While the Catholic Church and Jewish authorities both pursued a policy of quarantine, the Frances Sweeney Committee, an important civic organization devoted to promoting democracy in Boston, worked with both Catholics and Jews in regard to the Feeney affair. Just as the Committee attacked the Catholic Church and Cardinal O’Connell for not taking action against antisemitic attacks in South Boston in the early 1940s, the Frances Sweeney Committee attempted to combat Feeneyism in the 1950s. Isabel Currier, the Executive Director of the Frances Sweeney Committee, also worked as a reporter for the Boston City Reporter, the committee’s official publication.¹⁰⁵ Currier attended weekly Feeney meetings on the Boston Common. The committee aimed to provide information to other agencies and sent reports to various organizations, including the archdiocese and the Jewish Community Council.¹⁰⁶ In addition, the Frances Sweeney Committee asked the Boston Police Department in March 1951 to assign regular officers at the Sunday meetings to control the violence that sometimes occurred at Feeney’s meetings.

It is difficult to assess the impact Feeney had on Boston. Many sources claimed he was on the lunatic fringe, as Waugh had indicated earlier. The reports written by Isabel Currier and Grace Uberti often referred to his mad ravings. At the end of an October 1952 meeting, Uberti’s report claimed that, "Feeney looked very badly today and toward the end of his talk he became confused, opening his mouth to talk but no words came; then he spoke a jumble of words which meant nothing at all...One woman said, ‘He lost his voice then and the devil in him just took over’."¹⁰⁷ At another Sunday meeting Uberti noted, "Feeney still has many friends in the Sunday audience, but the majority think he is a mental case, and keep asking us why he is allowed to go on."¹⁰⁸

Just as Bostonians criticized Feeney, many Catholics did not support him either. One anonymous letter mailed to Isabel Currier revealed how disturbed one Catholic man felt by Father Feeney’s campaign. He wrote, "Their abuse of the Archbishop and other prominent bishops, priests, ministers and rabbis is low, coarse, false, full of hate, bigoted, etc. They should not be allowed to use taxpayers’ property..."¹⁰⁹ Such letters to the Frances Sweeney Committee played an important role in showing the Committee and Boston religious leaders that Feeney was not mainstream, and that antisemitic attitudes and bigotry ceased to be acceptable in the 1950s.

The Frances Sweeney Committee said it believed religious leaders handled the problem well. They also cited Cushing’s active role in the matter, which provided a stark contrast with the Church’s failure to denounce antisemitic attacks in the early 1940s. According to the Boston City Reporter,

The fact is – and it should be emphasized – that the Archdiocese, so far as it is responsible, has done everything within its ecclesiastical authority to induce Father Feeney to shut up...The principal thing to do has been demonstrated admirably by the distinguished victims of Father Feeney’s gibes and the three religious groups which he attacks.¹¹⁰

The Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Boston also strove to keep it a civic affair. As the movement dragged on, the council debated modifying or even abandoning the quarantine policy. One of the statements expressed against changing the policy read, "It would be a mistake to reduce this to a fight between the Feeneyites and the Jews; it would be wiser to try to make it a civic matter."¹¹¹

Although both Jews and Catholics tried to define Feeneyism as a community problem, and not a religious one, Feeney’s attacks on the young Brandeis University hit close to home for Boston Jews. Before Brandeis University consecrated its three chapels in 1955, Feeney vilified the school’s decision to build a Catholic Chapel in his May 1955 publication, The Point.¹¹² Feeney and his followers marched throughout Boston protesting the chapels and distributed a leaflet headlined in capitalized letters "CATHOLICS OF BOSTON, STOP THE JEWS FROM DISHONORING AND DESECRATING THE BLESSED SACRAMENT AT BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY."¹¹³ Feeney caused such a commotion about protesting the Catholic Chapel at Brandeis that the news broke through the quarantine and received significant attention in Boston and even the New York Times ran an article about the matter.¹¹⁴

A minute, but important, side note emerged from the Feeney scandals. While Feeney cursed the Jews and anyone outside the Church, (although he himself was outside the Church; which is one of the great ironies of the Feeney affair), his action had the reverse effect and brought Archbishop Cushing into closer contact with the Jewish community. When the Feeneyites threatened to protest at Brandeis and disrupt the chapel dedication, Archbishop Cushing ensured this did not happen. According to President Abram Sachar, "The projected Feeney invasion was, [Cushing] told me, his problem. He was prepared to meet it. Rightly perceiving that even Feeney would not raise his hand physically against his bishop, Cushing announced that he would himself bless the chapel and conduct its first mass. So he did, and the united service was held in peace and dignity..."¹¹⁵ Archbishop Cushing’s intervention on behalf of Brandeis University sent a powerful message of interfaith cooperation to the Boston Jews.

By the late 1950s, Archbishop Cushing proved to be a great friend to the Boston Jewish community. Although the Feeney affair proved antisemitism persisted in Boston, it illustrated how antisemitism ceased to be a respectable position. The rise of Boston civic agencies, suburbs and the Catholic-Protestant-Jewish ideology all led Boston into a new period of intergroup relations. At the same time, a new generation of effective and assertive religious leaders were better prepared to lead Boston into the 1960s, an era that saw a challenge of authority across the globe. During these years, Boston Jewish and Catholic leaders strengthened their working relations and began a new stage in communication and promoting ecumenical and interfaith interests. Internal changes in Rome would soon lead to a new beginning of the Catholic-Jewish story both abroad and in Boston.

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Click here for the notes to ch. 4

During an era of rapid societal changes between 1958 and 1965, Boston’s Catholic-Jewish relationship began a critical transformation. Archbishop Cushing continued his rise to prominence as the Feeney movement slowly faded out of Boston’s consciousness in the late 1950s.¹ Although the Catholic and Jewish communities disagreed over differences regarding Sunday blue laws and public observance of holidays, antisemitic attacks during this period declined significantly. The Vatican recognized Cushing as one of Boston’s most important religious leaders when the pope elevated Cushing to the rank of Cardinal in 1958. Other factors were important indicators of change during this transition period. John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the first Catholic President, symbolized the rise of minorities and served as a catalyst for change in America. Kennedy and Cushing, two of Massachusetts’ most prominent Catholics, contributed to improved interreligious relations through their respective political achievements and ecumenical efforts. Cushing also proved his commitment to improving Christian-Jewish understanding through his intervention on behalf of the Jews at the Second Vatican Council. Led by Pope John XIII, the Second Vatican Council, 1962-1965, made some important statements concerning the global Catholic-Jewish relationship. Its motto of aggiornamento updated the Catholic Church and inspired a new era in Catholic-Jewish reconciliation.² Vatican II also directly influenced the Boston Catholic-Jewish relationship, which opened a new era with the Boston College dialogues. These dialogues consisted of Catholic-Jewish conferences to discuss local issues and focused on improving relations at the community level. Organized by both Catholic and Jewish leadership, the Boston College dialogues illustrate how far interreligious relations had come in a few decades.

Characterized as a momentous year in Rome, 1958 witnessed the inauguration of a new Pope, who would change the course of global Catholic-Jewish relations for decades to come. Pope Pius XII died in 1958 and the Cardinals selected Angelo Roncalli to serve as an "interim" pope. The Curia (the governing administration of the Church) thought that Roncalli, a seventy-six year old man in 1958, would fill a short void. Although the Vatican was correct that Roncalli would not live long, they completely underestimated his vitality and revolutionary ideas. Roncalli, known as Pope John XXIII and the 262^nd "Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Jesus Christ, Prince of the Apostles, Primate of Italy, and Patriarch of the West" inaugurated a new era in Church history.³ On 6 November 1958, the first day of his pontificate, he phoned several top Vatican officials at 6:45 a.m. to discuss the crucial need of modernizing church administration. He immediately set out to update the Church, and soon emerged as a dynamic and powerful figure.⁴

Only a week after his pontificate began, Pope John XXIII recognized Archbishop Cushing’s efforts in interfaith work and as an effective leader. On 16 November 1958, the apostolic delegate Archbishop Amleto Cicognani of Washington phoned Archbishop Cushing informing him that the Church acknowledged his "glowing charity" and "burning zeal for souls" and wanted to promote him to Cardinal. Cushing was one of two American Catholic prelates to be elevated to Cardinal under Pope John. Before Cushing departed for Rome, he arrived at Boston’s Logan Airport and moved through the cheering crowds as the Boston Police Band played, "Southie Is My Home Town."

The Roman Catholic Church’s elevation of Cushing to Cardinal recognized the good-will work he had begun as soon as he entered office in 1944. Throughout the years, he spoke at dozens of brotherhood dinners with Catholics, Protestants and Jews. Cushing delivered a history-making address in 1948 as the first Catholic prelate to welcome a convention of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC) – their 75^th anniversary convention held at Hotel Statler in Boston. Over 1,500 delegates attended, representing 500,000 members throughout the United States. Cushing pledged his own personal friendship to Jews and explained,

There are many ignorant or malicious things sometimes said about our beliefs concerning Christ and their effect on the attitudes of Christians toward Jews. I ask you not to believe those things; they are lies and they are said to divide us…

No man can have my faith concerning Christ, without desiring to be more like he was and therefore seeking always to serve, to help, to befriend all men without exception – white, black, Gentile, Jews. Always remember that a Catholic Bishop took time from a busy day to come and tell you that. I did not send a representative to assure you of my official friendship. I would not send a scholar to prove that our doctrines do not make us your enemies. I come myself to pledge my personal affection and officially to declare there is nothing in my faith to make us enemies of you. It is all the other way. I can and do pledge to you the friendship of my people.⁵

In 1956, the Brotherhood Dinner of the Lowell Hebrew Community, part of B’nai B’rith, honored Cushing as "Man of the Year." Boston newspapers increasingly quoted Cushing’s goodwill statements that demonstrated his enthusiasm for working with Jews and Protestants. The Pilot cited Cushing for saying that worthy Christians must know Jewish traditions. He vowed that Christians and Jews must understand their shared heritage and focus on their commonalities.⁶

Only a year after being elevated to Cardinal in 1959, the Jewish Advocate, Boston’s major Jewish newspaper, honored Cushing as "Man of the Year" in 1959. This was a momentous decision, for the Boston Jewish community maintained minimal ties with his predecessor, Cardinal O’Connell. Selecting a Catholic as its "Man of the Year" demonstrated the high regard with which the Boston Jewish community held Cardinal Cushing. The Advocate described his South Boston roots and how his burning zeal and charity spread throughout Boston. Cushing’s many distinctions and roles as a Church leader, orator and administrator showed his ease at working with men of all creeds. The Advocate continued:

The conferring of the Cardinalate on the Archbishop of Boston last month was an exalted honor for the Diocese of Boston and for its devoted people, but was no less an honor for its illustrious spiritual shepherd. Cardinal Cushing is not a great man because he has been elevated to the Sacred College; he is a member of the Sacred College because he is a great man…

He is held in affection not only by his religious kinsmen, but by all who have a grateful acquaintance with the fruits of his work. If the Cardinal’s noble thoughts against racial antipathy and creedal strife could be put into the hearts of every man and child, then verily would we arrive at the long overdue recognition that we are all children of One Loving Father to enjoy the pleasantness of brethren living together in peace.⁷

 

Awarding Cushing the honor "Man of the Year" was a significant milestone for Boston Catholic-Jewish relations. Meanwhile, nationally, a young charismatic politician, a Boston Catholic, made headlines across America. The presidential election of 1960 heralded a new beginning for American Catholics because John Fitzgerald Kennedy was the first Catholic President and it also signified the rise of minorities in the political mainstream. A largely symbolic figure, Kennedy’s presidency began the removal of barriers against Catholics, African-Americans, Jews, women, youth and other ethnic groups.⁸ He won by only 112,000 votes, less than .2 percent of the nearly 69 million votes cast. The Jewish vote was crucial in his victory; the election was so close that Kennedy would not have been elected without Jews.⁹ Despite his victory, his campaign proved that even in 1960, a time when many Americans respected religious pluralism, bigotry and religious intolerance persisted.¹⁰

Kennedy’s religion played a major factor in the campaign. Although Kennedy attended prestigious and predominately Protestant schools including Choate and Harvard, many Americans feared his Catholic roots and what they called a "Papist dominated presidency." Unlike Catholic presidential hopeful Al Smith in the 1928 election, Kennedy understood the significance of anti-Catholic attacks.¹¹ Convinced the religious issue could not be buried, he brought it out in the open as much as possible. During a congressional hearing in 1947 on federal aid to parochial schools, Kennedy stated, "There is an old saying in Boston that we get our religion from Rome and our politics at home, and that is the way most Catholics feel about it."¹²

Not all the talk sprang from bigotry; many who expressed doubts or asked questions merely tried to reconcile their view of Catholicism’s authoritarian stance with America’s constitutional separation of church and state. On 12 September 1960 Kennedy delivered a famous address in Houston, Texas before a televised meeting of the Greater Houston Ministerial Association. He expressed his belief in the absolute separation of church and state and full religious liberty for all Americans:

I believe in an America that is officially neither Catholic, Protestant, nor Jewish – where no public official either requests or accepts instruction on public policy from the Pope, the National Council of Churches, or any other ecclesiastical source – where no religious body seeks to impose its will directly or indirectly upon the general populace or the public acts of its officials – and where religious liberty is so indivisible that an act against one church is treated as an act against all.¹³

Ironically, as Kennedy attempted to keep his religion out of the election, he brought liberal Christians and Jews together. The same day he presented his speech in Houston, one hundred Protestant, Catholic and Jewish leaders issued a "Statement on Religious Liberty in Relation to the 1960 National Campaign."¹⁴ It echoed a similar belief that religion should not play a role in the presidential campaign. Earlier that year, the National Conference of Christians and Jews released statements by Catholic, Protestant and Jewish leaders requesting fairness in the election.¹⁵ The rise of a religious coalition devoted to Kennedy characterized the beginning of an era that emphasized greater interreligious harmony. Changes initiated within the national leadership would soon percolate down to the city level.

While Jewish leaders united with Kennedy-supporting clerics of the Catholic and Protestant faiths, many Jewish lay individuals similarly supported his candidacy. Kennedy’s support among Jews and African-Americans was astonishing, particularly because Kennedy’s father was alleged to have been antisemitic and indifferent to Hitler. Samplings from New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles revealed that John F. Kennedy received about eighty-two percent of the Jewish vote. Kennedy attained a higher percentage vote from Jews and African-Americans than Catholics and more Protestants voted for him than his Catholic and Jewish supporters combined.¹⁶ What explains the widespread Jewish support for Kennedy? First, Jews in America tended to vote for liberal candidates and had been part of the Democratic coalition since 1928.¹⁷ Jews also were impressed by the way Kennedy handled the issue of his religion during the campaign. He did not apologize for being Catholic, and by doing so, virtually removed the religious issues for Jews in American politics.¹⁸ Even more compelling, Kennedy’s qualifications and firm stance on church-state separation convinced and reassured Jews. They agreed with his generally liberal views on national and international affairs.

Once elected, Kennedy continued to play a decisive role in national Catholic-Jewish relations. The appointment of two Jews to serve in his Cabinet, Arthur Goldberg at Health and Abraham Ribicoff at Health, Education and Welfare, was significant because this marked the first time in American history that two Jews served in the Cabinet.¹⁹ Kennedy’s presidency especially heightened awareness of religious issues in his hometown. Cardinal Cushing’s relationship with John F. Kennedy brought the significance of America’s first Catholic president a little closer to Boston. Over the years, Cardinal Cushing became closely associated with the Kennedy family and formed an especially close tie with the President.²⁰ His relationship with President Kennedy was another symbol of the changing era; both men dedicated themselves to eradicating barriers imposed on minorities and religious groups. For example, during Kennedy’s short time in office, he inaugurated the Peace Corps, the Test Ban Treaty, civil rights legislation, the Alliance for Progress and Food for Peace.²¹ Kennedy also played an important role in the Boston Catholic-Jewish relationship because, in the words of Lawrence H. Fuchs, Kennedy was

Mainly a symbol of change among Catholics in America, but he was also a catalyst...Kennedy, by becoming the most influential lay Catholic in American history, made the path of the new breed and the generation of the third eye much easier. Because no one in American history had ever become so completely identified with interreligious encounter as Kennedy, his election gave hope to the forces of encounter.²²

Kennedy and Cushing both played leading roles in ushering in a new era and in the changing dynamics of Boston’s Catholic-Jewish relationship. The culmination of Kennedy’s political achievements combined with Cushing’s ecumenical efforts produced two powerful figures in both local and national interreligious relations. Cushing watched as his young friend climbed the political ladder, but refrained from making any public statements during the 1960 campaign that might seem to intrude upon the separation of church and state. Cardinal Cushing rose to national prominence when he delivered the invocation at Kennedy’s inauguration. While Cushing had the honor of presiding over this joyous occasion, he also had the sad task of leading the funeral mass for John F. Kennedy’s untimely death and consoling his widow and two children. At the funeral on 24 November 1963 Cushing said "...As for myself, I have lost my dearest and nearest friend. History will never record how close we were in life."²³

As Kennedy’s short-lived presidency symbolized a new era in interreligious relations, back in Boston, Cushing, unlike O’Connell, pursued a warm relationship with the Jewish community. His dealings with prominent Boston Jews also demonstrated the importance of effective communication. The dialogue between Catholic and Jewish leaders was one important link that led to improved interreligious relations. Robert Segal, Executive Director of the Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Boston from 1944 until 1972, and Cushing were in constant touch through letters and meetings. For instance, when Cardinal Cushing endorsed the book PT 109 – John F. Kennedy, in World War II, he collaborated with Segal. The book and movie were released in Boston in April 1963. Cushing agreed to serve as chairman of the world premier screening of the film, with all proceeds going to charity. However, Cushing only decided to endorse the film on the condition that the money would go to an array of charitable organizations in greater Boston "irrespective of creed or the worthy cause they represented."²⁴ Cushing communicated with Segal about what charities would be included. In addition, Cushing encouraged Segal to invite Jewish leaders to the screening of the movie. This was an important example of how Cushing collaborated with the Jewish community on similar interests and illustrated how President Kennedy brought Boston Catholics and Jews together.

At other times, the Jewish community called upon Cushing to use his influence on behalf of the global Jewish community. For example, Lewis H. Weinstein wrote to Cushing in 1965.²⁵ He asked Cushing to make a statement to the West German government about extending the statue of limitations against the Nazi war criminals due to expire on 8 May 1965. Cushing agreed and wrote a statement on behalf of the Jews to the West German government.²⁶ In doing so, Cushing made an important announcement to the greater Boston and global Jewish community that he supported and befriended them.

Cardinal Cushing’s relationship with Abram Sachar, first President of Brandeis University, was one of the most visible signs of the changing era in Boston. Cushing had been involved with Brandeis from its beginning and supported the idea of erecting three chapels, echoing the belief that Judaism, Catholicism and Protestantism comprised America’s great faiths. He had the honor of naming the Catholic Bethlehem Chapel and donated the vestments as a personal gift to the University. In 1961, Cushing showed his respect for Brandeis University when he and Sachar collaborated on an important interfaith gift. During the fall of 1961, President Sachar received a call from Father Paul Reinert, president of St. Louis University. Reinert received permission from Pope John XXIII to obtain a microfilm of important Hebrew codices in the Vatican Library that represented almost four hundred years of Hebrew writings in history, literature, philosophy and religious thought. The collection included 800 codices, equivalent in the bulk volume to twenty years of the New York Times.²⁷ The codices contained important information about the Spanish and Portuguese Jews and had been accumulated throughout centuries of Jewish repression and expulsion. As a significant scholarly repository, it held the most valuable source of Jewish medieval learning and thought in the western world. Father Reinert explained to Sachar that he needed help funding the project. If Sachar could assist, Reinert said the Vatican would release two sets of microfilm. Immediately Sachar turned to Joseph Linsey, a Catholic serving as a trustee of Brandeis University who had previously helped Cardinal Cushing with fund-raising. Together Linsey and Sachar visited Cushing in his home. Sachar explained the importance of the Hebrew codices and the opportunity he and Father Reinert saw "in the period of Pope John’s appeal for an ecumenical climate, to provide a dramatic example of scholarly collaboration by two universities, one Catholic-founded and the other Jewish-founded."²⁸ When Sachar asked Cardinal Cushing for names of possible supporters, Cushing responded that he would donate $20,000 personally from his own Cardinal’s Fund.²⁹

Cardinal Cushing formally presented the codices at the Greater Boston Brandeis Club in 1961 at its thirteenth annual dinner. On 3 December 1961 Cushing spoke about the significance of the codices and his respect and admiration for Brandeis University:

We should not miss the importance of this kind of cooperation which brings together two ancient religious traditions in a common effort …

For my part, I have always felt very close to Brandeis University. Fourteen years have passed since I had a visit from a group of Jewish leaders who, in a friendly and courteous manner, sought my opinion concerning the establishment of an institution of this kind somewhere in the area of Boston. Let me say publicly tonight what I said privately then, that there was nothing that could better serve the community interest than the establishment of a great hall of learning under Jewish auspices…

Brandeis University, without being in any exclusive sense Jewish, provides the home in which the riches of the past meet the challenges of the present in terms of the universal genius of Judaism…

Brandeis is something more than a forum of learning under Jewish auspices; it is a place where all that is good and great in the history of Israel stands ready and available for the inspiration of the total community.³⁰

 

While Cushing brought Boston Catholics and Jews together through his relationship with prominent Boston Jews in the late 1950s and early 1960s, events in Rome promised a new chapter in the global Catholic-Jewish relationship. The election of Angelo Roncalli in 1958 as Pope John XXIII awakened an unusual interest among Jews, for Roncalli had helped Jewish communities during World War II. During his position as Papal Nuncio in Istanbul (1934-44), Roncalli made baptismal certificates for Jews to save them from the Nazis.³¹ Chief Rabbi Herzog of Israel declared, "Cardinal Roncalli is a man who really loves the people of the Book and through him thousands of Jews were rescued."³² By the end of his first year as Pope, Roncalli had revised questionable references to Jews in Catholic liturgy.³³ He informally acknowledged Israel’s presence by appointing a high-ranking Catholic prelate to serve as Vicar General in Haifa.34 He also welcomed and supported Jewish delegations when they approached him. For example, during a "swastika outbreak" in Germany during 1959-60, B’nai B’rith officials visited Pope John, who expressed his sorrow over the recent acts of antisemitism.³⁵

A French Jewish historian, Jules Isaac, significantly influenced Pope John XXIII. As the distinguished Director of French Education before the war, Isaac studied textbooks and became convinced that the roots of Nazism and antisemitism would only be removed when Christians revised their teachings vis-a-vis the Jews.³⁶ A World War II survivor, Isaac lost most of his family in Auschwitz. He dedicated his life to dissolving Christian antisemitic texts and teachings. While hiding in France during the war, he wrote Jesus and Israel, a book published shortly after the war’s end. The book later influenced many Catholics and was instrumental in spurring the change in Catholic teaching at Vatican II. Isaac met with Pope Pius XII in 1949 and hoped to convince him of the validity of the Seelisberg theses he developed about the Old and New Testaments.³⁷ Pius XII received Isaac cordially, but it was not until Isaac met Pope John XXIII in 1959 that the two made history.

Only three months after his elevation, Pope John revealed his plans for a council to Cardinal Tardini, his Secretary of State.³⁸ Many cardinals expressed surprise and resisted his idea. Ecumenical councils were expensive and occurred infrequently; the last council convened in 1869 and the one prior to that was the Council of Trent in 1562. Vatican I, 1869-70, declared the pope infallible in matters of faith and morals; many cardinals believed that if a pope wanted to change something he could, and his word would be accepted as final. However, Pope John understood what many of his brethren had not, that to make the Church relevant to the problems of the middle twentieth century required the involvement of all in the Church.³⁹ A Pope alone could not change the hearts and minds of Catholics dispersed throughout the world.

Originally the Vatican decided the Council would host a discussion on the relationship of the church to non-Christian audiences, but Judaism was not included. Isaac met with John XXIII in 1959 and suggested the Church appoint a subcommittee to review Catholic-Jewish relations. Isaac’s scholarly works helped shed light on the specific ways Christian teachers and texts had inspired an attitude of contempt toward Judaism. Together his work and personal encounter with Pope John XXIII influenced the Church’s decision to discuss its relationship with Judaism at the Council. The Pope appointed a series of Preparatory Commissions and three Secretariats. Augustin Cardinal Bea, S.J., worked with the Jews; his job was Secretariat for the Promotion of Christian Unity.⁴⁰ Additionally, the Holocaust played a monumental role. Father Edward Duff, S.J., of Worcester, Massachusetts, explained

That the Second Vatican Council should formally discuss the relations of Christians and Jews was inevitable...The systematic murder of six million Jews, occurring within our generation in what was thought of as a Christian civilization, called imperiously for reflection on how this could have happened and positive measures against the monstrous evil recurring in any guise.⁴¹

Jewish organizations from the World Jewish Congress to the American Jewish Committee attempted to sway the Council through coordinated memos to Cardinal Bea about how much the Church needed to address antisemitism.⁴²

The details behind what transpired at Vatican II were extensive. Briefly, the Council lasted from 1962 through 1965 and included four main sessions.⁴³ The first Council opened with 2,540 churchmen present. The Church did not discuss the Jewish question in the first session and drama between sessions increased Catholic-Jewish tension. The first setback occurred in early 1963 when controversy erupted over the play Der Stellvertreter - The Deputy in Berlin. Written by a young German Protestant, Rolf Hochhuth, the play condemned Pope Pius XII for his failure to take more vigorous action against Nazi atrocities during World War II.⁴⁴ Riots, picketing and efforts at censorship accompanied the premier. The play seemed to compel its viewers to choose one side against another; to defend or condemn the Catholic Church and Pope Pius XII. The play had far-reaching implications, which left many Catholics and Jews around the world divided.⁴⁵ The second complication was the untimely death of Pope John XXIII on 3 June 1963. As many people around the world grieved, Jews expressed both their sorrow and nervousness that the statement would not proceed as planned because of Pope John’s demise.⁴⁶ Only a few weeks later, however, the Cardinals elected Giovanni Montini to become the new Pope Paul VI; he presided over the second, third and fourth sessions. Arab pressure was a third issue that stalled the introduction of Catholic-Jewish issues at the Council. International politics swirled around the existence of an Israeli state in Palestine which, according to one historian, made "any statement on Jews a lightening rod for controversy."⁴⁷

At the closing of the second session, the recently elected Pope Paul VI announced he would visit Israel. This was an extraordinary move, for no pope had ever flown in an airplane, let alone made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. However, his visit to Israel sent mixed signals to the global Jewish community. On the one hand, once in Israel, he spoke about the significance of Palestine for all religions and ended with a hope for concord and unity among all people and nations, repeating the Hebrew word for peace, shalom.⁴⁸ He also ordered Cardinal Tisserant to light candles and recite prayer at the Chamber of the Holocaust as a sign of his compassion for the six million Jews slaughtered by the Nazis. Yet, upon leaving Israel, he shocked the world with a defense of Pope Pius XII, the subject of sharp criticism in The Deputy.⁴⁹ Pope Paul VI’s controversial visit to Israel divided many Jews and their attitudes toward the council.

The following Council sessions saw the intervention of Cardinal Cushing, when the Church failed to address its position regarding the Jews, despite the several drafts of texts (concerning the Jews) introduced at the second and third councils. In one of Cardinal Cushing’s greatest efforts on behalf of Jews, he exerted strong leadership in pushing for a statement. On 23 September 1964, he made his first "intervention" at the council by speaking on behalf of the proposed declaration of religious liberty. He said the time had come for the Church to prove herself as "the champion of liberty, of human liberty, and of civil liberty, especially in the matter of religion."⁵⁰ During deliberations at the third session over Nostra Aetate, the Declaration On the Relationship of the Church to Non-Christian Religions. Cushing boldly pronounced,

The Church must proclaim through this Ecumenical Council her unfeigned concern, universal respect and true love for the whole world and for all human beings...With regard to the Jews, I propose three amendments:

1. We must cast the Declaration on the Jews in a much more positive form, one not so timid, but much more loving...

2 ...Much less can we burden later generations of Jews with any guilt for the Crucifixion of the Lord Jesus, for the death of the Savior of the world, except that universal guilt in which we all have a part...In clear and unmistakable language, we must deny, therefore, that the Jews are guilty of Our Savior’s death...We must condemn especially those who seek to justify, as Christian deeds, discrimination, hatred and even persecution of Jews...

3. I ask myself, Venerable Brothers, whether we should not humbly acknowledge before the whole world that, toward their Jewish brethren, Christians have all too often not shown themselves as true Christians, as faithful followers of Christ. How many [Jews] have suffered in our own time? How many died because Christians were indifferent and kept silent?⁵¹

In addition to Cushing’s efforts on behalf of Nostra Aetate, he also encouraged the Church to pass Dignitatis Humanae, the Church’s official teaching on religious freedom. Cushing threw his support behind the proposed statement on the Jews.⁵² Although he did not know Latin well, he urged the Council fathers to produce a clear and positive statement (not a "timid" one) of love for the Jews as "the blood brothers of Christ."⁵³ Cushing concluded with "Dixi" – "I have spoken." The assembled fathers broke the rules and burst into applause. They understood the implications of Cushing’s speech and although they made further modifications, Cushing’s suggestions were found in the final document (Nostra Aetate) of the Second Vatican Council. His influence left "no doubt of the high regard with which the cardinal from Boston was held among the leaders of the Church and his importance at a critical point in the council’s deliberations."⁵⁴

A third important document regarding the Jewish-Catholic relationship was Lumen gentium, number 16 (Dogmatic Constitution). This text was significant because although it only contained one paragraph pertaining to Jews, the Feeney controversy over interpreting "no salvation outside the church" sparked the clarification found in this document. The text clarified that statement by stating

Those also can attain to everlasting salvation who through no fault of their own do not know the gospel of Christ or His Church, yet sincerely seek God and, moved by grace, strive by their deeds to do His will as it is known to them through the dictates of conscience.⁵⁵

This passage is footnoted to 1949 letter from the Holy Office to Archbishop Cushing about how, according to Church doctrine, it was possible for non-Catholics to gain salvation through the grace of God.⁵⁶ It was highly unusual that a Vatican council would quote a letter from a priest. The fact that the controversy over Feeney made its way into an official Church text symbolized the important issues Feeney raised for the Church.

All together, the Council produced numerous drafts of Nostra Aetate, the Declaration on Non-Christian Religions. From the beginning of the Council, the word "deicide" lay at the heart of debate over the declaration on the Jews. Cardinal Bea warned the Council Fathers of world Jewry’s expectations that they be exonerated from any guilt for Christ’s death.⁵⁷ Nostra Aetate had not been finalized when John XXIII died; afterwards, Cardinal Bea found progress on the declaration slow. However, this said, the final draft of Nostra Aetate was a remarkable achievement. After many debates, Nostra Aetate affirmed that Christ’s crucifixion "cannot be blamed upon all Jews then living, without distinction, nor upon the Jews of today." The Council Fathers proclaimed the Jews are not "repudiated or cursed by God."⁵⁸ With these words, they renounced centuries of Christian antisemitism. The American Jewish Committee called the declaration "a turning point in 1900 years of Jewish-Christian history" and "the climax to an unprecedented effort to bring about a new era in relations between Catholics and Jews."⁵⁹

The long-term impact of the Declaration was perhaps not so much what it stated, but in the new attitudes it inspired. Instead of focusing on the differences between Christians and Jews, Vatican II attempted to emphasize their common heritage.⁶⁰ Church leaders introduced a new vocabulary when referring to the Jews and this helped create a new atmosphere conducive to mutual understanding and dialogue.⁶¹ Cardinal Cushing concurred.

The statement is only a beginning for us to go further and to take out of Christian literature all that reflects upon the Jewish people....The declaration is not perfect but, in my opinion, it is a good start...⁶²

Perhaps the greatest sign of change in Boston arose from the Boston College dialogues, which occurred at the same time as the Vatican Council. During an ecumenical era with Vatican II addressing Christian-Jewish relations, the Boston College dialogues brought Boston Catholics and Jews together to discuss interfaith matters. Boston College hosted four meetings between 1963 and 1968. Vatican II directly influenced these dialogues; the Boston College conferences exemplified how changes initiated in Rome percolated down to the local level.

The official title for the first dialogue held in January 1963 was "Catholic-Jewish Understanding in an Age of Tension" and the invitation explained the interfaith meeting:

The purpose of our dialogue on January 23 is to deal frankly with myths, images and realities, to explore carefully the issues which sometimes divide us, and then to assess hopefully the logical methods for working cooperatively on the great civic challenges before us.⁶³

Boston College, the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith and the Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Boston sponsored the first dialogue. The idea for the conference grew out of an earlier interfaith conference at Assumption College in Worcester, Massachusetts, sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League. David H. Goldstein spoke with Robert Segal, Executive Director of the Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Boston about the possibility of such a conference in Boston at one of the Catholic universities. Father Robert F. Drinan, S.J., Dean of Boston College Law School, who had participated in the Assumption Conference, was eager to co-sponsor such an event.⁶⁴ Father Drinan chaired the conference.⁶⁵

The dialogue included 113 people, including many prominent Boston Catholics and Jews. In addition to Catholic and Jewish leaders, the conference aimed to bring in people employed in different areas in society. Two nationally respected sociologists, one Catholic and one Jewish, spoke at the dialogue. Father Campion, S.J., associate editor of America, a national liberal Catholic weekly, and Dr. Nathan Glazer, author of American Judaism and co-author of The Lonely Crowd, presented the main addresses.⁶⁶ Father Campion spoke about a common Biblical and spiritual heritage which both Catholics and Jews shared. He chronicled the turbulent last few decades in Boston Catholic-Jewish relations and related them to greater external events:

The election of John Kennedy to the Presidency in 1960 would exercise considerable impact on the evolution of the Catholic self-image as a minority. I likewise suspect that even a relatively external incident such as the establishment of an independent state of Israel altered the collective consciousness of the American Jewish community to some extent...Much trouble in intergroup relations stems, not so much from basic, intrinsic differences between the groups, but from historical or cultural incidentals.⁶⁷

Dr. Glazer’s speech on "The Two Cultures" discussed Catholic and Jewish stereotypes and how bitterly divided Jews and Catholics remained throughout the 1930s and 1940s. He described myths and images of Catholics and Jews , but warned against denying "the facts that serve as the basis for misunderstanding" in the effort to eliminate miscommunications.⁶⁸ Dr. Glazer concluded by saying Jews and Catholics must recognize their differences and then learn how to deal with them.⁶⁹

After the formal presentations, the heart of the dialogue began. Participants at the conference split into smaller groups where they discussed both historical and current events concerning Catholic-Jewish relations. A lay Catholic reported positive results came out of the conference. Published in the national Catholic magazine America, she wrote:

The talks were good – honest, stimulating and irenic...Then came the workshops – quite different from passive listening – and candor reared its lovely, if somewhat disturbing head. These groups (six of them, each with 20-25 participants) were far removed from the notion of the bland, well-meaning, ‘let’s love everybody banquets.’ Then the clashes came...

But in spite of all the differences and sharp exchanges of opinion – and it would take a book to detail them – a wonderful thing happened. People got talking to one another. At dinner, they played the ‘whom do you know that I know’ game. They laughed together...

Perhaps I can best suggest the atmosphere of the conference by injecting a personal note. When I was saying goodnight to a rabbi with whom I had really tangled, he grinned at me and said, "Pax vobiscum." I grinned back and said, "Shalom."⁷⁰

After the conference, Father Campion urged follow-up meetings. With "winds of challenge" at work in the Catholic world, Father Campion said it would be a pity if "the energies of these two groups should be diverted from positive channels into the wasteland of intergroup conflict and suspension."⁷¹ As Vatican II progressed, the Boston College dialogues convened a second time in December 1963. Earlier that year, Father Drinan had written to Robert Segal and Sol Kolack, two leaders in the Jewish Community Council, about following-up with another Catholic-Jewish conference.⁷² They hoped to address three areas of concern expressed at the January dialogue: (1) considerable misinformation about Jewish and Catholic perceptions of each other; (2) concern about issues dividing the two groups, including: federal aid to private education; religious observance in the schools; the presence of religious symbols in public places; birth control and the hotly contested Sunday blue laws; and (3) proposals for easing potential conflicts and tensions.⁷³

The Sunday blue law controversy had been an ongoing battle between Boston Catholics and Jews since the 1950s. The debate stemmed back to a 1672 Massachusetts law that prohibited many activities for all citizens on the "Christian Sabbath."⁷⁴ The issue came to a halt in 1959 when a kosher supermarket in Springfield, Massachusetts went to court over its right to remain open on Sunday. The court ruled that Massachusetts Sunday blue laws were unconstitutional on the grounds that they restricted religious liberty and deprived the storeowner of liberty and property without due process of law. Further, the court said they denied equal protection of the laws provided by the fourteenth amendment.⁷⁵ The issue again arose in 1962, when Rabbi Gittelsohn and prominent Catholics sent a series of ugly editorials back and forth to the Pilot. Father Drinan was also involved in the Sunday Blue Laws legislation. He explained

Even the most skilled expert on diagnosing intergroup tensions would have great difficulty in discovering what tensions and abrasions exist between the Catholic and Jewish communities in Boston as a result of the head-on collision in the struggle concerning exemptions from Sunday laws. All that one can say, absent a scientifically sociological survey of the matter, is that the Jewish community feels that the numerically predominant Catholic community has not defined religious freedom for Jews as Catholics define it for themselves when they argue for Federal aid for their schools.⁷⁶

The Sunday blue laws exemplified some of the ongoing tension between the Boston Catholic and Jewish communities. Although the Boston College dialogues brought Jews and Catholics together over common areas of concern, the Catholic-Jewish relationship was exacerbated by opposing views on birth control, extending federal aid to parochial schools, gambling, child adoption cases and the role of religion in public schools.⁷⁷

The Sunday blue law controversy was just one topic discussed at the second dialogue. Each Boston College dialogue was unique, for each one reflected on the most pressing concerns of the day. For example, the second workshop, held only weeks after Kennedy’s assassination, symbolized the impact Kennedy made on Boston Catholics and Jews. Seven workshops at the conference gave people an opportunity to discuss current issues. Some of the concerns addressed included: (1) evaluating the impact of Pope John XXIII and the ongoing Vatican Council; (2) discussing the election and assassination of John F. Kennedy; (3) questioning if Catholics and Jews really had a common tradition; (4) discussing changing how scripture is taught; (5) the need for clarification about Jesus’ crucifixion; (6) learning the importance of mutual participation from the current civil rights struggle; and (7) discussing the new generation’s attitude to intergroup relations.⁷⁸ The workshop concluded with leaders agreeing they needed to place more emphasis on congregational and parish level interfaith dialogue and activities.

As with the first dialogue, the second conference hosted well-known Catholic and Jewish speakers. In a planning meeting between Father Drinan, Sol Kolack and Robert Segal, they discussed asking Cardinal Cushing to open the conference and also hoped Dr. Sachar would attend. However, neither were able to attend. The fact that Catholics and Jews attempted to get Dr. Sachar and Cardinal Cushing at the dialogue illustrated the importance of Cushing and Sachar’s relationship in bridging Boston’s religious communities. The committee eventually selected Father Edward H. Flannery, editor of the Providence Visitor and Rabbi Balfour Brickner, director of the Commission on Interfaith Activities of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC) as the keynote speakers for the second dialogue.⁷⁹ The conference particularly focused on the division between leaders and laymen; both religious factions agreed there was an urgent need to bring the discussion down to the community level. They wanted their dialogue of a hundred Jewish and Catholic leaders to expand and hoped to encourage laymen to discuss issues that divided Catholics and Jews. Rabbi Balfour Brickner summed up the division between religious leaders and lay people well:

There is little question in my mind that the contact between the professional elements of the two faith groups is improving and in many communities is quite good. Jewish leadership knows a great deal about Catholicism and vice versa...

The same cannot be said about the masses of Catholics and Jews. One need only to ring a few doorbells in a typical burgeoning housing unit of ‘Mr. Average American’ to find out how minuscule is the mutual cooperation or even mutual respect...

It is on the lay level that we live in triple ghettos, isolated from one another, encased in five o’clock shadows’ of our own making. It is here that both communities need not only vastly intensified participation of educated laymen who can serve as rods binding the two layers together, as conduits throughout which will flow a much needed contact between what is now so separated within the individual faith groups, but also a participation which will bring these human conductors into a horizontal exchange, tying together the masses of the two faith groups, paralleling the mutual effort and understanding that now unites the professional and the intellectuals of the two communities. The time has now come, by virtue of the spade work done by the leadership and the high intelligence and increased capacities of our laymen, to give to Catholic-Jewish relationships an opportunity to become a people’s movement.⁸⁰

Father Edward Flannery also addressed similar issues. As the first Catholic priest to write a book chronicling the history of antisemitism, Flannery spoke about how many well-educated Catholics had almost "total ignorance" of the long history of antisemitism.⁸¹ He stressed the importance of understanding history. Knowing how popes, saints and church fathers played a role in spreading antisemitism was a necessary first step for Catholics in bridging ties with Jews.⁸²

In an attempt to encourage more local dialogue, Boston College conducted the third dialogue on 16 May 1965 in direct response to the conclusion of the Second Vatican Council. Like the earlier colloquiums, Father Drinan, Robert Segal and Sol Kolack played key roles in planning the dialogue. However, for their third dialogue, they sent out letters to local Catholics and Jews asking for help with the planning phase. Their letters stated they wanted the conference to discuss the relationship of Vatican II to the Jewish-Catholic understanding in Boston and how to further develop dialogue at the local level. Further, they hoped to explore the connection between ecumenism and religious pluralism.⁸³ They explained the need for the third dialogue on the invitation: "The purpose of our dialogue on May 16 is to seek together the logical next steps at a local level for developing Catholic-Jewish understanding in the light of recent developments in the Vatican Council." Keynote speakers included Dr. Joseph L. Lichten, Director of Department of Intercultural Affairs of the Anti-Defamation League and Reverend Edward Duff. S.J., Associate Professor of Political Science at Holy Cross College. Both Lichten and Reverend Duff had attended the recent Vatican sessions.

The third conference had a new sponsor. The recently formed Ecumenical Council of the Archdiocese of Boston was a direct response to the proceedings of the Second Vatican Council. The Ecumenical Council joined the Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Boston, the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith and Boston College in sponsoring the dialogue. According to Reverend Charles Von Euw, secretary of the Ecumenical Commission, participating in the dialogue was their first action on a community level.⁸⁴ The dialogues had a significant impact on Boston Catholics and Jews, because they represented how changes in Rome percolated down to Boston. The dialogues also symbolized the growing interest in interreligious relations in the city.

Cushing and Sachar’s friendship ran its course through all the important events in the late 1950s and early 1960s – the election and assassination of President Kennedy, the trials and tribulations in Rome over Vatican II and the Boston College Dialogues. Perhaps the best way to conclude this era is by going back to two of its most crucial leaders. This thesis has explored the role Boston Catholic and Jewish leaders have played in the transformation of Boston’s religious groups. When all said is and done, those leaders initiated changes and ensured that the Second Vatican Council’s attempts to reconcile the global Catholic-Jewish relationship produced local changes in Boston.

Boston Jews expressed their gratitude toward Cardinal Cushing’s deep-hearted efforts at Vatican II. The Brandeis University commencement of 1964 signified how highly Brandeis regarded Cushing. Brandeis commemorated Cushing by presenting him with an honorary degree on 7 June 1964.⁸⁵ In a special Saturday night session before graduation. Dr. Sachar fondly recalled Cushing’s appearance:

When he was invited for the Commencement tribute affair, he alerted us that he could only stay for a moment. A long evening had been prohibited by his doctor…

We told him that he could come after the dinner, that he would be called upon early, and that it was our tradition for the speakers to limit themselves to five or ten minutes. He arrived when the program was under way and, when called upon, launched on a lively biographical odyssey, with comments about his sister who had married a ‘wonderful, considerate Jewish businessmen who, like all Jews, knew how to cherish a wife.’ It was tragedy, he said, that Lou had died so early, and he only hoped that his sister would be fortunate enough to marry another Jew! He mocked the Catholic establishment and its sonorous ecclesiastical rhetoric. He wandered all over Jewish history and showed remarkable knowledge of Jewish problems. He spoke for an hour and a quarter and had the audience howling with laughter throughout. When he concluded, fresher than when he had started, he looked at his watch and exclaimed in mock horror: I thought you had promised me a short evening!⁸⁶

There is a sense of familiarity and friendliness in Cushing and Sachar’s correspondence. At the tenth anniversary of the chapel dedication, Sachar wrote to Cushing about the plan to establish the Richard Cardinal Cushing Testimonial Endowment. With $150,000 in capital, its income would fund the ongoing work for the Chapel. Cardinal Cushing initially donated $10,000 to the fund.⁸⁷ However, their relationship extended beyond monetary gifts. During their exchanges about the anniversary, Cushing wrote that he supported the endorsement of Bethlehem Chapel. He concluded with, "What more can I do for you and yours at Brandeis? The only thing I can do is to salute you as my devoted friend whose thoughts are my thoughts, whose ways are my ways, so that we can help the youth of the present to become the leaders of the future."⁸⁸ Sachar responded, "I have just returned from a mission to England and one of the first letters to greet me is the very moving one that comes from you…One of the most precious assets that I have in my own work here is the knowledge of your great friendship."⁸⁹ Cushing also battled with his declining health throughout the 1960s; on several occasions Dr. Sachar wrote friendly letters for the sole purpose of expressing concern. (see appendix) Cushing discussed his illness with Sachar; in a 15 July 1966 letter, he talked candidly about his health and at the bottom handwrote, "another letter is due [to] you, my dear friend."⁹⁰

Cushing and Sachar’s relationship continued until Cushing’s death in 1970. Although the "Cush" was no longer present, Boston Catholics and Jews continued his goodwill work.⁹¹ Further dialogues in 1968 and 1972 continued efforts to bridge Boston Catholics and Jews together. The dialogue held on 9 January 1972 at the Cardinal Cushing College placed emphasis on the local level. It was a Brookline, Brighton, West Roxbury area workshop for Jewish and Catholic lay leaders.⁹² Cardinal Cushing would have been proud that the winds of change were alive and vibrant in the Athens of America.

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Click here for the notes to ch. 5

The famous sociologist C. Wright Mills wrote in 1959 about society facing the end of the modern age. Wright predicated that the 1960s would be a tumultuous period and "the ending of one epoch and the beginning of another."¹ Global Catholic-Jewish relations, like so many other aspects of society, experienced a dramatic upheaval during this era. Knowledge of Hitler’s genocide, the Eichmann Trial in Jerusalem in 1961 and the emerging civil rights struggle in America all contributed to a new atmosphere. During this revolutionary era, people began protesting how much persecution undermined minorities both in America and abroad. Catholic-Jewish relations did not end in 1965; rather, they began a new course in 1965.

Many signs during the 1960s pointed toward an easing of religious bias in the Hub. The book, A Tale of Ten Cities, published in 1962, compared relations between Catholics, Protestants, and Jews in several cities. The authors asserted that the fight for better race relations helped pull Boston’s religious leaders together. The authors noted the continuation of "intergroup religious tensions" but also maintained that Cushing made a "gigantic" contribution to intergroup amity. Other Boston leaders also had an important impact, including Father Robert F. Drinan, a main force behind the Boston College Dialogues:

In recent years, the temperate and friendly voice of Father Robert F. Drinan, S.J., dynamic young dean of the Boston College Law School, has done much to ease religious tensions in the Hub area.²

Cardinal Cushing spoke about the new spirit in Boston in 1964. At a dinner banquet he said:

All of us can see a better Boston appear before our eyes...we should mention the new and wonderful spirit of cooperation which has come to exist between the various religious groups. Whatever there was in the past of bitterness and misunderstanding, is now giving way to forces of ecumenism which, without removing our differences, emphasize our common commitment to the human conscience and the dignity of man. We see ourselves now more truly as neighbors, working together not only for our own good but also for the benefit of others.³

Cardinal Cushing, the formation of the Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Boston and the Second Vatican Council have played the greatest influence in leading Boston Catholics and Jews into a new era. Cushing’s working and personal relationship with Jews like Abram Sachar personified a changing Boston. Vatican II introduced enormous changes in Catholic liturgy and the ways Jews are represented in Church texts. Changing official Church doctrine was crucial and Boston religious leaders ensured that changes made at Vatican II were implemented in the city.

Cardinal Cushing established the Catholic-Jewish Committee through the Boston Archdiocese. By organizing this committee, Cushing set up a working dialogue for years to come. Because prejudices die slowly, leadership and education are crucial to changing the hearts and minds of people. Philip Perlmutter, a founding member of the Catholic-Jewish Committee and past Executive Director of the Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Boston, said his interactions with Catholics in Boston taught him about "Catholics as real people, as committed believers, as victims of Yankee intolerance, and as dear friends."⁴

Even years after his death, Cushing remained a prominent figure in Boston interreligious history. Bostonians of all faiths preserved his legacy. In a 1995 Pilot special tribute to Cardinal Cushing on the twenty-fifth anniversary of his death, many Catholics commemorated Cushing. However, a memorial to Cushing would have been incomplete without Jewish representation. In addition to articles from Catholics, the paper featured a story by Albert Schlossberg, a Jewish war veteran. Schlossberg recalled his friendship with Cushing and described Cardinal Cushing fondly as "the epitome of a ‘Mensch!’"⁵ Indeed, Cardinal Cushing’s ecumenical efforts and his work with the Jewish Community Council led Boston into a new era of interfaith relations.

Changes in Rome, 1965 – present

Nostra Aetate in 1965 marked a new beginning for the global Catholic-Jewish relationship. Church representatives and the newly formed International Jewish Committee for Interreligious Consultations (IJCIC), conducted their first formal meeting in Rome in 1970. The IJCIC in recent years has organized dialogue across the world between Jews, Catholics, Protestants, and Eastern Orthodox Christians.⁶ In 1974, Paul VI established a Commission for Religious Relations with Judaism, which is officially described as "attached to but independent of the Secretariat for Christian Unity."⁷ Also in 1974, the Vatican issued a second document on the Jews, titled "Guidelines for the Implementation of Nostra Aetate."⁸ Cardinal Willebrands, of Dutch origin, attended the Second Vatican II and has played a pioneering role in Catholic-Jewish relations. He presided over the Holy See’s Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, which established the "Guidelines for the Implementation of Nostra Aetate." In a speech on "Ten Years in the New Spirit of the Vatican Council," he said,

Certainly, dialogue between Catholics and Jews is weighed down by history, and we are grateful that it is now possible to engage in it with trust and mutual respect. For it is without doubt the declaration of the Second Vatican Council that has opened up this possibility. The new document [the "Guidelines"] for the application of the council declaration gives many concrete suggestions for the development of this dialogue.⁹

In 1985, the Church went further and devised "Notes on the Correct Way To Present the Jews and Judaism in Preaching and Catechesis in the Catholic Church." The Church marked the twenty-year celebration of Nostra Aetate in 1985 with numerous exchanges and colloquia in Rome and around the world. In the United States alone, Catholics and Jews met in at least forty states and at some seventy different celebrations.¹⁰ A year later Pope John Paul made a historic visit to the Jewish synagogue in Rome on Palm Sunday. With his visit to a synagogue, the Pope transformed Christian-Jewish reconciliation from words on paper to words with people.¹¹

In the United States, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) has written three major documents on Catholic-Jewish relations in the past fifteen years. Written exclusively for American Catholics, these papers expand upon Nostra Aetate. The Criteria for the Evaluation of Dramatizations of the Passion published in 1988, by the Bishops’ Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, explains how to sensitively depict Jesus when re-enacting the Passion.¹² The second document, Within Context, aims to reach Catholic educators and explains Jesus in the context of his Judaism. In 1988, the NCCB addressed the document "God’s Mercy Endures Forever" to preachers.

In recent years in Boston, Cardinal Bernard Law, Bishop William Murphy and Lenny Zakim, Director for the New England Anti-Defamation League from 1984 until his death in 1999, have led Catholic-Jewish relations into the twenty-first century.¹³ Zakim created a black-Jewish seder in the early 1980s and a Catholic-Jewish seder. He also made history when he helped develop a joint Boston Catholic-Jewish pilgrimage to Israel in 1999. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston and the Anti-Defamation League of New England sponsored the trip and Bernard Cardinal Law, Rabbi Samuel Chiel, Bishop William F. Murphy, and Lenny Zakim all traveled to Israel together. The trip symbolized the close relationship between Boston Catholic and Jewish leaders.

Today the Boston Catholic-Jewish relationship is one of the best in the country, according to Monsignor Peter Conley, present editor of The Pilot.¹⁴ Larry Lowenthal, area director of the American Jewish Committee, concurred. He explained how Boston religious leaders are taking strides to emphasize Catholic-Jewish relations at the local level through establishing partnerships between Boston churches and synagogues.¹⁵ Father David Michael, the Archdiocesan Liaison to the Jewish Community and Catholic Chaplain at Brandeis University, described the relationship between the Boston Archdiocese with the Jewish leadership as a long-standing one built of trust and mutuality. Despite the strong ties within Catholic and Jewish leadership, the main concern in recent years has been on filtering this down to the community level.  Under Father Michael’s direction, the New Directions Program, sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League and the Archdiocese, have taught approximately 1500 Catholic teachers in the past five years about how to teach Christian history accurately and sensitively, with respect to its Jewish roots.¹⁶ "There’s a concerted effort on the part of the leaderships of the Catholic Church in the archdiocese of Boston. Much work remains to be done [on the community level]; we still have a long way to go," Father Michael explained.

A recent example illustrates how far Catholic-Jewish relations have come in recent years. Vandals put a hate symbol two years ago on the Adams Street Synagogue in Newton, the oldest synagogue in the city, on the Jewish Sabbath. During Sunday morning services at a nearby church the following day, Father Walter Cuenan at asked everyone to leave services and pray in front of the synagogue.¹⁷ This incident provided a stark contrast with Boston of the 1940s. Perhaps Boston’s Christians and Jews can reconcile their pasts and fulfill the dream of John Winthrop, Massachusetts’ first Governor who wrote that "we must be knit together, in this work, as one man. We must entertain each other in brotherly affection."¹⁸

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