What The Catholic Church Teaches About The Jews – Part 12
Vatican II On The Jews
Disclaimer: I wrote this originally in December of 2022. And the intent was to do a textualist interpretation of Nostra Aetate to show how it could be interpreted with a traditionalist hermeneutic. I believe the article is successful in doing this. However, I don’t want to come off like a gaslighter. There was obviously intent by the drafters of Nostra Aetate to change the Church teaching on the Jews. Moreover, virtually all prelates teach Nostra Aetate in a way that contradicts traditional doctrine on the Jews. And additionally, virtually everyone that reads Nostra Aetate interprets it to be a change in Church teaching on the Jews. So my intent aside, the reality is that Nostra Aetate was created with the intent to change Church teaching on the Jews and is virtually always interpreted this way, and it would be gaslighting to pretend otherwise.
This next article on the Jews may be a bit controversial for some, since I know some of my audience is made up of sedevacantists and SSPXers.
However, I think it’s going to be an important article for our side, since the Modernists in the Catholic Church claim that Vatican II changed the Church teaching on the Jews.
Moreover, if I can show that Vatican II didn’t change Catholic teaching on the Jews, and I believe I can, it would advantageous for all people that call themselves Catholic to be in solidarity in this issue, would it not?
So did Vatican II change the Catholic teaching on Jews? Short answer: No.
Long answer… Keep reading.
Nostra Aetate is the Vatican II document that deals with the relation of the Church to non-Catholic “religions”.
It’s a short document, and the part that deals with Jews is even shorter, so let’s go through the whole thing.
The part of Nostra Aetate that addresses the Jews begins in Section 4:
As the sacred synod searches into the mystery of the Church, it remembers the bond that spiritually ties the people of the New Covenant to Abraham’s stock.
Thus the Church of Christ acknowledges that, according to God’s saving design, the beginnings of her faith and her election are found already among the Patriarchs, Moses and the prophets. She professes that all who believe in Christ – Abraham’s sons according to faith [Galatians 3:7] – are included in the same Patriarch’s call, and likewise that the salvation of the Church is mysteriously foreshadowed by the chosen people’s exodus from the land of bondage. The Church, therefore, cannot forget that she received the revelation of the Old Testament through the people with whom God in His inexpressible mercy concluded the Ancient Covenant. Nor can she forget that she draws sustenance from the root of that well-cultivated olive tree onto which have been grafted the wild shoots, the Gentiles [Romans 11:17-24]. Indeed, the Church believes that by His cross Christ, Our Peace, reconciled Jews and Gentiles, making both one in Himself [Ephesians 2:14-16].
The Church keeps ever in mind the words of the Apostle about his kinsmen: “theirs is the sonship and the glory and the covenants and the law and the worship and the promises; theirs are the fathers and from them is the Christ according to the flesh” (Rom. 9:4-5), the Son of the Virgin Mary. She also recalls that the Apostles, the Church’s main-stay and pillars, as well as most of the early disciples who proclaimed Christ’s Gospel to the world, sprang from the Jewish people.
As Holy Scripture testifies, Jerusalem did not recognize the time of her visitation [Luke 19:44], nor did the Jews in large number, accept the Gospel; indeed not a few opposed its spreading [Romans 11:28]. Nevertheless, God holds the Jews most dear for the sake of their Fathers; He does not repent of the gifts He makes or of the calls He issues-such is the witness of the Apostle [Romans 11:28-29]. In company with the Prophets and the same Apostle, the Church awaits that day, known to God alone, on which all peoples will address the Lord in a single voice and “serve him shoulder to shoulder” (Soph. 3:9). [Cf. Isaias (Isaiah) 66:23, Psalms 65:4, Romans 11:11-32]
I think every Christian would assent to what the document is saying so far.
That is to say, it’s just pretty straightforward Biblical exegesis.
Nostra Aetate continues:
Since the spiritual patrimony common to Christians and Jews is thus so great, this sacred synod wants to foster and recommend that mutual understanding and respect which is the fruit, above all, of biblical and theological studies as well as of fraternal dialogues.
This is certainly the biggest “change” in Vatican II right here.
Nothing substantial about the Faith changes here, but what does change is the tone.
In contrast, all the previous Magisterium, as I have covered in previous sections, has an antagonistic tone.
The tone of Vatican II is more “welcoming” and “nice”, to be charitable, but personally, I think it sounds weak and effeminate.
I think the cheerleaders of Vatican II will say that the reason for this language was to make it so that we could better our relationship with the Jews, and this could lead to more conversions.
However, 60 years later and we know that Vatican II hasn’t lead to more people entering the Church, even after being “nice”:
Thus, using “nice” language hasn’t really been working out for the Church, has it?
However, this kind of language isn’t a substantial change in the Faith anyways. Moving on…
Nostra Aetate continues:
True, the Jewish authorities and those who followed their lead pressed for the death of Christ [John 19:6];
Yes, this is certainly what the Church has always taught.
Nostra Aetate continues:
still, what happened in His passion cannot be charged against all the Jews, without distinction, then alive, nor against the Jews of today.
So this is where the people reading this might think there is a contradiction with previous Church teaching (Acts 7:51-52, 1 Thessalonians 2:14-15).
However, there isn’t. Let me explain.
The Church certainly never taught that the death of Christ was charged against all Jews.
On the other hand, what the Church always taught was that the death of Christ was charged against the Jews that rejected Him.
So Our Lord, Blessed Mother, 11 of the 12 Apostles, His disciples… All Jews, and none of them committed Deicide.
The vast majority of original Christians were Jews, and many Jews still convert up to this very day!
Certainly, those Jews that accept Jesus Christ as the Messiah and Lord and Savior aren’t guilty of Deicide.
On the other hand, those Jews that reject Him are guilty of Deicide. Thus, that is the distinction!
Nostra Aetate continues:
Although the Church is the new people of God, the Jews should not be presented as rejected or accursed by God, as if this followed from the Holy Scriptures.
So this would again seem to contradict previous Church teaching (Matthew 27:25).
But it doesn’t. Let me explain. God never rejected or cursed the Jews! It was, in fact, quite the opposite!
The Jews cursed themselves in Matthew 27:25 because they rejected Christ.
Above all, Romans 11 is key to understanding what the Church has always taught about the Jews.
The Jews certainly rejected Christ and cursed themselves, breaking themselves off of God’s Covenant with them (Romans 11:20).
But this is all of their own doing. God has always kept the door opened for them to come back (Romans 11:23).
Therefore, all the Jews have to do is accept Jesus Christ as their Messiah, Lord and Savior to be back in the Covenant with God. Moving on…
Nostra Aetate continues:
All should see to it, then, that in catechetical work or in the preaching of the word of God they do not teach anything that does not conform to the truth of the Gospel and the spirit of Christ.
Agreed. On this site, I am certainly all about teaching the truth of the Gospel and the spirit of Christ. Moving on…
Nostra Aetate continues:
Furthermore, in her rejection of every persecution against any man, the Church, mindful of the patrimony she shares with the Jews and moved not by political reasons but by the Gospel’s spiritual love, decries hatred, persecutions, displays of anti-Semitism, directed against Jews at any time and by anyone.
Ugh… I most certainly hate the word “antisemitism” because the Jews always use it today to refer to the act of criticizing them.
Of course, criticizing the Jews cannot be what the Church means here because Christ criticized them (John 8:44, Revelation 2:9, Revelation 3:9).
And we know Christ is without sin (1 Peter 2:22). Therefore, criticizing the Jews is okay.
So after looking at the context of what Nostra Aetate is talking about, it is clear that it is condemning hatred against the Jews.
We also know that the Church teaches that hatred is the willing of the bad towards another.
Moreover, Christ condemns hatred, even of our enemies (Luke 6:27-28).
Moreover, the Church has always taught through Sicut Judaeis to never harm the Jews.
Thus, this is still consistent with Catholic Tradition. Moving on…
Nostra Aetate concludes its section on the Jews with:
Besides, as the Church has always held and holds now, Christ underwent His passion and death freely, because of the sins of men and out of infinite love, in order that all may reach salvation. It is, therefore, the burden of the Church’s preaching to proclaim the cross of Christ as the sign of God’s all-embracing love and as the fountain from which every grace flows.
Amen! I certainly don’t think any Christian will argue with this part, at all.
Thus, it is clear that Vatican II did not change the Church teachings on the Jews (whether you assent to Vatican II or not).
However, I won’t deny that Modernists, like Cardinal Bea, conspired with the Jews to try to change Church teaching.
But they failed miserably, thanks be to God!
For more information on the Jewish conspiracy involving Vatican II, read The Plot Against the Church.
And after this article, I certainly hope that all that call themselves Catholics, be they Novus Ordo, Eastern Rite, Latin Mass, SSPXers, sedevacantists, or whatever, can stand in solidarity on this issue!
In conclusion, I will leave you with this quote from Our Lord:
