To the Editor:

Among all of Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan’s roles reported in your coverage of his election to lead the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, a significant one was neglected: that of episcopal moderator, since November 2009, for relations with Jews (“Prelate, Crowd-Pleaser and Defender of Faith,” Nov. 17).

In his short time in New York, Dolan has utilized warmth to forge a relationship of closeness with Jews in a region home to more than any outside Israel.

At a time of Catholic-Jewish controversies – among them the Good Friday prayer for Jews’ conversion, the status of Holocaust-era Pope Pius XII, and unbalanced statements on the Middle East at the recent Synod of Bishops – commitment to mutual sensitivity is vital.

Moreover, in a world routinely characterized by interreligious tensions, the Catholic-Jewish engagement, transformed 45 years ago by the Second Vatican Council, can demonstrate the potential for friendship to supplant enmity.

David J. Michaels
Director of United Nations and Intercommunal Affairs
B’nai B’rith International
New York, NY