Years ago, I was part of an interfaith clergy group in which a well-meaning Presbyterian colleague led a ritual she thought would include Christians and Jews alike: anointing us with oil. The Jewish participants politely declined, as just because something appears in Hebrew Scripture doesn’t mean it’s part of our ritual practice today.
I thought about this interfaith misstep when I read the U.S. Department of Education’s proposal for “promoting patriotic education,” published in September. Listing important influences on the “American political tradition,” the regulatory proposal notes “Judeo-Christianity” — a term it fails to define. That’s a shame because “Judeo-Christian” can mean very different things, as my well-meaning Presbyterian colleague learned.
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