Over 200 Italian Christians and Jews, both scholars and non-academics, participated in the fifth annual Jewish-Christian Colloquium held the weekend before Chanukah and Christmas at the Benedictine Monastery of Comaldoli. “The Gift of the Torah” as an integral part of the religious heritage of both Christians and Jews was the theme of this year’s gathering.
Dr. Leon Feldman, consultant on inter-religious affairs for the Synagogue Council of America, addressed the colloquim on “Living the Torah — American Judaism Today.” Other speakers at lecture sessions, discussions, and workshops included Jewish and Catholic specialists in and authors of works in Jewish studies.
The long week-end in the monastery tucked in the mountains between Arezzo and Florence also featured the blessing of the Sabbath candles at dinner in a service led by Rabbi Tagliacozzo of Ancona, and strictly kosher food for all the monastery guests. The monks chanted psalms several times a day at Mass in their original medieval melodies.
The annual colloquium wasbegun in 1980 with the help of the Rome branch of Service International de Documentation Judeo-Chretienne (SIDIC) of the Sisters of Zion and the Florence Jewish-Christian Friendship Association. Previous year’s themes included “Jesus the Jew” and “Martin Buber and Aspects of Jewish Mysticism.”
Father Innocenzo Gargano, who organized the colloquim with the assistance of an advisory committee, was asked by JTA for his thoughts on the reason for the growth of the annual event from an original participation of 15 enthusiasts to this year’s attendance of over 200.
He said: “Perhaps we now realize more and more clearly that Auschwitz can never be forgotten, that we must learn from the Holocaust in order to prevent other genocides, that we must work together to ‘shalomize’ the world” — a word coined by Milan’s Cardinal Martini at last July’s meeting of the International Council for Christians and Jews.
He continued: “If I may venture a theory, perhaps we feel that relations between Christians and Jews touch upon the heart of that primordial conflict that lies at the base of every other ethnic, cultural and religious division in Western history.”
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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.
