New NGO in US to support Church-Israel ties
The NGO is based on intuitions of John Paul II for the Middle East. The chairman is Fr David Jaeger, an Israeli Franciscan.
Rome (AsiaNews) A non-government organisation called "The Church and Israel Public Education Initiative" was recently set up to educate the public and to support relations between the Catholic Church and Israeli society, working towards full religious freedom in Israel and helping the Church to enter more in the national conversation. The chairman of the new NGO is Fr David Jaegar, an Israeli Franciscan who is an expert on relations between the Church and state of Israel.
AsiaNews received the mission statement of the new NGO that has been established in the United States. The document said the NGO is based on the vision expressed by John Paul II in 1993 a few days before the signing of the Fundamental Agreement between the Holy See and the State of Israel (30 December 1993), which led to the start of diplomatic ties. Addressing canonists on 11 December 1983, the Polish pope outlined his vision for the future of the Church in the eastern Mediterranean, calling for full religious freedom for Christians and urging them to participate as "citizens" in the life of the nations where they were.
Thus, the aims of the new NGO include: 1) guaranteeing freedom and security for the Church in Israel; 2) supporting the Church in Israel to make a positive contribution to the good of the nation and religious communities in Israel and in neighbouring countries; 3) supporting the evolution among Israelis of this vision of friendship with the Church and the Middle East.
The NGO proposes to strengthen the friendship between the Church in Israel and Christian communities of the world, and between Christians and Jews. Since it has been set up in the United States, NGO members are especially interested in boosting relations between Catholics and Jews in America.
A particular worry is that the Fundamental Agreement, signed by Israel, has not yet been written into Israel legislation. Catholics and Jews of the United States have made an important contribution to the signing of the Agreement and the launching of diplomatic ties between the Holy See and Israel.
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