SOULSCAPE:
Vatican official stresses common roots of Christianity, Judaism
|
ZENIT
ROME, JUNE 2, 2003 - The descendants of Abraham and the followers of Christ have much in common, notes a Vatican official.
"'Mary' and 'Jesus' are expressions of the oldest Judaic biblical tradition," said Archbishop Francesco Gioia, president of the Pilgrimages to the See of Peter. "The common roots between the descendants of Abraham and the followers of Christ are greater than the differences and divergences."
The archbishop was addressing the role of the Blessed Virgin in the dialogue with Judaism. He deals with the issue in the book "Mary, Mother of the Word, Model of Dialogue Between Religions," published by Cittą Nuova.
"If the contemporary Judaic tradition was circumscribed to Christ and immediately after, harking back to the common origins, the possibilities for agreement would be multiplied," the archbishop says.
"The God of Jesus is the same God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, 'the God of our fathers,'" he observes. "For this reason, the usual expression: 'We all have the same God,' is valid without a single reservation, both for the children of Israel as well as for the followers of Christ. Sinai is the sacred mountain and Jerusalem the holy city for one and all."
For these reasons, "existing differences should be subordinated to the many points that unite to justify not only the dialogue, but to establish an atmosphere of friendship. Deep down, in the declaration 'Nostra Aetate,' Vatican Council II, after underlining Mary's Hebrew roots, attributed a new title to her, calling her 'Exalted Daughter of Zion' ('Lumen Gentium,' 55)."
|
|