The leaders of Catholics and Jews in England and Wales have celebrated 50 years since a special Catholic declaration clearing the Jews of any blame regarding Je
The Nostra Aetate was passed by the Second Vatican Council on October 28 1965, and clarified the Catholic Church's position on the other main world religions.
Part of this was stating that today's global Jewish population were not, and should not be, held responsible for the death of Jesus Christ more than 2000 years ago.
The idea that Jews killed Jesus, formally known as deicide, has been one of the reasons Jewish people have experienced significant persecution. The document has been seen as one way of countering this discrimination.
Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster Vincent Nichols and Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis wrote in an open letter to The Times: "The accusation of deicide was the source of much anti-Semitism over the ages in the UK, the rest of Europe and beyond.
"Yet the language in this document powerfully rejected this and paved the way for a relationship characterised by persecution and animosity being replaced by one of friendship and understanding.
"We hope and pray that the fortitude and moral imagination shown by Nostra Aetate continues to inspire us for many years to come."
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Article by Aaron James
Tola Mbakwe is a multimedia journalist for Premier.
