October 27, 2005
Cardinal Walter Kasper, the president of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity, has said that relations between Catholics and Jews had improved markedly, but much work remained to be done. Cardinal Kasper, who also heads the Vatican's commission on relations with Judaism, told "Vatican Radio" that the history of relations between Catholics and Jews had been "very difficult, complex, torment, even painful." Even today, he said, "we are only at the beginning of the beginning" of a process of reconciliation. Kasper also remarked that it was not realistic to expect to "overcome anti-Semitism once and for all." The task, he said, would require a continuous effort at education and formation. "We have to keep alive the flame of that cooperation, of that new friendship between Jews and Christians" and "to transmit it to a new generation, to build a world of peace." The cardinal added: "We have a unique relationship with Judaism, which we do not have with any other religion," the German cardinal said. He observed that Nostra Aetate not only condemned anti-Semitism but also underlined the Jewish origin of Christianity. On 27 October, the Vatican officially celebrates the anniversary of Nostra Aetate by hosting a seminar.