Jews, Catholics join forces against anti-Semitism

Brochure aims to educate children, adults by using the example of Pope John Paul II

Ana Rodriguez-Soto

MIAMI - “How often do you have a kosher lunch in the cathedral?” With those words, retired banker Bernardo Benes summed up the significance of a Mass celebrated Sept. 17 at the Cathedral of St. Mary, and the luncheon that followed.

The Mass marked the start of an educational campaign aimed at eradicating anti-Semitism by using the example of the late Pope John Paul II. “This goes to the masses, to the people that need to be educated,” said Benes, a Cuban Jew who came up with the idea after reading a book recommended by a Catholic cousin.

The book, “A Letter to a Jewish Friend,” describes the friendship between the late pope and his childhood friend, a Polish Jew.

Based on his reading of that book and a longer one, “The Hidden Pope,” Benes came to the conclusion that John Paul II “is the hero of reconciliation between Jews and Catholics. Now, more than ever, it is important for the Judeo-Christian civilization to remain united.”

Earlier this year, Benes took his idea to Archbishop John C. Favalora and to the Miami chapter of the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ), both of whom immediately backed the project.

The result is an elegant, easy-to-read, four-page brochure — “John Paul II and the Jews” — that will be distributed in parishes and schools throughout the archdiocese. A total of 400,000 copies in English, Spanish and Creole have already been ordered.

But Benes, who personally met with the late pope’s Jewish friend, does not plan to stop there. He says he has had inquiries about the project from Catholic bishops in Venezuela and Panama.

“This is the beginning of a project that we want to extend to the whole world,” Benes said. “I am committed to it.” “We have honored a great man, a great pope, Pope John Paul II, and those interfaith feelings which are so important for peace in the world,” said Don Bierman, chairman of the board of the Miami NCCJ.

“It will be an educational program for all elements of the community,” said Rabbi Solomon Schiff, executive vice-president emeritus of the Rabbinical Association of Greater Miami. Even though relations between the Catholic Church and Jewish community in Miami are excellent, and have been for some time, Rabbi Schiff said, “there’s still anti-Semitism and there’s still a lot of hatred and we have to do all we can to combat it.”

The archdiocese and the NCCJ have begun working to develop a curriculum based on the brochure, which briefly highlights the history of Catholic-Jewish relations over the past 2,000 years. That history begins with the opening passage of the Gospel of St. Matthew, which traces Jesus’ lineage to “David, son of Abraham.” It continues with the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492 and the anti-Semitic feelings in Europe that provided fertile ground for the Holocaust.

Finally, the history notes the release of Nostra Aetate, a landmark Vatican II document on religious freedom, and the words and actions of Pope John Paul II, the first pope since St. Peter to visit the synagogue in Rome.

In his homily at the Mass, Archbishop John C. Favalora recalled the history of Catholic-Jewish relations since Nostra Aetate. He said the World War II sufferings of both the late pope and the Jewish people “at this time, in God’s divine providence, combined to bring about a new life and a deeper understanding of each other and all that we share.” He prayed that this educational project will move future generations of Catholics and Jews “to vow never to impose sufferings upon one another.”