ABC-TV to Air CCC Documentary on Catholic-Jewish Relations

A new hour-long documentary, I Am Joseph, Your Brother, explores the half-century of relations between Catholics and Jews since the Holocaust. ABC-TV will begin to distribute the film to its affiliate stations Sunday, October 7, 2001. A study in self-examination and healing, I Am Joseph, Your Brother is presented by the Catholic Communication Campaign and was produced by Israel's Interreligious Coordinating Council (ICC). (Founded in 1991 on the eve of the Gulf War, the ICCI comprises 71 institutions seeking to promote interreligious and intercultural understanding within Israeli society among its major faith communities -- Jews, Christians and Muslims.) Programs for the series are provided by the USCCB and the other members of the Interfaith Broadcasting Commission (IBC). "Relations between our two faiths have been strained for centuries due to ignorance and fear," says Ellen McCloskey, Director of Production, Catholic Communication Campaign. "I hope that this documentary will inform and enlighten Jewish and Catholics viewers about the various ways both faiths have explored a difficult past so that the future is brighter." Media materials and a list of ABC-TV affiliate broadcast dates will be posted on the CCC web site (http://www.nccbuscc.org/ccc/index.htm) as the feed date approaches. VHS copies of the program will be available from the USCCB Publishing Office after the ABC broadcasts, and it will be available to diocesan television ministries early next year. For information visit the IBC web site (http://www.interfaithbroadcasting.com/).

From October 5-7, 2001, the International Diaconate Centre's Executive Board and Assembly of Delegates will meet in Paris, France. Deacon Jerry Wilson, Executive Director of the Bishops' Committee on the Diaconate will participate via e-mail, representing for the United States. "This will be the first time three American deacons will participate on the IDC," said Deacon Wilson. The other deacons participating are Deacon Bill Ditewig, Diocese of Belleville who will serve with the Executive Board; and Deacon Dick Santello, Diocese of Hartford, a Delegate to the Assembly. The IDC serves the further development of the Permanent Diaconate in the Catholic Church on a worldwide level. The purpose of the association is the study and promotion of the diaconate in the Catholic Church.

Each October the Catholic Church in the United States highlights and gives thanks for God's first gift to each of us – the gift of human life – through the Church's Respect Life Program. This year Respect Life Sunday falls on October 7. The Respect Life Program aims to bring to the attention of Catholics information about current issues bearing upon the dignity and sanctity of life. This year's program features materials on human embryo research, "emergency contraception," lives on death row, meaningful support for the terminally ill, and raising children in today's challenging culture. Over 50,000 copies of program materials designed to help parishes and others take part in the Respect Life Program are being sent to parishes, schools, and Catholic organizations across the nation. Copies are available from the USCCB Pro-Life Secretariat, and can be viewed at www.usccb.org/prolife. "It has never been more urgent for Catholics to build a culture of life," says Cathleen Cleaver, USCCB Pro-Life Secretariat, Director of Planning and Information. "On the first Sunday of October we recommit ourselves to building a society which is generous to every human life, no matter its circumstances."

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