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This Week
Coming Together
Catholics, Jews unveil new symbol of
reconciliation on a Prague bridge.
MAGNUS BENNETT
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
A
famous windswept landmark
in the Czech capital has pro-
vided the backdrop for a
symbolic gesture of reconcil-
iation between Catholics and Jews.
"A little part of history was made
today," said the president of the
North American Board of Rabbis,
Marc Schneier, as he reflected on a
ceremony on Prague's Charles Bridge
attended by 40 rabbis and a contin-
gent of leading Czech Christians.
In what representatives of both
faiths described as a historic occasion,
a set of plaques explaining a contro-
versial 300-year-old Hebrew inscrip-
tion mounted on a statue of Jesus on
the Cross was officially unveiled last
week on the bridge.
The inscription "Holy, Holy, Holy
Is the Lord of Hosts" — a traditional
Jewish prayer taken from the Book of
Isaiah — was placed there by Prague
city authorities in 1696 to humiliate
Jews for an alleged blasphemy against
the cross committed by a Prague Jew.
Some Prague tour guides and
books suggest that it was placed there
to mock a Jewish politician named
Elias Backoffen, who refused to bow
to the cross. Others say Backoffen
had spit at the cross, cursing
Christianity. Still others claim that it
was placed there to ridicule local Jews
who had refused to remove their
yarmulkes in the cross' presence.
The inscription has for many years
confused — and in many cases,
offended — Jewish tourists.
Attempts by local Jewish groups to
have the inscription removed, or at
least explained, fell on deaf ears until
a delegation from the board of rabbis
intervened last March, lobbying
Prague Mayor Jan Kasl for the cir-
cumstances of the wording to be
explained.
Kasl agreed and, with the blessing of
Czech Catholic Church representatives,
a dedication ceremony was arranged.
For symbolic reasons, they chose
Ash Wednesday (March 8), the first
day of Lent in the Christian calendar.
The new plaques state in English,
Czech and Hebrew that the Hebrew
Related Story: page 12
inscription was added to the statue
as the result of improper court pro-
ceedings against Elias Backoffen."
It also points out that the addi-
tion "was intended to humiliate the
Jewish community."
"This has been designated a day of
reconciliation between Christians and
Jews," Rabbi Schneier told guests and
onlookers on the bridge. "This statue
will now become a monument to the
horrors of antisemitism."
A Prague priest, Father Tomas
Halik, a keen supporter of interfaith
relations, said he was pleased to see
the plaques in place.
"I support anything which brings
together people of different cultures
and religions," he said.
Also present was John Shattuck,
U.S. ambassador to the Czech
Republic, who described the ceremony
as "an important moment in the life
and culture" of the Czech Republic.
"Today demonstrates a sensitivity
and tolerance across religions," he
added.
Shattock read a statement from
Czech-born U.S. Secretary of State
Madeleine Albright, who expressed
her disappointment, due to a prior
engagement in Bosnia, at not being
able to attend.
"The plaque, and the fact that you
have gathered together on this his-
toric bridge, symbolize the growing
bonds between the Jewish and
Christian communities in Prague and
throughout the Czech Republic and
beyond," her statement read.
For Rabbi Schneier, the event was
history in the making. "This is one of
the first events that can be seen as a
tangible response to the call" by the
Catholic Church for reconciliation.
"Pope John Paul II is going to
make a statement on Sunday about
reconciliation, and I would pay trib-
ute to him for what I believe is a gen-
uine and sincere effort on his part to
strengthen relations between our
respective faiths.
"We are living in historic, if not
revolutionary times, in terms of
Jewish-Catholic relations," he said. ❑