A Catholic bishop here has defended the presence of the Carmelite convent at Auschwitz, saying that protests by Jews over the nuns’ presence on the death camp site are unjustified.
“The Carmelite nuns have very sincere intentions and do not want to deny what happened to the Jews in Auschwitz,” said Monsignor Hendrick Bomers, bishop of the northwest Dutch city Haarlem. He pointed out, however, that a number of non-Jews died in Auschwitz, as well.
Bomers’ statements conflict with those of a number of other European Catholic officials, who have said that a 1987 agreement between Jews and Catholics to have the convent moved from the perimeter of Auschwitz should be upheld.
Bomers made his remarks to a Dutch Jewish weekly newspaper. He was being interviewed on the eve of his forthcoming visit to Israel and the administered territories. He is representing the Roman Catholic bishops in a delegation of the Dutch Council of Churches traveling there.
The delegation will be examining the situation of Palestinian Christians, in a visit that comes at the invitation of the Middle East Council of Churches and the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Michel Sabbah.
Bomers said in the interview that he felt the Palestinians as well as the Jews have a right to a state of their own.
He also said he sees Jesus as the Messiah of all peoples, including the Jews. “It would be a blessing for the Jews if they recognized Jesus as the Messiah,” the bishop said.
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.
