"Jews Don’t Need Jesus?"

"A Special Planet Envoy Critique of Reflections on Covenant and Mission"

Or, why some bishops make better Americans and Democrats than they do Catholic Christians.

Carl Olson, editor of Envoy Magazine, has responded with a very thorough critique of the document issued by a committee of the Catholic bishops in the USA:

.... A little further on the question is asked: “Ought Christians to invite Jews to baptism?” The answer is troublesome: “This is a complex question not only in terms of Christian theological self-definition, but also because of the history of Christians forcibly baptizing Jews.”

There are two problems with this remark. One is the implication that “inviting” someone to baptism can be equated to “forcing” him to be baptized. Catholics are to invite the unbaptized to become Catholic and receive the sacrament of baptism – always with charity, tact, and respect for each individual. Clearly this is different from coercing the unbaptized to receive the sacrament.

Secondly, there is no “complex question” relating to Christian self-definition and baptism. Baptism makes us Christian and makes us “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Pet. 1:4). Our Savior, Jesus Christ, wishes all men to partake of this divine life, and He has made it clear that the normative means of this is baptism (Jn. 3:1-5; 1 Pet. 3:21). Combining the issue of “theological self-definition” with the matter of forced baptisms does not bode well. It indicates the document is more interested in downplaying the scandal of the Cross for the sake of “mutual understanding” than it is in pursuing truly honest interreligious dialogue, which naturally contains tensions and difficulties....

(Thanks Amy.)

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 09/03/02 08:37:32 AM
Categorized as Classic.