Catechesis director delves into Holocaust history

By Florida Catholic staff - Florida Catholic

BOCA RATON | Looking evil in the face: That’s how Peter Ductram, archdiocesan director of the Office of Catechesis, describes his participation last month in Bearing Witness, an educational program organized by the Anti-Defamation League.

Ductram was one of three Catholic educators from Florida who took part this year in the Bearing Witness Summer Institute in Washington, D.C. The institute is sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League in partnership with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the National Catholic Educational Association, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and Georgetown University’s Program for Jewish Civilization.

Participants in the Summer Institute learned from experts in the fields of Judaism, the Holocaust, historical and contemporary anti-Semitism, Catholic-Jewish relations and anti-bias education. They also visited sites across Washington DC including the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, the Israeli Embassy and Washington Hebrew Congregation.

The goal of the Institute is to equip participants with the knowledge and skills to teach their students about the Holocaust, anti-Semitism and issues of prejudice in contemporary society.

“How overwhelming it is to look at evil to its face…my heart is at prayer as I revisited the terror, pain and hope of our sisters and brothers during the Shoah,” said Ductram.

“I’ve learned more in the last 48 hours than in years of researching the Holocaust on my own. I cannot wait to bring this wealth of knowledge back to my kids,” said Kate Durden, teacher at St. John the Evangelist Catholic School in Pensacola. 

Another Catholic educator from Florida — Denise Marie Broughton, a teacher at St. Lawrence School in North Miami Beach — took part in the Anti-Defamation League’s Bearing Witness Advanced Program, which took middle and high school educators from 10 states on an educational expedition to Israel at the beginning of July.

Their tour included visits to the modern, high-tech city of Tel Aviv, the bustling seaport of Haifa, the Old City of Jerusalem, the biblical town of Nazareth and the Golan Heights.

The educators also visited Christian and Jewish holy sites, explored Yad Vashem, Israel’s national memorial to the Holocaust, and heard firsthand accounts and information from Arab-Israelis, Israeli journalists, Catholic dignitaries, Jewish community leaders, interfaith experts and scholars, including representatives of the Israeli government, the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism, the Aramaic Christian Association, and the Interfaith Association.

“I feel so incredibly grateful to the ADL for the opportunity to experience Israel in all its richness, its resilient people and its ancient history that I feel compelled to share my insights with others,” said Broughton, an alum of the 2013 Bearing Witness Summer Institute. 

“Whether traveling to Washington or to Israel, these educational programs are truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for Catholic educators, who get to explore in depth the Holocaust and its impact on Jewish life,” said Hava L. Holzhauer, regional director of the Florida Anti-Defamation League. “The Catholic and Jewish communities have a unique relationship, and Bearing Witness helps us strengthen our connection by exploring today difficult lessons from the past.”

Since its inception in 1996, Bearing Witness has trained more than 1,900 Catholic school educators across the U.S. about the historical relationship between the Jewish and Catholic communities and the impact of that relationship on Catholic teaching, catechesis and liturgy.

 Bearing Witness has been cited by the Holy See as among the most important initiatives designed to improve Catholic-Jewish relations. It has also been recognized by the National Catholic Educational Association as a SPICE program (Selected Program for Improving Catholic Education), a designation conferred upon a handful of exemplary programs each year, and was given the NCEA President’s Award in 2008.