“I pray that the dialogue between Christians and Jews will contribute to the expansion of peace in the world; praying for peace is now our most important task and common goal”, said the Chief Rabbi of Poland Michael Schudrich on the occasion of the 27th Day of Judaism in the Catholic Church.
The 27th Day of Judaism in the Catholic Church is celebrated in the Church in Poland under the motto “SHALOM. Peace – a Gift from God”. Celebrations are organised in many cities. They began in Warsaw, where a Mass “For requesting of love”was celebrated on Sunday at the Church of the Sisters of the Holy Sacrament, with the participation of Bishop Rafał Markowski.
The Lodz celebration will take place on 16 January. At 7 p.m., the Metropolitan of Łódź, Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś, will take part in a debate with Rabbi David Szychowski ‘Judaism and Christianity about the war’. The debate will be followed by a liturgy of the Divine Word. In Krakow, celebrations will begin on 17 January at 5 pm in the auditorium at the Franciscan Basilica.
The central commemorations in Radom will begin on 17 January at 10 am with a joint prayer in the Jewish cemetery in Szydłowiec with the participation of the Ordinary of the Radom diocese Bishop Marek Solarczyk and the Chief Rabbi of Poland Michael Schudrich. This will be followed by a panel discussion on ‘Peace as a gift from God’.
The celebrations will conclude with a service of the Word of God, which will be presided over at the parish church in Radom at 4 pm by the chairman of the Committee for Dialogue with Judaism at the Polish Bishops’ Conference, Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś.
The Chief Rabbi of Poland stressed that this year’s slogan of the Day of Judaism in the Catholic Church, “SHALOM. Peace – A Gift from God”, indicates that praying for peace is “our most important task and common goal”.
“For the last two years we have been dealing with a dramatic lack of peace in various parts of the world. War is taking place in our neighbours and friends in Ukraine. A new armed conflict has also erupted in the Holy Land in Israel. I pray and hope that the dialogue between Christians and Jews will contribute to the expansion of peace in the world”, he said.
Arkadiusz Słomczyński