Sixty years ago, the Catholic Church opened a new chapter in its relations with non-Christian religions. The 1965 declaration Nostra aetate changed language, thinking, and hearts. The significance of its message in Catholic-Jewish dialogue will be discussed by participants at the international conference “After Nostra Aetate (1965-2025). Evaluation and Dreams.” The event will take place on Monday, October 27, in Łódź, with the participation of theologians, rabbis, and historians from around the world.
Nostra aetate – the document that opened doors
When, on October 28, 1965, the Second Vatican Council announced the declaration Nostra aetate, no one imagined that its few paragraphs would become a turning point in the history of the Church. The fourth point of this document was devoted to relations with Judaism – and it was this point that forever changed the way Christians and Jews viewed each other.
Inspired by Nostra aetate, the Church's teaching reminds us that Jews have not ceased to be the chosen people and have not been replaced by the Church in this regard. Secondly, Jews, neither then nor – even more so – today, bear collective responsibility for the death of Jesus. Finally, the Church teaches that any form of anti-Semitism, regardless of its time and source, deserves complete condemnation and, in the case of Christians, is a sin.
This message, which is still relevant today, has become the foundation for a new way of thinking about relations between religions.
Conference in Łódź: six decades later
The anniversary conference at the Higher Theological Seminary in Łódź is co-organized by the Archdiocese of Łódź and the Commission for Dialogue with Judaism of the Polish Episcopal Conference. The event will be hosted by the Metropolitan Archbishop of Łódź, Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś, and guests will include Rabbi David Sandmel, Bishop Prof. Etienne Vetö, Prof. Kaja Kaźmierska, Prof. Antoni Sułek, and Prof. Bożena Szaynok.
The proceedings will conclude with a Jewish-Christian meditation on the Word of God and a joint prayer led by Rabbi David Szychowski and Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś.
New book – 60 years of teaching in one volume
During the conference, a unique volume will be presented: “The Catholic Church towards Jews and Judaism. Documents of the Holy See (1965–2015) and commentaries” edited by Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś and Prof. Sławomir Jacek Żurek from the Catholic University of Lublin.
It is the world's first compendium that brings together in one place all Vatican documents on relations with Judaism, accompanied by theological analyses by Fr. Prof. Andrzej Perzyński, Fr. Prof. Mirosław Wróbel, Fr. Prof. Alfred Wierzbicki, and Prof. Sławomir Jacek Żurek. The publication shows how much the Church's way of thinking has changed – from mistrust to a community of brotherhood and dialogue.
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