Sunday, April 03, 2005
Too little, too late, but historic
James Carroll's Constantine's Sword: The Church and The Jews -- A History is built around the thesis that the Holocaust was the logical outcome of Christianity's history and evolution. Carroll writes that Vatican II was an important break with the past, but did not go far enough and that a Vatican III is necessary.Through all of this, Carroll gives great credit for the progress that has been made to Pope John Paul II and to the role that Cardinal Karol Wojtyla played in the 1965 conclave and, in particular, in shaping Nostra Aetate, absolving Jews of responsibility for the Crucifixion.
Very late in the game but, nonetheless, a historic shift. Carroll's narrative is bleak with very few heroes, making his depiction of John Paul II so auspicious.
