IJCR News

This page lists news articles about the Institute or stories that cite its directors. 

Conference Report: “New Documents from the Pontificate of Pope Pius XII and their Meaning for Jewish-Christian Relations: A Dialogue between Historians and Theologians”

Contemporary Church History Quarterly — ... Particularly interesting was the paper of Professor Philip Cunningham, Saint Joseph’s University, who examined the draft 1938 encyclical Humani Generis Unitas, and its possible adverse impact on later Catholic theological documents. ... As Cunningham concluded, had the encyclical been promulgated, it would have in fact “raised the notion of divine malediction against Jews to the status of formal Catholic doctrine” and it would have created serious obstacles for the later Nostra Aetate declaration (1965), which repudiated antisemitism altogether.

Jewish-Catholic Experts: Holocaust Remembrance Is Call To ‘Repudiate’ Dehumanizing People

PHILADELPHIA (OSV News) — An annual commemoration of Nazi Germany’s slaughter of millions of Jews during World War II is a call to prioritize human dignity, two Jewish-Catholic experts told OSV News. ... For Catholics, recalling and preventing those atrocities is essential, Philip Cunningham, professor and co-director of the Institute for Jewish-Catholic Relations at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, told OSV News. “The Shoah must be remembered because it was among the most terrifying instances of human evil in all of history,” Cunningham said. ... Fellow St. Joseph’s professor and IJCR co-director Adam Gregerman said it was “sadly appropriate” that this year’s International Holocaust Remembrance Day marked a time when “we commit to not just remembering but to acting against violence and hatred today.” ... 

A Catholic University Welcome Mat for Jewish Students Feeling Embattled

Franciscan University of Steubenville in Ohio isn’t just Catholic. It’s “passionately Catholic,” according to the tagline on its website. It is known as a traditionalist hardliner on church teachings, according to some Catholic scholars. So it caught some people by surprise when the university announced last week that it would not only welcome Jewish students but would also expedite the transfer process for them in the wake of widely reported incidents of antisemitism on American college campuses related to the conflict between Israel and Gaza. ... Phil Cunningham, director of the Institute for Jewish-Catholic Relations at Saint Joseph’s University, a Roman Catholic institution in Philadelphia, said there’s ... a new openness among Catholic higher ed institutions in general to build bridges with Jewish communities since Vatican II, the ecumenical council of the Catholic Church in the 1960s. 

Synod ‘calls us to relationships,’ says youth delegate (Catholic Courier/OSV News) 

Julia Oseka, a rising junior at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, has been named as one of 10 non-bishop voting members from the U.S. and Canada at the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in Rome, which will take place Oct. 4-29. ... A native of Poland, ... [u]pon learning that her town’s once-thriving Jewish community had been decimated in the Shoah (Holocaust), she embarked on a research project this summer to provide lesson plans on the topic to middle school students. The initiative — supervised by professors Philip Cunningham and Adam Gregerman, who co-direct the Institute for Jewish-Catholic Relations at St. Joseph’s University — promotes awareness of antisemitism while showing “the dynamic relationship between the Jewish and the Catholic community in the town … (and that) we are called to live in appreciation of diversity and not be scared of it,” she said.

SJU student to represent the United States at the October "Synod on Synodality" in the Vatican

July 7, 2023 — A news story in America magazine today has announced that Saint Joseph's University student Julia Oseka will be a "young adult" delegate at the upcoming historic "Synod on Synodality" to be held in the Vatican this October. 

A member of the class of 2025 with a double major in physics and theology/religious studies, Ms. Oseka has been a leader in the synodal process in the United States (see HERE). In her theological studies, she enrolled in two Honors program courses offered by the Institute for Jewish-Catholic Relations, "The New Testament and Christian Attitudes toward Jews and Judaism" and "Jews and Christians: Entwined Histories." She is an international student from Sobienie Jeziory in Poland. This summer, she is working on a "Summer Scholars" project in her hometown under the guidance of Institute directors, Philip Cunningham and Adam Gregerman, with assistance from Institute Board member Josey Fisher, who directs the Holocaust Oral History Archive at Gratz College.

Jewish apostle, not Jewish apostate: (Mis)reading the apostle Paul (National Catholic Reporter) 

By Philip A. Cunningham. June 29 marks the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul. Paul's letters, however, are "hard to understand" (2 Peter 3:16). Their inherent complexities became more confusing over the centuries when millions of Gentile Christians (mis)read Paul with false ideas about Judaism in their minds. Especially after the Reformation, many presupposed that the Jewish dedication to observing the commandments in the Torah (the mitzvot) was a vain, legalistic effort to earn God's favor. With this premise, Christians readily imagined that Paul had come to see Jewish practices as futile and replaced by the "law-free" Gospel of Christ.

Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations publishes detailed article on Institute-funded study of American Catholic attitudes toward Jews and Judaism and its implications for Catholic religious education 

This unprecedented survey of a representative sample of American Catholics assesses their opinions about their Jewish neighbors, Judaism, Israel and Palestine, and Catholic Church teaching on these subjects. After comparing the survey's results with similar research on the views of evangelical Christians, the article focuses on implications for Catholic religious education, including the respondents' familiarity with relevant post-Nostra Aetate theological developments in papal and Vatican documents. 

Experts hail new White House strategy to counter antisemitism 

Experts in Jewish-Catholic relations are hailing a newly unveiled plan by the Biden administration to combat antisemitism, released amid a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents in recent years.  Announced May 25, the first-ever "U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism" highlights four key pillars for tackling the problem: increasing awareness of antisemitism while broadening appreciation for Jewish American heritage; improving safety and security for Jewish communities; reversing normalization of and countering antisemitism; and building cross-community solidarity and collective action against hatred.

First-of-its-kind Survey Reveals American Catholics’ Attitudes Toward Jews Have Improved in Last Century (SJU Press Release) 

A new study by Saint Joseph’s University’s Institute for Jewish-Catholic Relations dives into how American Catholics feel about Jews, Judaism and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 

Hit Christian TV show ‘The Chosen’ is all about Jesus. So why is it so Jewish? (The Forward) 

[I]n the contemporary American evangelical landscape, Jesus’ Judaism is taking center stage again. Evangelicals are turning to Christianity’s Jewish roots, adopting rituals such as Seders and shofars in a search for meaning and authentic connection to Jesus. And nowhere is it so obvious as in The Chosen. ... “Evangelical celebration of Jesus’ Jewishness fits into, often, a kind of larger Christian Zionist project,” said Adam Gregerman, an associate professor of Jewish studies at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. “That idea that Jews have a role to play in the Christian eschatological scenario has led to more of an embrace of Jews and Judaism.”

Anti-Jewish readings of Scripture are not just a Holy Week problem (National Catholic Reporter)

By Philip A. Cunningham. During Holy Week this year, Catholic congregations will hear, and in some cases enact, the passion narratives from the Gospels of Matthew and John. History shows that without guidance Christians easily read such texts as justifications for anger and hostility toward Jews. The way that the Gospel authors told the story of Christ’s passion has embedded in the Christian religious imagination the binary notion that "Judaism" and "Christianity" are existentially opposed to each other. This danger is not just an issue in Holy Week, but throughout the year.

Institute Announces Initial Results of Survey of American Catholics' Attitudes toward Jews

A first-of-its kind study of American Catholic attitudes toward Jews, Judaism, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict finds that they largely have favorable or at least neutral opinions of Jews, but many Catholics remain unaware of church teachings on Jews and Judaism almost 60 years after the Second Vatican Council explicitly rejected antisemitism, and after extensive post-conciliar teaching has called for a deepening of Catholic-Jewish dialogue. The survey shows a need to more intensely raise the consciousness of American Catholics about Catholic views on the Bible and understandings of Jewish covenantal life. The links below provide details of the study. 

American Catholic Attitudes toward Jews, Judaism, and the Israeli Palestinian Conflict (Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations) 

Study: American Catholics have favorable views of Jews, despite unfamiliarity with church teaching on Catholic-Jewish relations. (Boston Pilot / OSV News) 

Survey: Catholic biblical literalists more likely to have anti-Jewish views. (RNS) 

Video of a March 22 public presentation of the survey's initial results. 

Pope Francis has ‘jumped church forward’ in Jewish-Catholic relations, say experts

Pope Francis has accelerated Jewish-Catholic relations through friendship, fellowship and a commitment to fighting antisemitism, several interfaith experts told OSV News, including the co-directors of the Institute for Jewish-Catholic Relations (IJCR) at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, Profs. Philip Cunningham and Adam Gregerman. 

Holocaust remembrance more crucial than ever, say Jewish-Catholic relations scholars. An annual commemoration of the Nazi genocide of the Jewish people has become more crucial than ever amid a rise in antisemitism and Russia's war on Ukraine, says scholars of Jewish-Christian relations, including the Institute's directors. 

A ‘genuine friend of the Jewish people’: Jewish-Catholic dialogue leaders remember Benedict XVI. Pope Benedict XVI is remembered for his lifelong role in deepening Jewish-Catholic relations, bringing to life the dialogue called for by the Second Vatican Council, according to many leaders within the Jewish community who spoke with OSV News in recent days, including the Institute's directors. 

"A National Reckoning of the Soul: A Call to the Churches of the United States to Confront the Crisis of Antisemitism" was issued on December 14th by t​​​​he Council of Centers on Jewish-Christian Relations (CCJR), of which SJU's Institute for Catholic-Jewish Relations is a founding member. The CCJR is a network of Christian, Jewish, and Muslim scholars at centers and institutes around the United States and Canada that are devoted to the study of the history of Jewish-Christian relations and to promoting interreligious understanding and dialogue. 

Alarmed by a level of antisemitic rhetoric and violence not seen since the Second World War, the statement calls upon churches in the United States to intensify condemnations of antisemitism as "antithetical to the very essence of Christianity itself."

It also urges Christian leaders to encourage their congregations to reflect upon the profound religious significance for Christian faith of Jesus' identity as a Jew, a timely exercise as Christmas approaches. A deeper understanding of Christianity's intimate relationship with Jews and Judaism, the CCJR states, will help Christians to reject sacrilegious claims put forth in social media that Christians should hate Jews. 

The full text of the statement can be accessed HERE. 

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Of related interest: 

• Kathryn Post of Religion News Service has written an article that draws upon the CCJR statement: "This Advent, churches urged to assess worship for inadvertent antisemitism."
• Gina Christian of Catholic News Service: "Churches called to 'national reckoning of soul' amid antisemitism crisis." 
• From America, the national Jesuit publication: "Cardinal Gregory says Catholics should be 'outraged' by rising antisemitism." 
• The U.S. Catholic Bishops for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs recently released "A Recommitment to Relationship with the Jewish Community." 

• Jewish holidays a chance for Catholics to reflect on shared values, says professor, CatholicPhilly.com: Rosh Hashanah “is more celebratory, praising God as king of creation and hoping that the new year of 5873 on the Jewish calendar will be as sweet as honey,” said Philip Cunningham, co-director of SJU’s Institute for Jewish-Catholic Relations (IJCR) along with fellow SJU faculty member Adam Gregerman.

• Rabbi Abraham Skorka receives honorary doctorate from Saint Joseph's University: At its recent Commencement ceremonies, Saint Joseph’s University bestowed the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters honoris causa on Rabbi Abraham Skorka, PhD.

• Video series shows how to present Passion, without blaming Jews, CatholicPhilly.com: Philip Cunningham and Adam Gregerman, directors of the IJCR and faculty members of the theology and religious studies department,  filmed a video on presenting Jesus’ passion without collectively blaming all Jews for Christ’s death.

• Russian strike damages Holocaust site, prompting calls to remember victims, CatholicPhilly.com: Philip Cunningham and Adam Gregerman, directors of the IJCR and faculty members of the theology and religious studies department, called to preserve the memory of Shoah (Holocaust) victims after a Russian military strike on the capital of Ukraine damaged the site of Babyn Yar.

• Whoopi Goldberg suspension shows complexity of Jewish identity, racism, says scholar, CatholicPhilly.com: Philip Cunningham, co-director of the Institute for Jewish-Catholic Relations (IJCR), talked about the controversy over Goldberg's statements on ABC's 'The View'.
• Remembering Holocaust ‘a moral act with present purpose,’ say local experts, CatholicPhilly.com: As the world commemorates the victims of Nazi genocide, local scholars say recalling history’s horrors “needs to be more than cognition.”

• Yom Kippur Prompts All to Examine Conscience, Love Neighbor, Says Local Catholic Scholar, CatholicPhilly.com: Judaism’s Day of Atonement is a reminder to all that humanity has a collective responsibility for each other.
• Why Pope Francis’ Comments on the Torah were Hurtful to his Jewish Friends, America: The Jesuit Review: This past August, Pope Francis made a statement that some have characterized as causing the greatest tension in the relationship between the church and the Jewish people since the beginning of his pontificate.
• Jewish Holidays have Themes Familiar to Christians, Say Local Scholars, CatholicPhilly.com: Christians can find many familiar elements in the Jewish high holy days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, said two local scholars.

• Israeli Rabbis Ask Pope to Clarify Remarks on Jewish Law, REUTERS: Israel’s top Jewish religious authorities have told the Vatican they are concerned about comments that Pope Francis made about their books of sacred law and have asked for a clarification.

• Dr Philip A. Cunningham has been appointed ICCJ Honorary President, ICCJ.org: During the 2021 Annual General Meeting of ICCJ's member organizations, held virtually on June 27, the outgoing ICCJ President Bo Sandahl announced the appointment of Phil Cunningham as ICCJ Honorary President.

• President of U.S. Bishops’ Conference and Chairman for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs Condemn Recent Rise in Antisemitic Incidents, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB): With a recent rise in the incidents across the country that have been antisemitic in nature, Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), and Bishop David P. Talley of Memphis and chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs issued a call for prayers and unity in fostering a culture that rejects all forms of hatred.
• Words, Weapons and the Ways of Peace, Published in the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano: On April 15, a particularly important meeting organized by the Permanent Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations took place in Geneva. It gathered representatives of international and religious institutions, together with high-ranking Vatican dignitaries, to study the implications of the latest encyclical by Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti.

• “Refuse to Turn Away” from Terrors of Genocide, Say Local Scholars, CatholicPhilly.com: Holocaust Remembrance Day is a call to “refuse to turn our eyes away from (the) terrors” of genocide, said scholars from the Institute of Jewish-Catholic Relations (IJCR) at Saint Joseph’s University.
• Passover and Easter: Freedom and Responsibility, Published in the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano: The great lesson of the biblical account of the liberation and exodus of the people of Israel from Egypt centers on the concept of freedom. There is a biblical verse that clearly defines it.

• Passover Invites Christians to Recognize Their Jewish Roots, CatholicPhilly.com: Passover invites Christians to recognize Jesus’ Jewishness, and their own “close kinship with Jesus’ Jewish brothers and sisters.” That’s according to professors Philip Cunningham and Adam Gregerman, who co-direct the Institute for Jewish-Catholic Relations at Saint Joseph’s University.
• Antisemitism: The ‘Oldest Hatred’ Persists and Resurges Still Today, The Leaven: Across the centuries, the Jewish people have been viewed as the “other.” They have been blamed as scapegoats for Jesus’ crucifixion, the Black Death, war and struggling economies.
• How to Counter Antisemitism, The Leaven: Philip Cunningham, Ph.D., professor of theology and director of the Institute for Jewish- Catholic Relations at Saint Joseph’s University, Philadelphia, suggests that individuals should be aware of personally held stereotypes and use of language deemed harmless but laden with antisemitism — for example, the phrase “Jewing people down.”
• Eight Years after the Election of Pope Francis, Published in the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano: March 13 marks the eighth anniversary of the election of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the 266th pope of the Catholic Church. Since then he has traveled a long and winding path with many challenges along the way.

• Jews, Christians Can Learn from their Shared Scriptures, Say Scholars, CatholicPhilly.com: Jews and Christians can learn from each other’s shared Scriptures, say two renowned academics — and such dialogue can help to move a divisive society “from polemic to possibility.”
• Remembrance, Education Needed to Prevent Genocide, Says Local Scholar, CatholicPhilly.com: Decades after millions of European Jews were systematically persecuted and murdered, “constant education” is needed to prevent the genocide of marginalized groups, said a local scholar.

• Jewish Reflections as Christians Celebrate the Nativity, published in the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano: Among the concepts in the Bible that are central to the faiths of both Israel and Christianity are redemption (geulah) and salvation (yeshuah). While often the two terms are casually used interchangeably, there are certain distinctions worth noting in the Jewish tradition.
• Institute Directors Interviewed for the Encyclopedia of Jewish-Christian Relations, Institute directors Dr. Philip A. Cunningham and Dr. Adam Gregerman were interviewed by the project leaders of the new Encyclopedia of Jewish-Christian Relations. 

• Vatican’s WWII Archives Reveal Complex Picture, ‘Flawed Characters,’ Says Expert, CatholicPhilly.com: Recently unsealed Vatican archives on World War II and Pope Pius XII will ultimately provide “a very complex picture with a lot of flawed characters on all sides,” according to an acclaimed researcher.