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According to 59% of Europeans, Israel represents a threat to peace: that would seem to be the result of a survey conducted by the European Commission which has caused huge controversy in political and diplomatic circles. The furore has taken Brussels by surprise. The president of the Commission, Romano Prodi, has announced that “Brussels will soon host a study seminar to examine the reasons that lie at the origin of the results”. We publish two brief comments on the matter. An important cultural factor of these last twenty years has been the rediscovery of how fundamental Judaism has been for the development of the West. The importance of figures like Albert Einstein, Marc Chagall, Martin Buber, and Franz Kafka in the construction of the twentieth century is a demonstration of this. This rediscovery has been accompanied by the teaching and symbolic gestures of John Paul II who has always sought re-pacification with our ‘elder brothers’, the recovery of the Jewish roots of Christianity, openness and the plea for forgiveness. There are two central elements of the Jewish consciousness that cannot be forgotten: the Shoa and the birth of the state of Israel. After Auschwitz the whole world and our perception of it can never be the same again. The recent survey of the European Commission, which would seem to demonstrate a certain anti-Semitism in Europeans, should be read in the light of this premise, coupled with the enormous media exploitation of Israel, at times shown as an executioner, at times as a victim in the continuing Middle Eastern conflict. From Israel people always expect the best. Israel must be good, because excessive hope has always been placed in her; and as a result of this everything that does not have a positive result is read as a blot, a sign of guilt, a moral deviance. Personally I would not underestimate the risks of a form of anti-Semitism that has its roots in the theory of the scapegoat, in an anti-Judaism of Christian stamp (the question of deicide, the Church…); in this case, however, the key to interpreting the survey seems to me to regard the Middle Eastern question as a whole, the fears that flow from it for world stability in a period strongly marked by uncertainty. Criticism, sometimes legitimate, of a country is one thing: the demonization of a whole country or of a religion is quite another. There does not exist a clash between civilizations, as might be thought, but a conflict within civilizations, between those who accept dialogue, the construction of bridges rather than walls, and those who don’t. Brunetto Salvarani theologian It is legitimate to criticise the government of Israel just as it is legitimate to criticise the government of any other country, but the criticism of Israel must not provoke, nor must it conceal in any way, feelings of anti-Semitism. Prejudices about Israel and about the Jews in Europe do exist. There have been attacks on synagogues in France and we know that Jewish cemeteries have been desecrated in several countries of the Union. It should be said, however, that other groups have been the victims of the same prejudice, for example Arabs and gipsies. And it is extremely difficult to say what type of prejudice is the worst. The Middle Eastern question is very complex, and the region of the Holy Land is an extremely hot spot for world peace. In this context the government of Israel can be, together with all the others, an important player in the peace process. But this question is different from what emerged from the survey. If we criticise a government whether that government be Israel or the Palestinian Authority we do so to improve relations, not to destroy them. The tragedy of prejudice consists in destroying, rather than fostering, relations. The responsibility of Christians in Europe is great. Being Christians today means being open to dialogue with other faiths. The Church is called to this task: she is called to be a promoter in Europe of a dialogue ever more open to Islam and Judaism. Frank Turner delegate of the English Bishops’ conference for international affairs
