re: #441 Walter L. Newton

And you know that my comment were about the HISTORY of anti-semitism. Christian churches, Catholic and otherwise, were very responsible for almost 2000 years of Jew hatred. That’s fact.

It wasn’t until Vatican Two that the Catholic Church decided to consider that it wasn’t ALL Jews fault that Christ was killed. The document that make that clarification was the Nostra Aetate and it was the most contraversial document to come out of Vatican Two.

And for a general history of Jew hatred by organized religion see…

[Link: en.wikipedia.org…]

By “Churches” you refer to people, and I absolutely agree with you that there have been far too many people over the years who, for whatever reason, have fostered a hatred of Jewish people.

But, you also quite correctly point out that Catholic DOCTRINE which was clarified (not promulgated) in Nostra Aetate solidly condemns anti-Semitism.

My whole point here is that anti-Semitism is in no way condoned byh Catholic DOCTRINE- in fact quite the reverse is true.

It annoys me no end when I see people (and I do not think you were consciously doing this) attempt to use the misdeeds of the Catholic faithful or Catholic clergy to invalidate Church doctrine.

It is a practice akin to attempting to persuade someone that because there are corrupt cops one need not obey the law.

And, because that practice seeks to dissuade people from the truth I believe that it is inspired by Evil.