December 16, 2005

Mindful of this season of Advent when Christians seek to share in "one another's suffering," Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold condemned a December 14 statement in which Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad called the Holocaust a myth created by Europeans. Griswold said instead that "the Holocaust was no myth but an event of unconscionable inhumanity."

The full text of Griswold's statement follows:

In this season of Advent, we Christians are called to reflect and prepare ourselves for the coming of the Prince of Peace. We are mindful that bearing one another's burdens and sharing one another's suffering are integral to our way of life. Therefore it is with particular pain that we read the recent statement of the President of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, declaring that the Holocaust is a myth. His words remind us anew of the evil of bigotry and the suffering of our Jewish sisters and brothers. The Holocaust was no myth but an event of unconscionable inhumanity. We remember those Christians who stood with the Jews of Europe, and we pray for forgiveness for the many more who did not. As a church we condemn words that distort history and encourage vilification and hatred. Instead we seek words of healing that respect the humanity we share as children of God and open the way to a world reconciled in peace.

Episcopal News Service