SSPX and continued Anti-Semitism

Bishop's blog raises tensions

between Jews and the Vatican

Richard Williamson, who has previously denied existence of gas chambers during Holocaust, accuses Jews of killing Jesus

Riazat Butt, religious affairs correspondent

The Guardian, Wednesday 19 October 2011

" Relations between Jews and Catholics are under immense strain after a bishop made controversial remarks on his blog.

Richard Williamson, who has previously denied the existence of gas chambers and the murder of 6 million Jews during the Holocaust, accused the Jews of killing Jesus, a charge that divided the two faiths for centuries until Pope Benedict XVI declared this year that Jews could not be held responsible for Jesus's death.

In his weekly post, Williamson wrote that "the killing of Jesus was truly 'deicide' " and that "only the Jews (leaders and people) were the prime agents of the deicide because it is obvious from the gospels that the gentile most involved, Pontius Pilate, … would never have condemned Jesus to death had not the Jewish leaders roused the Jewish people to clamour for his crucifixion."

His comments have angered Jewish leaders and Holocaust survivors, who are urging Rome to cease reconciliation talks with the ultra-traditionalist splinter group to which Williamson belongs, the Society of St Pius X. Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt of the European Council of Rabbis said: "We call upon the Catholic church to suspend negotiations with extremist Catholic tendencies until it is clear that these groups show a clear commitment to tackling antisemitism within their ranks."

Last month, Régis de Cacqueray,(pic above) the head of the French SSPX chapter, also accused Jews of deicide. To the despair of Jewish groups, there has been increased dialogue between the Vatican and SSPX.

Goldschmidt said: "Comments like these take us back decades to the dark days before there was a meaningful and mutually respectful dialogue between Jews and Roman Catholics. There must be no rapprochement within the Catholic church for those of its flock who seek to preach words of hate."

The Vatican has said SSPX will have to sign up to core teachings if they are to reintegrate, although it has not stated what these are. Four SSPX bishops, including Williamson, were excommunicated in 1988 when they were illegally ordained.

But the Vatican lifted Williamson's excommunication on the very day that his Holocaust-denying remarks were aired. The decision appalled Jewish leaders, with many suspending contact with the Vatican as a result. The Vatican said it did not know Williamson held such views.

Williamson has repeatedly ignored pleas to retract his remarks and not even the pope has managed to get the cleric to recant.

The fresh row will embarrass the pope, who is preparing to host a summit of world faith leaders in Assisi, Italy, next week as part of his interreligious outreach programme."

___________________________________________________________________________________

Twenty five plus years ago, as a young man exploring religious vocation I visited the SSPX Seminary in Ridgefield, CT. I arrived on a weekend, after being shown to my room, and having some time before communal prayer, I wandered about finding a bookstore run for families that attended the Tridentine mass at the seminary chapel. While perusing books at that bookstore I was horrified to find copies of the "Protocols ofthe Elders of Zion" on sale. I believe that Fr. Williamson was a superior there at that time. I immediately went back to my room, packed, called a taxi and got the heck out of there.

I have never been able to understand the rampant and vicious anti-Semitism that seems to imbue SOME (luckily a small number) traditional Catholics.

How can Benedict XVI have a doctrinal rapproachment with groups espousing such vile hatred and lies?

Comments

[Arthur Ramsey]

you are right, the jewish political/religious leadership of the time supported the execution of our Lord. This was, of course, necessary for our salvation, as without His death there would be no resurection miracle. No doubt the Jewish leadership was afraid of a messiah led uprising that would lead to Rome crushing the Jewish people, among other things. Lest we forget, the Romans were fond of crucifying thousands of Jews, with or without the support of their leadership.

One must be careful, however, not to justify anti-Jewish behaviour by Catholics, by using this fact: the crucifiction by the Romans of a Jew called Jesus, supported by Jewish leadership of the time. Anti Jewish actions like the holocaust in WWII, was led by someone who was baptized Catholic and to the best of my knowledge, never renounced his Catholicism, and who over saw the systematic imprisonment and execution of millions of Jews, among others. To repeatedly bring up this jewish deicide does nothing but antagonize others, inflame passions unnecessarily and does not, in the words of today's gospel, do much for loving one's neighbor.

[Rosie Davis]

I only know what I hear.....
BUT/AND;
As I understand it, amongst the different Jewish groups there are many opposing views & beliefs, even that, Nazi Jews took part in the killing of Jews in Hitlers Germany.
The tolerance amongst some of these differing Jewish groups is none existent.
TO THE DEGREE THAT EVEN VICIOUS & HATEFUL, PHYSICAL FIGHTS BREAKOUT,TO SAY THE LEAST.
I think that there is a lot of work to be done amongst the Jewish faith...yes?
And we Catholics might be just a storm in a tea cup compared with some of the unrest amongst the Jews themselves?

[Michael A]

"The Jews are the efficient cause of Christ's death..."

Really? A Jewish person living in Galilee shares equal responsibility for the events of that day with the members of the Sanhedrin? And how can the entire nation of people, spread out over the Levant and the Mediterranean, be described as having acted as an efficient cause? People who never heard of the man, were not in Jerusalem that day, are "perfidious" because of the actions of a few?

I am Catholic. My great-great-grandparents were Jews. Christians killed them in a pogrom in Prague in the late 1800s. My great-grandfather was left an orphan as a boy. This "perfidious Jews" mindset has led to nothing but sin and suffering.

[Sixupman]

Read the current issue of Christian Order for a fair and reasoned assessment of the position.

[Torkay]

You apparently would rather earn the human respect of Jews (and other religions) rather than be faithful to the teachings of the Church, which instruct us to convert Jews, and followers of other religions, to the one true religion. This article is really pitiful, and you should be ashamed to be mouthing such leftist rants - esp. when you are so disoriented as to think that this kind of language is actually defending the Church.

[Mac]

"The Jews who both killed the Lord Jesus, and the prophets, and have persecuted us, and please not God, and are enemies to all men. ... To fill up their sins always: for the wrath of God is come upon them to the end." St. Paul, I Thessalonians 2

"Woe to you who build the monuments of the prophets: and your fathers killed them. Truly you bear witness that you consent to the doings of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and you build their sepulchres. For this cause also the wisdom of God said: I will send to them prophets and apostles; and some of them they will kill and persecute. 'That the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation.'" Jesus Christ, Luke 11:47-50

The Jews of today adhere to the same Talmudic religion of their fathers. The Talmud takes credit for the execution of Jesus and this has been affirmed through the centuries by many rabbis that have converted to the Catholic faith.

Just as Catholic principles are responsible for the Inquisition and the Crusades and therefore Catholics of today are called upon today to answer for the manner in which Catholic principles were applied in the past, so to with the Jews.

The Talmud looks for a Messiah that will bring about Jewish world rule. It permits Jews to lie and defraud non-Jews who are regarded no better than animals in human form. This religion is radically opposed to the old covenant religion of Abraham and Moses.

St. Raymond of Pennefort, St. Vincent Ferrer, and St. John Capistran are regarded by Jews as great anti-semites because they brought about the conversion countless Jews to the Catholic faith. If being an "anti-semite" means to seek the salvation of the Jews it is a title that we should all covet.

[Rosie Davis]

According to The Holy Bible it is end of days.
We, on this planet at this time are privileged to be here to be a witness.
They say Jesus Christ will come back:- The Second Coming.
The whole world will stand still......

[nina cruz]

Thanks for putting this together - this is a great article for those of us with our heads buried in the keyboard all day.

[Joe]

Arthur, Hitler did renounce his Catholicism, well before his assent to power.

[Arthur Ramsey]

Thanks, Joe. I am glad to hear that.

To the larger point of anti-semtitism: To use and interpret sacred scripture to justify treating Jews or anyone else for that matter, as less than human or in any way without love, is sinful and shameful and unworthy.