Part 9 (2/2)
The Archbishop showed a remarkable insight when he expressed his particular indignation about the separation of Jewish children in schools from other children. That was at a time when many Christians and Jews tended to underestimate the malevolent intentions of the rulers of the Third Reich.
Representatives of all religious creeds, responding to an appeal of the United Council of Christian Churches in Ireland (now renamed the Irish Council of Churches) voted for the following Resolution, on the occasion of a public Meeting of Protest, held at Belfast, in May 1933:
”We have met here in order to express our deepest regret that millions of law-abiding citizens who are not guilty of any crime or of any criminal intentions, should have been accused, persecuted and placed beyond the pale of the law, for the sole reason that they belong to the race which was, after all, the source of our European religion, and to which the founder of Christianity belonged.
The meeting is horrified at the thought of the sufferings endured and the consequences, which are bound to ensue for Europe and the whole world. The history of the human race, of these islands, and of Ireland herself presents countless examples of the disastrous effects that persecution has had for us, not to mention the repercussion elsewhere.
We know the obstacles that intolerance placed in the way of our national development, the harm it has done, the wounds it has inflicted, the hatred it has caused to acc.u.mulate in the course of centuries; hatred by which the minds of men are poisoned long after the actual grievances have disappeared.
For this reason we deplore this new seed of death, the dire results of which we foresee, not only for Germany, but also for the whole of Europe.”[176] <69>
The Church of Scotland is by far the largest Church in Scotland. The General a.s.sembly of the Church of Scotland is the final authority of that Church. It is convened annually in May and attended by about 700 ministers and 700 elders, delegated by the presbyteries of the Church.
The following statement was issued by the General a.s.sembly, in May, 1933:
”The General a.s.sembly rejoice that, in this country, the longstanding traditions of friendliness and goodwill to the Jewish people continue to be maintained; they deplore the growth of anti-Semitism in many lands to-day, and, in particular, its recent intensified manifestations in Germany; and they respectfully appeal to the sister German Churches to secure, through their influence with their fellow countrymen and governing authorities, that, notwithstanding the inevitable unsettlement of revolutionary conditions, the suffering of the innocent shall cease, and justice and charity towards all shall prevail.” [177]
The Church of Scotland apparently was optimistic about the ”influence of the sister German Churches with their fellow-countrymen and governing authorities”.
We, who now live after the events, are not astonished that the General a.s.sembly lamented, in 1937, that, ”the protesting voice of the Christian Church has been so barren of results”. [178]
The General a.s.sembly of the Church of Scotland was the only ecclesiastical authority, which as far as I know, spoke out against anti-Semitism year after year. The contents of the statements show that it was not an automatic affair, for the changing character of the situation was reflected in these protests.
In May, 1934, the following Statement was adopted:
”The General a.s.sembly of the Church of Scotland, in light of the present world situation as concerns the Jewish race, place on record the following expression of their view and convictions. <70> Remembering the age-long sufferings of the Jewish people, their homelessness a nation which has lasted for centuries, the persecutions, injustices and hards.h.i.+ps they have endured, from Governments, Churches and individuals; in view also of the present fresh outbreaks of anti-Semitic fanaticism manifested in many lands, the General a.s.sembly offer to the Jewish people their heartfelt sympathy with them in their almost intolerable wrongs.
The General a.s.sembly of the Church of Scotland desire to a.s.sure the entire Jewish world that ill-treatment of the Jews on account of their race or religion is to them abhorrent; that in their judgment it is a denial of the first principles laid down by the great Founder of the Christian Faith, who places love and kindness to all as fundamental laws of His Kingdom; and that it is their firm belief that any Church which claims to be animated by the spirit of Jesus Christ and which nevertheless acts with intolerance towards members of the Jewish race, is thereby denying the elementary doctrines of the Christian Faith.
The General a.s.sembly acknowledge with grat.i.tude to G.o.d the great contributions to human knowledge which the Jewish race has made in many realms; in a special degree they express their debt to the Jewish people for the scrupulous care with which they preserved the early doc.u.ments of Holy Scripture for the ultimate benefit of all nations, which for centuries have nourished the piety of myriads who thereby have learned of the grace of Almighty G.o.d.
The General a.s.sembly would, in conclusion, again express their sense of the profound significance of the fact that the One whom they rejoice to believe in as the divine Saviour of the world came, according to the flesh, of the Jewish race, and they feel that this thought imparts to the Hebrew nation a special and peculiar position in world history, rendering it a duty on the part of all who love the Lord Jesus Christ to love also the race from which He sprang.” [179]
It was then moved and resolved that the a.s.sembly send to the Chief Rabbi a message of sympathy. The statement issued in May, 1935, is as follows:
”The General a.s.sembly renew their protest against the anti-Semitic spirit which still prevails in many countries, express their sympathy with the Jews in their sufferings, and urge their faithful people to a greater earnestness in commending the Gospel as the one sure basis of fellows.h.i.+p and peace among all men.” [180]
Not all statements and protests issued over this period in Great Britain and Ireland can be recorded here, but we mention in conclusion two statements issued by Churches, not yet mentioned. <71>
In April 1933, the following Message was sent by Dr. Scott Midgett, President of the United Methodist Church, to a meeting at the White-chapel Art Gallery:
”All the different branches of the Christian Churches share the Jewish Communities' horror of all deeds of violence against citizens, and especially of such outbursts of violence against any race or cla.s.s of society.
I feel convinced that I am interpreting the feeling of the Methodist Church in stressing our hope that measures will instantly be taken in Germany in order to prevent a recurrence of explosions of this nature in the future.” [181]
In 1934, the ”Report to the General a.s.sembly of the Presbyterian Church in England” stated:
”There has unhappily appeared in various parts of the world, notably in Germany, a recondescense of that irrational and wholly unchristian spirit of anti-semitism, which from time to time has disgraced European civilisation.
A number of its victims have arrived in our country, and the Archbishops of Great Britain have issued a moving appeal for their relief. But we must do something more. To quote the News Sheet issued by the International Committee for the Christian Approach to the Jews: ”We must play the part of the Good Samaritan”.
But that is only one of our objectives. Wise Christian statesmans.h.i.+p demands that in addition to our relief activities, we must also endeavour to eliminate the causes, which create anti-semitism and its victims. Those who are in a position to know, maintain that the outbreak in Germany is sure to spread to other lands. Indeed it has already begun to do so. We know of attempts to foster the spirit in our own country. And there are so-called Christians who attempt to justify it. But note the fact that anti-semitism is essentially anti-Christian. No conscious anti-Semite can do homage to Christ, the Jew.”
The a.s.sembly adopted the following Resolution:
”The a.s.sembly regrets the spirit of anti-semitism now prevalent in Germany and other parts of Europe, and urges its faithful people so to act towards all Jews as to allay the spread of this spirit.” [182] <72>
On November 20, 1935, the Bishop of Chichester (Dr. George Bell) moved a resolution in the Church a.s.sembly. [183] The Archbishop of Canterbury (Dr.
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