A call to Christians to remember that “the spiritual ancestry of Christians is Jewish” and that the Christians are “the sons of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob” as are the Jews, was voiced here by Richard Cardinal Cushing in an Easter message.
“Lenten reflection, ” Cardinal Cushing declared, “makes us realize again that Christ was born a Jew, Mary and Joseph were Jews. Christ worshiped in the synagogue. His disciples were Jews. He said Jewish prayers. He observed the Jewish Holy Days. He revered the books sacred to the Jews and to us. The Golden Rule that Christ preached was taught in the temple. The ‘Lord’s Prayer’ that Christ gave his disciples is almost identical with the sacred Kaddish that begins: ‘Extolled and hallowed be the name of God. May His Kingdom come and His will be done in all the earth.’
“Christians must remember when Jews do not accept Christ as the Promised One, they do not reject the ideals that Jesus preached; humility, Justice, mercy, brotherhood, love. The spiritual ancestry of Christians is Jewish. We are the sons of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, even as they. The Cross is a point of separation in our spiritual traditions, but we must all be keenly aware of the essential Christian doctrine: Christ died for the sins of all men, those prior to His time, His contemporaries, those who came after him.
“Anti-Semitism is a profoundly unchristian attitude. The only answer the Christian can give to the question, ‘Who put Christ to death?’ is: ‘I did, as often as I have committed a serious sin.'”
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
