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Catholic-Jewish program opens eyes, minds By Hilary Anderson As Yom Kippur approaches, curiosity reigns at more than a dozen
Chicago area Catholic high schools where students and teachers
ask questions about Jewish holidays and traditions. They receive
informed answers from a rabbi. Their Jewish counterparts, in turn,
are getting correct answers about Catholicism from a Catholic
nun who visits their schools. Both groups are the beneficiaries of a relatively new program—Catholic/Jewish
Educational Enrichment Program (C/JEEP)—designed to increase mutual
understanding and appreciation among Catholic and Jewish students
and educators. The program—only in its second year of operation here—is co-sponsored
by the Chicago Chapter of the American Jewish Committee and the
Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago with a grant from the Steven Spielberg
Righteous Persons Foundation. “The program broadens the understanding of Catholic youth to the
roots of their traditions and introduces them to modern Judaism,”
said Sister of Sion Mary Ellen Coombe, associate director of the
Archdiocese of Chicago Office for Ecumenical and Interreligious
Affairs. “At the same time it enables Jewish youngsters to go beyond old
stereotypes of what Catholics believe about Jews and Judaism.”
The grassroots program enables Catholic students and their teachers
to learn about any of a wide range of topics depending upon the
particular class or curriculum to which the rabbi is invited.
Topics have included: Hebrew scriptures, Jewish holidays, the
history of anti-Semitism, the Holocaust, Judaism in the time of
Jesus, morality; forgiveness, Passover Seders, Zionism; the State
of Israel and Jewish life in the Middle Ages. Combe says she never encountered a Jewish educator who declined
her invitation to visit a Catholic school. “The schools are quite open and very friendly towards me,” said
Rabbi Laurence Edwards who teaches in the program at Chicago area
Catholic high schools. “The students are lovely, very inquisitive.
Some of the questions they ask stump me.” Coombe encounters similar receptions with the Jewish students
she teaches. “The children are wonderful,” she said. “They love
to learn about other people. They want to know what it means to
be Christian.” “This program is a reflection of the time we’re living in,” said
Edwards, whom the students call “Rabbi Larry.” “It wouldn’t have happened a generation ago. It’s pretty amazing.
We have to know more about each other even if we’re not all going
to be the same. This kind of dialog creates a new understanding
of the relationship between our traditions.” Combe puts it more bluntly. “God never abandoned the Jewish people,”
she said. “Jews and Christians are linked together at the level
of their identity. It‘s because we are so close we have to struggle.”
While talking with students at Catholic and Jewish high schools
is the main focus of the C/JEEP program, it is only one facet
of Rabbi Edwards and Coombe’s efforts. They conduct teacher workshops
for Catholics and Jews. Coombe oversees a project that gives Catholic grade school students
tours of the Spertus Museum on Fridays. She relies heavily on
volunteer help. Edwards sees many accomplishments of C/JEEP. “I truly believe that I am enabling Catholic students to have
a better understanding of their own traditions,” he said. “Our
sessions opened their minds. Many of the students say I am the
first Jewish person they’ve ever had a personal contact with.
I am not trying to recruit anyone for Judaism.” Rabbi Edwards says he has personally benefited from the program.
“This relationship has changed me, too,” he said. “I get to see the Catholic schools from the inside, close up.
I try to bring what I learn back to the Jewish community who have
their own stereotypes. It‘s one more piece of that dialog.” Coombe believes it is possible to overcome prejudices. “We can overcome prejudices and 2000 years of painful history,”
she said. “But we can’t learn about ourselves [Catholicism] without
knowing about Judaism. We must talk with each other.” Rabbi Edwards and Coombe want to grow the program but will need
additional funding when their grant ends next year. A similar
program also operates in New York, Los Angeles and Philadelphia.
“This whole area [dialogue with other religions] is exciting but
we need more funding,” said Coombe. “I invite every Catholic to get involved and learn about their neighbor whatever that person’s religion. The more we learn about them, the more they know about us. The better understanding we’ll have of each other. It’s important that a program like this go out beyond the schools.”
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