Today, I think we all noticed how big a theme of Jewish-Christian
respect and Jewish involvement in polish culture was as we stepped into the
life of Pope John Paul the Second. Because Europe is so very old, its history
and culture is evident in its structure and foundation throughout the city.
With the synagogue right next to the public high school which is right next to
the church which is next to the pope’s house, it is clear that Jews (the many
that lived in Wadowice before world war two) lived with Christians moderately peacefully
before the war and it was especially clear in the pope’s town. The town
obviously had a profound influence on his perspective towards Jews (especially
with his best friend being Jewish) and on his papacy. As he witnessed WW2 in
his youth and transition to adulthood and saw his friends and family die, he was
affected and changed in his outlook on the world to be more accepting of his
growing none-biological family. He realized it is not someone’s religion but
their soul and actions that make them a good person and a person worthy of
trust. I think that It was really powerful today to see how Jews were a big part
of polish culture before WW2 with their close proximity and close ties with the
community. I think after witnessing WW2, the Pope was horrified by people’s
actions and saw how especially terrible they were after his close ties with the
Jewish community in Poland and his close Jewish friends. That is why he felt
the need, in his prayer in the holy land, to apologize for his fellow men and
women’s actions. His life was especially altered, maybe abnormally, in favor of
peace with Jews because of the especially kind atmosphere towards Jews in his
town and his close friend which affected his papacy. It was especially powerful
to have such an accepting pope and made me proud as a Christian to see that. Especially
after feeling so crappy and learning about the teaching of contempt and the
Passion of the Christ, it was nice to see a less terrible side. Seeing things
in his eyes made me realize that this is how things should be and especially
when he said why should it matter that you are Jewish in a church after his Jewish
friend got a weird look, I think that that blindness to hatred and difference that
he had should be how we view people and different people and we need to change
our views and actions through praying for the dead as the Pope said and by
changing our perspectives for the future and preventing the next genocide.--Grace Watters
0 comments:
Post a Comment