DL Opinion columns

Using the power of Interfaith – by Deborah Levine

originally published in The Chattanooga Times Free Press

As we celebrate Passover and Easter in our Jewish and Christian homes here in Chattanooga, I had the opportunity to dialogue virtually with the Bermuda Christian Jewish Alliance (BCJA). You may already know that I grew up on the island of Bermuda, part of the British Commonwealth. My grandfather was one of the island’s Founding 400 and we’re the only Jewish family to have lived on the island for 4 generations – going back to the early 1900s. So given the holidays, it wasn’t entirely surprising to get a request from BCJA to speak about my family’s history, especially our experience regarding the Holocaust. 

So I talked about Gramp, my grandfather Myer Malloy, and how he helped Holocaust Survivors shipped from Europe to America. The Survivors stopped in Bermuda for badly needed medical treatment. They knew no English and Gramp translated their Yiddish to the medics. He also arranged with the Anglican Bishop to hold Yom Kippur/High Holy Day services at the cathedral. The Bishop was a good friend and the only person on the island who could read and speak the Hebrew prayers. The interfaith connection was strong and vital, allowing the Survivors to walk up the hill from the ship docked in the harbor to the cathedral as Bermudians looked on in support.

BCJA, founded just months ago, fosters unity between the Christian and Jewish communities. Although there are only a few hundred Jews today among the 64,500 people on the island, the coalition brings Christians and Jews in Bermuda together. The goal is to combat antisemitism and promote Holocaust education through community events, dialogue, and advocacy. Respect for holidays, both Passover and Easter, is part of their mission. 

Chattanooga’s metro area population is almost 600,000 and growing. Our Jewish community is more than 1,500 and has been a long-time element of the population, going back to the mid-1800s. Jewish institutions were founded here before World War II. 

Our Jewish Federation, combined with the Jewish Cultural Center, hosts programs open to the public such as the First Amendment Dinner, a thank-you to local military veterans with well-known community speakers. The Federation participates in community projects like Flowers of Hope led by the Christian-based Salvation Army of Chattanooga. The outreach of the Federation and Center raises the visibility of the Jewish community, fosters relationships, and strengthens Jewish identity in the Chattanooga area.

The interfaith element of that visibility includes an event where I spoke about the Holocaust. I was approached by a local Catholic Church leader, the Rev. Msgr. Al Humbrecht. He held up my book, Teaching Curious Christians about Judaism, and asked if I was the author. When I grinned, he said that the publisher, the Archdiocese of Chicago, listed it as out of print. Could I do something about that? I said, “Sure. I’ll update it, self-publish the revised version and put it up on Amazon …Would you please write the Foreword for it.” And so we collaborated on the book. Interfaith allies forever! And amazingly …he took the book, with my signature, to the Vatican as a present for then Pope Francis.  

Unfortunately, there are political roadblocks to interfaith collaboration. Political leaders who disrespect dissenting religious leaders create an environment leading to division and hate. Look at the Nazi regime. It began with Christian theologians’ support, but after a dissenting 1937 papal encyclical, clergymen were arrested. The resulting fear and silence allowed the regime to expand.

We must counteract such political tendencies. Example: Speak out when Trump calls the current Pope Leo ‘disgusting’. Interfaith coalitions can be heard, so let’s reach out. Further, history has shown us that silence can be deadly.   

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