Christians Won’t Hamper Rebuilding of Palestine Catholic Dignitary Says

(Jewish Telegraphic Agency)

The Jews have no reason to fear difficulties being put in the way of Palestine colonization from the side of the Christians. This is to be much more feared from the side of the Arab world, and above all it depends on the question whether the majority of the Zionist immigrants will profess religious indifferentism. This was the statement of Bishop Mgr. d’Herbigny, President of the Papal Oriental Institute, who has returned here from a visit to Palestine made on behalf of the Pope, in the course of an interview with the representative of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

“I had an opportunity during my last visit to Palestine,” he said, “to observe closely the work of Jewish colonization, which is indeed being carried on with unusual enthusiasm and determination. One can say that the Jewish colonists have achieved very important successes in the last few years. But their efforts will have a permanent value only when they are accompanied by a religious spirit and a feeling for tradition.”

The Bishop charged that “the majority of the new Jewish settlers in Palestine are indifferent to religion.”

Mgr. d’Herbigny then turned to the question of the anti-Semitism which is manifesting itself very strongly in certain European countries and in some cases assuming violent forms. He expressed his utmost abhorrence of all anti-Jewish prejudice, in whatever form it appeared. “The Catholic Church,” he said, “has always condemned every form of enmity against the Jews, and in particular it has condemned acts of violence. Even the Ghetto,” he declared, “was originally created, not in order to segregate and humiliate Jews, but to protect them against the mob. And even the Inquisition was set up to release the Jewish population from the ##bitrary law courts of the medieval princes.”Mgr. d’Herbigny protested against the movement in certain countries to prohibit Schechita. “Such a prohibition,” he said, “would be a flagrant violation of Jewish religious feeling and an attack upon their religious liberty. We must above all strive always to attain to a better understanding between Jews and Christians, to avoid all prejudices and to develop in common the sentiments of love and charity.”