In their statement last month, however, the bishops said the 2002 document contained statements that were "insufficiently precise and potentially misleading."
The initial text, the bishops said, diminished the role of evangelization for Catholics and "could lead some to conclude mistakenly that Jews have an obligation not to become Christian and that the Church has a corresponding obligation not to baptize Jews."
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Friday, July 24, 2009 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 4 National Desk 1 inches; 64 words Type of Material: Correction
Conversion dispute: In a July 7 article in Section A about a dispute between Catholics and Jews over the issue of conversion, Rabbi Gilbert S. Rosenthal, director of the National Council of Synagogues, was quoted as saying, "If you want to covert us, just say so candidly and overtly." He actually said: "If you want to convert us, just say so candidly and overtly."
Bishops who oversaw the development of the new statement, titled a "A Note on Ambiguities Contained in Reflections on Covenant and Mission," said they believed it would answer questions Catholics might have about how to relate to the Jewish community.
The bishops' conference "reaffirms what the Holy See has stated repeatedly: that while the Catholic Church does not proselytize the Jewish people, neither does she fail to witness to them her faith in Christ, nor to welcome them to share in that same faith whenever appropriate," Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, Conn., said in written remarks after the June 18 release of the new document.
Lori, who heads the bishops' committee on doctrine and pastoral practice, could not be reached for further comment, nor could Archbishop Wilton Gregory, who chairs the conference's committee on ecumenical and interreligious affairs. The two panels prepared the "Note on Ambiguities."
Father James Massa, chief ecumenical and interreligious officer for the Catholic bishops, hoped the new document would provide clarity on a complex and confusing subject.
"It is not on the agenda of the Catholic Church in the U.S. or anywhere else to promote any kind of missionary effort that targets Jews for conversion," said Massa, who participated in a recent conference call with Catholic and Jewish leaders to address the controversy. "Dialogue for us is not a disguise for proselytizing."
Rabbi Gilbert S. Rosenthal, director of the National Council of Synagogues, said he gave Massa and the other Catholic leaders credit for listening to the Jewish perspective during the call. Still, Rosenthal and others said that the conversation had not resolved the situation.
"If you want to covert us, just say so candidly and overtly," Rosenthal said of the bishops. "Then we know where we stand. This is just another episode that develops a sense of uneasiness and a concern that we are witnessing a retreat from the remarkable advances of the Second Vatican Council."
