The Roman Catholic Ecumenical Council has been called upon by a prominent Catholic here to condemn anti-Semitism at its session scheduled to reconvene in Rome next month. The call was issued by the Rev. Msgr. Salvatore J. Adamo, executive editor of the Catholic Star Herald, official organ of the Camden Diocese, which embraces all of southern New Jersey. Writing in the church organ, Msgr. Adamo declared:
“There is an unfortunate element in our Catholic upbringing that conveys the idea that the Jews killed God.” This, he said, leads Roman Catholics to “consider hatred toward the Jews not something sinful but rather a service to God. A clear pronouncement by the Vatican Council could help end this religious delusion once and for all.”
The editor, one of the leading figures in his diocese, also disputed the argument that Arab members of the Church would take such a declaration to mean siding with the State of Israel against the Arab countries.
“When people say or write that they are not against the Jews, only against Israel and Zionism, don’t be taken in,” he wrote. “It’s nothing but a decoy. For there is no reason why Israel and the Arab nations cannot settle their differences.” He suggested that condemnation of anti Semitism by the Ecumenical Council would advance the cause of peace and prosperity in the Middle East.
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