The Views of Rabbi Moses Feinstein, Rabbi Abraham Joshua ...

on Christian-Jewish dialogue, fearing that discussions between Jews and Christians
―would lead to apostasy‖ 115
while maintaining his understanding of Christianity as
idolatrous. He, thus, remained suspicious of Christianity and Catholic intentions, being
unable to ―conceive [of] the modern Catholic position on ecumenicism that emanated
from Vatican II as anything other than a ploy on the part of the church.‖ 116
Indeed, ―The
classical evangelical stance the Church had adopted towards the Jews was the only one
Feinstein could imagine the church would ever take.‖ 117
It was such a stance, coupled
with his fear that ―naïve people,‖ 118
however well-intentioned, could inadvertently
facilitate the creation of conditions conducive for the achievement of what he believed to
be the hostile ambitions of the Church by participating in interfaith dialogue, that
prompted his issuance of two legal rulings effectively proscribing Jewish engagement in
interfaith activity.
Feinstein‘s first responsum, issued on March 1, 1967, was addressed to an
Orthodox rabbi who had
promised to attend a gathering on 23 Adar I, 5727 (March 5, 1967) where
Catholics and Protestants will assemble together with Jews who are
members of the Synagogue Council of America as well as rabbinical
colleagues from the Rabbinical Council of America. 119
Feinstein urges him not to attend the gathering, despite the fact that that which is to be
discussed at the gathering is to be ―nontheological in nature,‖ 120
the rabbi‘s action
115 Ellenson 402
116 Ellenson 406
117 Ellenson 406
118 Ellenson 118
119 Ellenson 122
120 Ellenson 122
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