The Jews and the broken Covenant

By Mgr. Cali[1]

           February 15th, 1965

At a certain moment in history Israel broke the Covenant with God, not so much because it had transgressed the commandments of God, or in other words, because it had not fulfilled the conditions of the Covenant (it had committed this sin so often and God had always forgiven it!) as because it had refused the fulfilment of the Covenant itself by refusing Jesus: ‘for Christ is the fulfilment of the law’ (Romans 10:4). Henceforth it was no longer a question of accidental terms of the Covenant, but of its actual substance. Automatically, Israel’s ‘election’ was completely frustrated, it lost its purpose, and the privileges which were attached to it lost their sufficient reason. . . Israel ended up by becoming institutionalised after a fashion into global, official and adamant opposition to Christ and his doctrine, despite the great ‘sign’ of the Resurrection of the Messiah.

            The Mosaic religion which, by a disposition made known by God, was to issue into Christianity to find in it its own end and perfection, on the contrary constantly refused to adhere to Christ, thus ‘rejecting’ the cornerstone laid by God. It is not a question of the renunciation pure and simple of God’s plan (which is a very grave error), but of positive opposition; in this respect, the relationship between Christianity and Judaism is much worse than the relationship between Christianity and the other religions. For Israel alone had been chosen for and received a vocation, gifts and history, etc., very different from all other people on earth: in God’s plan Israel was entirely and completely ‘relative’ to Christ and Christianity.  Having failed to achieve, through its own fault, such an important ‘relativity’, it had of itself put itself in a state of objective ‘rejection’. This state will last as long as the Judaic religion throughout the world refuses to recognise and officially accept Jesus Christ.

            In my opinion, Holy Scripture justifies this interpretation and patristic tradition confirms it.

At the end of time the mass of the Jews will save themselves; this assertion of St. Paul’s is an essential part of Christian hope . . . God’s gifts are given absolutely, that is to say, once given they are never taken away; but for those who refuse them or do not use them at the appropriate time, they turn into articles of condemnation. . .

            This position was freely accepted by Israel, and as long as it persists the ‘objective’ state of accursedness remains with all its consequences. But one must categorically deny that any human authority whatever, whether private or public, may, under no matter what right or pretext, execute the punishment attached to the divine judgment: God alone may do it, in the manner and the time he chooses.”