Jewish Identity

By Elias Friedman, O.C.D. Preface by Msgr. Eugene Kevane Introduction by Ronda Chervin, Ph.D. Jewish Identity is a prophetic reading of the signs of the times, the fruit of a lifetime of prayer and study by Father Elias Friedman, O.C.D. The author, a Jewish convert, analyzes with scholarship and spiritual insight the great drama entailing the apostasy of the Gentiles and the return of the Jews to Palestine. Political and Spiritual Zionism, the role of Israel in salvation history, and the self-understanding of the Jews are all treated in this book. The new international organization founded by Father Elias, the Association of Hebrew Catholics, is an early manifestation of the spiritual insights contained in this work. In a paral-lel development, the Church, beginning with Vatican Council II, has been updating its teaching regarding Jews and Judaism. The relevant material, included in the book’s ap-pendix, bears witness to the thought of Father Elias.