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This site is devoted to fostering mutual respect and understanding between Christians and Jews around the world. Here you will find articles, reviews, reports, official statements, and study resources on Jewish-Christian relations, as well as links to many related organizations. Please click on Contact to offer feedback or propose additions to the site.

Looking for new material? Here you can find a list of published articles of the last two months (right column):
New material


ICCJ

International Council of Christians and Jews

This site is owned and maintained by the International Council of Christians and Jews, which has 38 Christian-Jewish and interreligious member organizations in 32 countries. Its headquarters is in the Martin Buber House in Heppenheim, Germany, where the great Jewish thinker lived until Nazi persecution forced him to flee.

Through its annual conferences and other consultations the ICCJ offers a platform where Christians, Jews, and in recent years Muslims as well, examine current issues across national and religious boundaries, providing the opportunity for face-to-face exchanges of experience and expertise.

Further information:
www.iccj.org

Most viewed

Articles | Scholarly Contributions

“Promise, Land, and Hope”: An American Perspective on the Theological Project

Peter A. Pettit | 01.12.2013

Recently I had two conversations that will serve well to introduce the challenges we face when we approach the issues that swirl around the Jewish and Palestinian peoples and the land – which both peoples see as home and which Judaism, Islam, and Christianity all regard as holy. ... [more]

Articles | Fundamentals & Introductions

Male Circumcision in Contradiction to Human Rights?

Friedhelm Pieper | 01.12.2013

Workshop paper, given at the ICCJ Conference, Aix-en-Provence, Tuesday, July 2, 2013. ... [more]

Reports (234)

International Council of Christians and Jews delegation visits WCC offices

World Council of Churches | 01.12.2013

14 October 2013. A delegation of the leadership team of the International Council of Christians and Jews (ICCJ) was welcomed by the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, during their visit to the WCC offices in Geneva, Switzerland. … [more]

Pope Francis publishes the Apostolic Encyclical "Evangelii gaudium" (the joy of the Gospel)

JCR | 01.12.2013

The demand for a fairer world, for a church in the service of the poor, are at the center of the first teaching letter of Pope Francis. … [more]

Kiev conference on antisemitism

Rabbi Ehud Bandel | 01.11.2013

On October 15-16, Rabbi Ehud Bandel, ICCJ’s 1st Vice-President, had the honor of representing the ICCJ at the International Conference on antisemitism, held in Kiev Ukraine. … [more]




Book Reviews (49)

The Burden of the Past and the Obligation of the Future

Jacques Adler | 01.11.2013

Alvin H. Rosenfeld:
The End of the Holocaust.
Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2011. 
310 pp. $29.95 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-253-35643-7. … [more]

Between Pathos and Dialogue

Michael Marmur | 01.10.2013

Alexander Even-Chen, Ephraim Meir.
Between Heschel and Buber: A Comparative Study.
Emunot Jewish Philosophy and Kabbalah Series.
Brighton: Academic Studies Press, 2011.
270 pp. $85.00 (cloth), ISBN 978-1-936235-72-8. … [more]

Inheriting Abraham: The Legacy of the Patriarch in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

David Sandmel | 01.09.2013

Jon D. Levenson:
Inheriting Abraham: The Legacy of the Patriarch in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2012.
288 pp. $29.95 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-691-15569-2. … [more]




Statements | Protestant (42)

Jerusalem Declaration

Protestant Consultation on Israel and the Middle East (PCIME) | 01.01.2013

Concluding Statement from the Jerusalem Consultation on the Mainline Protestant Churches and the State of Israel (November 5-8, 2012) … [more]

On the relationship of the Protestant churches of Europe to Judaism

Community of Protestant Churches in Europe (CEPE) | 01.12.2012

The Community of Protestant Churches in Europe – Leuenberg Church Fellowship has made important statements on these questions both in its foundation document and in two further documents which its member churches have unanimously endorsed. … [more]

Declaration Concerning the Sixtieth Anniversary of the End of the Second World War, May 8, 1945

Seventh-day Adventist Church in Germany and Austria | 01.07.2012

… [more]




Statements | Joint Christian-Jewish (47)

Joint Statement of the 22nd International Catholic-Jewish Liaison Committee Meeting

| 01.11.2013

The 22nd meeting of the ILC took place in Madrid, Spain, from 13-16 October, 2013, hosted by the Spanish Bishops´ Conference and the Federation of Jewish Communities of Spain. … [more]

'As long as you believe in a living God, you must have hope'.

ICCJ | 02.06.2013

Reflections on the Role of Religious and Interreligious Groups in Promoting Reconciliation about and in the Troubled Middle East, Shavuot / Pentecost - 2013/5773 … [more]

Joint Declaration of the 21st International Catholic-Jewish Liaison Committee Meeting Paris

| 01.11.2012

The 21st meeting of the International Catholic-Jewish Liaison Committee (ILC) was held in Paris, France from February 27 – March 2, 2011. … [more]




Statements | Jewish (10)

Affirming the Image of God

| 30.11.2012

… [more]

Ascending towards God

Rabbi David Rosen | 01.12.2011

Address of Rabbi David Rosen, KSG, CBE, International Director of Interreligious Affairs, AJC, October 27, 2011, in Assisi … [more]

Resolution on the 2009 Kairos Document

Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) | 01.05.2011

Adopted by the Board of Trustees
April 15, 2010 … [more]




Statements | Ecumenical (21)

The Kairos Palastine Document

| 01.08.2010

We, a group of Christian Palestinians, after prayer, reflection and an exchange of opinion, cry out from within the suffering in our country, under the Israeli occupation, with a cry of hope in the absence of all hope, a cry full of prayer and faith in a God ever vigilant, in God's divine providence for all the inhabitants of this land. Inspired by the mystery of God's love for all, the mystery of God's divine presence in the history of all peoples and, in a particular way, in the history of our country, we proclaim our word based on our Christian faith and our sense of Palestinian belonging - a word of faith, hope and love. … [more]

Statement on Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory

World Counil of Churches (WCC) | 06.09.2009

1. While the decision of the United Nations (UN) of 1947 (Resolution 181) to establish two states in the land of Palestine was partially achieved with the creation of the state of Israel, the second part of this resolution is still waiting for realization: the establishment of a Palestinian state. … [more]

Holocaust/Shoah: Its Effects on Christian Theology and Life in Argentina and Latin America

First Symposium of Christian Theology, Buenos Aires, May 17, 200 | 07.06.2006

… [more]




Statements | Roman Catholic (37)

Evangelii gaudium

Pope Francis | 01.12.2013

Two sections of "Evangelii gaudium" deal with the relations to Judaism and interreligious dialogue, especially with Islam. Those sections are documented below. … [more]

Accepting the Burden of History

Bishops' Conferences of the German Federal Republic, of Austria and of Berlin | 01.11.2013

Common Declaration on the Fiftieth anniversary of the pogroms against the Jewish Community (1988). … [more]

On the 70th Anniversary of the Deportation of the Jewish Population of Rome

Pope Francis | 01.11.2013

Message of Pope Francis, 16 October 2013. … [more]




Articles | Observations & Experiences (121)

Greetings from International Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultations

Rabbi David Fox Sandmel | 01.12.2013

Shalom. It is my honour and privilege to bring greetings on behalf of the International Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultations to this Plenary Session of the 10th General Assembly of the World Council of Churches. … [more]

World Council of Churches interviews ICCJ President

Ecumenical Newsservice; World Council of Churches | 01.12.2013

The Ecumenical Newsservice of the World Council of Churches interviewed ICCJ President Dr. Deborah Weissman. … [more]

Everyday anti-Semitism

Andreas R. Batlogg SJ | 01.11.2013

Ambiguous jokes about Jews, anti-Semitic stereotypes, racial clichés and mockery - all that still belongs to everyday life in Germany - often in unenlightened as well as bizarre mixtures. Is it really impossible to learn from history? … [more]




Articles | Fundamentals & Introductions (94)

Adventures in Dialogue. The Jerusalem Rainbow Group

Peter E. Janssen | 01.09.2013

Impressions of 45 years of Jewish-Christian Dialogue. Exclusively on JCR: Preface by Rabbi Raphael Jospe and full chapter 2, "An Example of Dialogue" … [more]

Christians and Christianity in the Jewish State

Amnon Ramon * | 02.06.2013

The relationship between Judaism and Christianity is unique, with Jews and Christians having a mutual affinity not seen in other religions. Christianity emerged during the 1st century CE from within the Jewish world and,– like Judaism,– sanctifies the Hebrew Bible, regarding it as the firs part of the Holy Scriptures. Among other consequences, this shared foundation has resulted in a perception of the land of Israel as the Holy Land and of Jerusalem as a holy city and thus a major pilgrimage destination. … [more]




Articles | Scholarly Contributions (136)

Attitudes in West German Protetantism towards the State of Israel 1948-1967

Gerhard Gronauer | 01.10.2013

In this study the author presents Protestant individuals, groups, committees, and print media who, between 1948 and 1972, dealt with the significance of the State of Israel in theological (do Jews have a biblical right to the land?), moral (as a result of the Shoah, how much solidarity with Israel is required?), and political perspective (what consequences do these implications have for an evaluation of the Middle East conflict?).* … [more]

Church of Scotland Shreds Bible

Malcolm Lowe | 02.07.2013

The Kirk has committed theological suicide in order to promote political inanities. The former Church of Scotland is defunct; the Church of Latter Day Scots has taken over the premises. … [more]




Statements | Orthodox (3)

To Recognize Christ in His People: Declaration by a Round Table of Eastern Orthodox Priests and Cultural Representatives

| 01.06.2007

Twelve Eastern Orthodox priests and lay leaders from Greece, Georgia, Italy, Russia, and Ukraine issued this statement at the conclusion of a five-day visit to Jerusalem, April 20-24, 2007. … [more]

Statement by Metropolitan Yuvenali (Russian Orthodox Church)
on the Alleged "Ritual" Nature of the Murder of the Royal Family

Metropolitan Yuvenali | 01.06.2005

In its historical analysis of the Ekaterinburg tragedy, the Commission could not avoid dealing with the question of the so-called ritual murder of the royal family, which continues to be the subject of press articles. … [more]

Communique of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church Regarding Anti-Semitic Posters

| 01.05.2005

Upon learning the facts with regard to the anti-Semitic posters and graffiti that appeared in Belgrade on March 22 of this year, as well as of earlier, similar and in some cases even more blatant, inhumane and malicious demonstrations of prejudice and intolerance toward the Jewish people, the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church, convened today, March 24, in prayerful memory of the innocent victims of the bombing by the NATO alliance, wishes to communicate the following … [more]




Statements | Interreligious (4)

International Abrahamic Forum condemns German ban on circumcision

International Abrahamic Forum | 10.07.2012

The International Abrahamic Forum is deeply concerned by the recent ban on circumcision by the court in Cologne, Germany. … [more]

Resolution

ICCJ International Abrahamic Forum | 01.11.2011

At its meeting held January 2011 in the Martin Buber House in Heppenheim, Germany, the Executive Board of the International Council of Christians and Jews, implementing the decision taken by the 2010 ICCJ Annual General Meeting held in Istanbul, Turkey, decided to renew its commitment to the Jewish-Christina-Muslim dialogue. During a trilateral consultation, held in Berlin, December 2010, the following proposition was drafted, with which the ICCJ Executive Board unanimously agreed. … [more]

Joint Declaration by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Chief Rabbis of Israel

| 01.10.2006

The Most Revd Dr Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar and Chief Rabbi Yonah Metzger of Israel met in friendship at Lambeth Palace on 5th September 2006/12th of Elul 5766, to commit themselves to a continuing relationship based on mutual trust and respect. At the end of their meeting they made the following statement.

… [more]

Articles in other channels

Explore the First-Ever Guidebook to the Abraham Path Online! | Stefan Szepesi
Pope Francis' Letter to the Founder of "La Repubblica" Italian Newspaper | Pope Francis
In Rome, Pope Francis asks WJC President Lauder to wish world Jewry 'Shana Tova' | WJC
Combatting Our Teachings of Contempt | ICCJ International Abrahamic Forum
The ICCJ Conference in 2013 in Aix-en-Provence: It's over! | Rosine Voisin
Statements | Roman Catholic

Address to the Delegation of the Simon Wiesenthal Center

Clementine Hall, Thursday, 24 October 2013. ... [more]