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Statement Of Change

Jewish leaders approve document that calls
for rethinking the Jewish perception of Christiani

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En
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wo Detroit-area rabbis are
included among the nearly
170 Jewish leaders who
signed a recent statement
calling on Jews to acknowledge
Christian efforts to confront past mis-
treatment of Jews and Judaism and to
reevaluate how Judaism perceives
Christians and Christianity.
The signatures of Rabbis Irwin
Groner of Congregation Shaarey
Zedek and Daniel Nevins of Adat
Shalom Synagogue are affixed to the
declaration, which was sponsored by
the Institute for Christian and Jewish
Studies. ICJS is a 13-year-old interde-
nominational group of Jewish scholars
based in Baltimore.
The statement, published Sept. 10
in full-page advertisements in the New
York Times, Baltimore Sun and other
publications, is titled "Dabru Emet"
(in Hebrew, "Speak Truth"). It is a ref-
erence to Zachariah, Chapter 8, Verse
16, which reads, in part, "Speak each
person the truth to his neighbors."
Subtitled, "A Jewish Statement on
Christians and Christianity," it is
billed as the first document on the
Jewish view of Christianity.
Rabbi Michael Signer, a professor of
theology at the University of Notre
Dame in Indiana, was one of four
drafters of the statement. He said:
"This is the first major statement by a
group of Jewish scholars, congrega-
tional rabbis, leaders of national
organizations that acknowledges the
changes that have come about in
Christian theology of Jews and the
Jewish people."
Working with Rabbi Signer on the
statement were Dr. Tikva Frymer-
Kensky of the University of Chicago
Divinity School; Dr. David Novak of
the University of Toronto; and Dr.
Peter W. Ochs of the University of
Virginia. The document took five
years to complete.

Signing The Statement

Rabbi Groner was given a copy of the
statement six months ago by Rabbi
Joel Zai man of Baltimore, who is

involved in interfaith dialogue with

leaders of the Catholic Church in

Baltimore. After reviewing it, Rabbi
Groner says, "I endorsed it without
reservation."
In good company, he adds, "the list
[of signers] is a 'Who's 'Who?' of
American Jewish life. Included in this
group are rabbis in the world of acade
mia, in organizational life, in leading
pulpits and activists in the whole field,
of Jewish/Christian relationships."

Dabru Emet states that: Jews and
Christians seek authority from the
the Bible — and accepi,
same book

the moral principles of the Torah;
humanly irreconcilable differences
between Jews and Christians will not
be settled until God redeems the
entire world as promised in Scripture;
a new relationship between Jews and
Christians will not weaken Jewish
practice; and Jews and Christians mus
work together for justice and peace.
The process of creating the docu-
ment, not surprisingly, was filled with
some tension and controversy. Some
points included in the statement have
caused more dissension than others.
"The one question I had is whether,
Christians worship the God of Israel,"
says signatory Rabbi Nevins about the'
statement's wording: "Jews and
Christians worship the same God." H
says, "I was perplexed whether they
worship the God of Israel — some of

the text was wishful thinking."
"That's exactly what's on my heart,
too," says David Blewett, executive
director of the Ecumenical Institute
for Jewish-Christian Studies in
Southfield. "As a Christian, I don't

know if I'd sign the statement that
talks about worshipping the same Goc
of Israel."
Although Blewett says he appreciate
the statement and finds it "absolutely

worthwhile," he, too, is troubled with
the issue. "I don't think the God of

Christianity is the same as the God of
Israel," Blewett says. "The official stag

teaching of the Trinity is Greek —
definitely not Jewish."
Blewett strongly supports the state-
ment's words that "Christians can
respect the claim of the Jewish people
upon the land of Israel."
"We respect that claim because it

STATEMENT OF CHANGE on page 14

