Pointing out that bigotry "is a contagious, virulent disease" Archbishop Francis J. Spellman, in an article in the current issue of the American Magazine, calls upon all Americans to combat anti-Semitism and emphasizes that Catholics are bound by their religious teachings to cooperate in checking race hatred.
"In these days Catholics are frequently accused of anti-Semitism, and doubtless some Catholics are guilty of it," the Archbishop writes. "That anti-Semitism is wrong from a Catholic and humanitarian standpoint as well as from an American viewpoint has been demonstrated countless times, in countless ways, by countless persons, so that it may be jarringly repetitious to say it again."
Archbishop Spellmen quotes statements made by Pope Pius XI, one in 1928, before Hitler came into power, and another made on July 30, 1938, to support this point. "All fair-minded Americans must oppose bigotry not only from a sense of justice but also from a sense of safety, for, if tolerated, it can be directed at any race or religion and then may rebound against all of them," he says. "If we incite, participate or connive in violence against our fellow-citizens, we are bad Americans. If we stir up, propagate or cherish race hatred, we are likewise bad Americans and traitors to American ideals."
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.
