Can you give a reference please? The Church’s mission is the salvation of souls. Have you forgotten John 14:6? Isn’t baptism still necessary for salvation? Somehow the Jewish religion is exempt from these and is no concern of ours?
I’m going to have back Tim H on this. This is not news.
Here are some important details on this matter.
One:
St. Francis of Assisi and the Sultan at Dalmietta agreed that the Muslims would open the shrines in Jerusalem to the European Christians for pilgrimage and devotion while the Franciscans would protect the Muslims from proselytism. Until recent history, the friars always had safe passage through Egypt.
The Franciscans had a very stable foot in the Holy Land and for 800 years have never done any form of proselytizing to Jews, Muslims or Orthodox in the region. In fact, the Holy See separated Palestine from the rest of the world by declaring it a custody of the Franciscan Order. This way only Catholic missionaries approved by the superior of the Franciscans, known as the Custodian, could approach the Jews. The Custody exists to this day. The custodian continues to be a Franciscan Friar who will have your head and get you deported out of Israel, if you try to preach to Jews or Muslims.
This arrangement was approved by Pope Gregory IX. It has withstood the test of time to this day, with the exception of some isolated pockets in Europe such as certain parts of Spain. Through the centuries, there have been numerous letters and statements on this subject by different popes.
Two:
There exists a great schism between laymen and clergy and between laymen and religious. As sad as it is to admit, I don’t think that it will close anytime soon. In fact, I see opening wider. There is definitely a disdain that many laymen have toward the old religious orders, to the point that laymen can’t tell the difference between an order and a congregation, between a mission and ministry, and between proselytism and evangelization. I believe that this blur is a byproduct of a laity that refuses to trust the clergy and religious and priests who are far from humble. As a result, religious who are not priests get caught in the middle and are unable to carry out their mission of educating the laity. Many laymen have joined what I call the *“Magisterium of the Laity.” *
As a result of this Magisterium of the Laity, one finds laymen on sites like this, hammering away at the notion that Catholics must convert everyone under the sun. Obviously, if there is little or no interaction between orthodox religious, clergy and laity, there is a* “gulf of meaning”* in the use of language. Two words that are lost in that gulf of meaning are proselytism and evangelization.
The Church received from Christ a mission or commission, to proclaim the Gospel or to evangelize. She never received a commission to convert anyone. Conversions come from grace, not through words or force. A true conversion is an acceptance of the grace of faith. This particular grace is given to people in different ways, at different times and in different doses. At the end of time all will meet at one point, which is Christ. But we’re nowhere near there as Pope Benedict said in his interview in Light of the World. The Church cannot impose faith, nor can she handcuff God.
Three:
There are many ways to Evangelize. Today, we have a problem and it’s mostly found among Catholics who are former Protestants. These Catholics often don’t have a shared meaning of proselytism and evangelization with the Church. They often use both terms interchangeably. They’re not the same. They have very different meanings. As Pope Francis has said, we (religious and clergy) have always believed that proselytism is a negative. Pope Francis calls it nonsense. I like negative bettter.
I’ve never been Protestant, but I have been Catholic for over 40 years and a Franciscan. This is an area in which Dominicans, Franciscans and Jesuits excel. We have been “master missionaries” if you will. We have made many mistakes, but we have done many things right too.
One thing that we have done fairly well has been living the Gospel in the midst of Jews and Muslims while maintaining very fraternal relations with them . . . most of the time. I have to add that too, because we have had some missionaries who hurt instead of help the proclamation of the Gospel. This presence is evangelization without proselytism. It’s a presence that invites, but does not coerce or intimidate.
Four:
The Church has always supported an open presence among Jews and Muslims. She still calls for this today. In fact, this week, Pope Francis met with the Patriarchs of the East. His message was very simple. “You can’t have an East without Christians.” Christianity was born in the East.
Pope John Paul and Cardinal Ratzinger did a lot of work with and wrote many letters to Jewish leaders inviting them to dialog with a promise that we (Catholics) were not setting them up to preach to them. There were copies of these letters sent to religious superiors and to bishops in areas where the Jewish population is large.
The result has been very positive. The Jewish leadership and the Catholic hierarchy have very good relations. The laity needs to take its cue from the Holy See. The Holy See is going to adapt to the times and place. We no longer live in a Catholic Europe. It is unrealistic for the Holy See to view Catholicism as the commanding force in the world, because it is not. The Holy See views Catholicism for what it is. It’s a faith community that invites especially sinners.
One of the best places to find information on how Jews come into Catholicism is through the
Association of Hebrew Catholics of which I am a member.