Cardinal desires greater sensitivity towards Jews

[GeratTzedek]

THIS Jew wishes to express gratitute towards the Cardinal.

No Jewish jokes: Catholic Archbishop

Posted Fri Apr 24, 2009 11:44am AEST

The Archbishop of Adelaide has told Catholics they should not tell Jewish jokes or use the Jewish name Yahweh in readings and songs.

In a pastoral letter to priests, Archbishop Philip Wilson has asked for a substitute word such as Lord to be used instead of the Jewish sacred name.

Archbishop Wilson says Catholics must be respectful and sensitive towards Jewish people.

Read the rest of the article at No Jewish jokes: Catholic Archbishop - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

 

[Rhamiel]

I have heard that Yahweh should not be used in songs, and jokes that make fun of people are never good, but special consideration should be given to the Jews who have offten been mocked horribly

 

[JimR-OCDS]

Actually, the Vatican put out a mandate, stopping the use of hymns sung at Mass, which use Yahweh.

In other words, hymns like "Yahweh I Know," by the St. Louis Jesuits, is no longer supposed to be sung at Catholic Masses.

Jim

 

[FullyMT]

THIS Jew wishes to express gratitute towards the Cardinal.

No Jewish jokes: Catholic Archbishop

Posted Fri Apr 24, 2009 11:44am AEST

The Archbishop of Adelaide has told Catholics they should not tell Jewish jokes or use the Jewish name Yahweh in readings and songs.

In a pastoral letter to priests, Archbishop Philip Wilson has asked for a substitute word such as Lord to be used instead of the Jewish sacred name.

Archbishop Wilson says Catholics must be respectful and sensitive towards Jewish people.

Read the rest of the article at No Jewish jokes: Catholic Archbishop - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

"Jewish jokes" are an insult to a people, Christian heritage, and our Lord (who lived as Jew).
As others have said, the Vatican already announced we shouldn't use the tetragrammaton in our singing.

On a side note, in high school I absolutely hated people saying "that's so Jewish" regarding negative things...gah. I think South Park is a big part of this cultural phenomenon in younger people. Cartman is horribly anti-semitic and a lot of people think that it is funny.

 

[MariaRegina]

Is the Jerusalem Bible not to be used since it uses that term for God?

 

[JimR-OCDS]

Is the Jerusalem Bible not to be used since it uses that term for God?

My understanding is that it could only not be used in the Liturgy.


Jim

 

[FullyMT]

My understanding is that it could only not be used in the Liturgy.


Jim

Right. Some Bibles are more...scholarly than the others and try to get a more direct translation, so it could make sense that translators may use the letters for the tetragrammaton so that readers know that it was used rather than adonai.

 

[Fish and Bread]

There are some English speaking countries where the Jerusalem Bible is used as the basis for the lectionary text for Catholic masses (I think the UK and Australia might be two of them, though I am not 100% certain), but, as with the New American Bible in the United States and the New Revised Standard Version bible in Canada, the specific texts used are likely modified for liturgical use in order to conform to liturgical norms. I would imagine that they probably were already using "Lord" in the masses anyhow. If not, they will be soon.

 

[Ave Maria]

I agree with the good Cardinal. We should be sensitive towards the Jews. After all, Jesus lived as a Jew.

 

[GeratTzedek]

Actually, the Vatican put out a mandate, stopping the use of hymns sung at Mass, which use Yahweh.

In other words, hymns like "Yahweh I Know," by the St. Louis Jesuits, is no longer supposed to be sung at Catholic Masses.

Jim

Oh this is SO good to hear! Thank you for informing me.

 

[GeratTzedek]

Is the Jerusalem Bible not to be used since it uses that term for God?

My guess is that you could simply do what we Jews do. After all, we use the actual Hebrew Manuscript for our Liturgy, and so we run across the ACTUAL sacred name of G-d, the Yad Hey and Vav Hey, all the time, but rather than pronounce it out loud, we substitute "Adonai" which means Lord if we are praying or reading from the Torah (if not praying we say HaShem which means The Name). What you might do, then is something similar, although you might simply chose English -- when you get to Yahweh in the print, simply say "Lord" out loud. THAT is actually a HIGHER level of sensitivity because it requires YOU to consciously make the conscious rather than being dependent upon the publisher to do it for you.

 

[GeratTzedek]

Actually, the Vatican put out a mandate, stopping the use of hymns sung at Mass, which use Yahweh.

In other words, hymns like "Yahweh I Know," by the St. Louis Jesuits, is no longer supposed to be sung at Catholic Masses.

Jim

I've heard this song. It can be fixed, although I don't know my way around the copyright issues. But it's easy to add a two eight-note pickup walking up to the downbeat, and make the downbeat a dotted half, and simply change Yahweh to Adonai (meaning Lord). If push comes to shove, and the copyright problem doesn't allow the change for the books, at least you can salvage what I think is a favorite song for many who will undoubtedly sing it in homes and with guitars in small groups. Just a suggestion.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

My guess is that you could simply do what we Jews do. After all, we use the actual Hebrew Manuscript for our Liturgy, and so we run across the ACTUAL sacred name of G-d, the Yad Hey and Vav Hey, all the time, but rather than pronounce it out loud, we substitute "Adonai" which means Lord if we are praying or reading from the Torah (if not praying we say HaShem which means The Name). What you might do, then is something similar, although you might simply chose English -- when you get to Yahweh in the print, simply say "Lord" out loud. THAT is actually a HIGHER level of sensitivity because it requires YOU to consciously make the conscious rather than being dependent upon the publisher to do it for you.

We could not use the Hebrew Manuscript, because the Catholic Bibles are based on the Septuagint(Greek Version) of the Old Testament.

Jim

 

[JimR-OCDS]

I've heard this song. It can be fixed, although I don't know my way around the copyright issues. But it's easy to add a two eight-note pickup walking up to the downbeat, and make the downbeat a dotted half, and simply change Yahweh to Adonai (meaning Lord). If push comes to shove, and the copyright problem doesn't allow the change for the books, at least you can salvage what I think is a favorite song for many who will undoubtedly sing it in homes and with guitars in small groups. Just a suggestion.

The problem is, people like myself, who get emotionally attacged to things, would not adjust well to the different wording. Chalk screeching on a black board effect, if you get what I mean.

Jim

 

[GeratTzedek]

We could not use the Hebrew Manuscript, because the Catholic Bibles are based on the Septuagint(Greek Version) of the Old Testament.

Jim

My understanding is that when possible the latest editions of the Catholic translations do translate form the Hebrew. Obviously some books such as the Maccabees are translated from Aramaic.

However, I wasn't suggesting that you use the Hebrew for your liturgy. I was making an anology for when you read from the Jerusalem Bible translation. Just AS Jews substitute Adonai for the Yad Hey and Vav Hey when reading the Hebrew text, SO you could also substitute Lord when reading Yahwey in the Jerusalem Bible.

Anyhow, it's just an idea. You'll work it out for yourselves.