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EKD Honors the Jewish Council on its 60th Anniversary

Schneider: "An indispensable part of public discourse"

July 19, 2010

The chairperson of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) Council, Praeses Nikolaus Schneider, honored the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Central Council of Jews in Germany on 19 July 1950. As he explained today in Hanover: "Only a few years after the end of the racist and anti-Semitic National Socialist regime of terror, a few courageous men and women raised the banner of Jewish life in Germany and worked toward making a new start possible in the aftermath of the deep shame and horror of National Socialism."

Schneider said that the Evangelical Church in Germany was grateful for the extensive contacts and continued discussions throughout the years between the Central Council of Jews and the EKD Council. He added that "impressive individuals such as Heinz Galinski, Ignaz Bubis, Paul Spiegel, and the current chairperson of the Central Council, Charlotte Knobloch, made it possible for a common Jewish-Christian cause to emerge in mutual trust as a mixture of words of warning and a common fight against any resurgence of racism and anti-Semitism.

The voice of the Central Council of Jews, he said, would continue to be an indispensable part of public discourse. He emphasized that the "Central Council stands together with the churches and all forces of good will for the early recognition and fight against the stigmatization of minorities and racial discrimination in our society."

Hanover, 19 July 2010

Press Office of the EKD
Reinhard Mawick