Panel of Christians rejects attempts to
convert Jews
[9-9-02]
The
Boston Globe reports that a prominent group of Protestant
and Roman Catholic scholars, in a major boost to Christian-Jewish
relations, has declared that Jews, like Christians, have a covenant with
God and that a belief in the divinity of Jesus is not necessary for
salvation. As a result, the group denounced ''missionary efforts
directed at converting Jews.''
One of the authors of the statement, which was
released at a news conference at Boston College, is a member of the
Southern Baptist Church, the nation's largest Protestant denomination,
which has been widely criticized for promoting the conversion of Jews.
Officials with the Southern Baptists denounced the
Christian scholars' statement. ''I utterly disagree with their
conclusion and in doing so I'm in really good company: the Apostle Paul,
the Apostle Peter, and Jesus Christ, who were all Jews,'' said the Rev.
Richard Land, head of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the
Southern Baptist Convention. ''They would be shocked and dismayed that a
group of Christian scholars could come to such an erroneous
conclusion.''
He said Walter Harrelson, a Southern Baptist scholar
at Vanderbilt University who voted to approve the document, is ''out of
step with his Southern Baptist brothers."
[WebWeaver's note: Dr. Walter Harrelson, former
Dean of Vanderbilt Divinity School, is in fact a former
Southern Baptist, now a member of the Christian Church (Disciples of
Christ).]
