12 and other texts). The exile and the return experience of Ezra and Nehemiah,