Anti-Semitic Leader Rebuked by Catholic Bishop
A man who has run a virulently anti-Semitic 鈥淐atholic鈥� group for 14 years has been told to clean up his act by church officials contacted by the Intelligence Report.
Robert Sungenis, who founded and heads Catholic Apologetics International (CAI), was in the magazine edition released in January, along with other anti-Semitic individuals and institutions involved in the 鈥渞adical traditionalist Catholic鈥� movement, whose precepts are rejected by the Vatican. The Report later sent a letter to Sungenis鈥� bishop in Harrisburg, Pa., detailing Sungenis鈥� anti-Semitic activities. Many other concerned Catholics and organizations have done likewise.
The church responded with alacrity. According to a July 31 he posted on CAI鈥檚 website entitled 鈥淐atholic Apologetics International and its Teachings on the Jews", Sungenis was contacted by Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades and later met with Rhoades鈥� vicar general, the Very Rev. William J. King, and the Rev. James Massa, executive director for ecumenical and inter-religious affairs for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Afterward, Sungenis wrote that CAI鈥檚 鈥渉ard-line positions regarding the Jews鈥� had been 鈥渙ften expressed in an ill-advised manner鈥� and promised to change.
鈥淐AI is in the process of removing all the content on its website concerning the Jews in order to make the initial adjustments in complying with my bishop鈥檚 directive,鈥� he wrote. 鈥淚f in the future we write any new material on the Jews, it will always be with the required due diligence, as if the bishop were present with us.鈥�
Sungenis, based in State Line, Pa., is one of the hardest-line figures of the radical traditionalist Catholic movement, which generally has rejected the Vatican鈥檚 efforts to reconcile with Jews and other faiths. Among other things, Sungenis in 2002 wrote a 33,000-word screed attacking the Jews that led to him being thrown off Eternal Word Television Network, a Catholic cable station. Elsewhere, he has written of 鈥淛ews, Judaism and Israel鈥� are conspiring to make Satan the ruler of the earth.
Despite the rebuke, Sungenis did not back down all the way. He wrote that the 鈥淛ews, as a race, are no longer the 鈥榗hosen people鈥� of God,鈥� and added that they 鈥渉ave been blinded to the Gospel of Jesus Christ by their own doing.鈥� Still, he promised to adopt the 鈥渕ore conciliatory approach鈥� that is today 鈥渋n vogue.鈥�
