VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

Holocaust Museum Houston presents the exhibition A Blessing to One Another: Pope John Paul II and the Jewish People. 

In the course of his papacy, John Paul II shattered the chain of 2,000 years of painful history between Catholics and Jews. He was the first pope since the first century to enter a synagogue, officially visit and recognize the State of Israel and formally express regret for the Catholic Church's past treatment of Jewish people.

Now, a new exhibit opening Aug. 28, 2009, at Holocaust Museum Houston takes an in-depth look at his extraordinary legacy of improved dialogue between Catholics and Jews.

More than an historical exhibit, "A Blessing to One Another: Pope John Paul II and the Jewish People" is an interactive experience that allows visitors to follow in John Paul II’s footsteps from his childhood to his role as head of the world’s largest church.

The exhibit formally opens for viewing at 9 a.m., Friday, Aug. 28, 2009, but the public is invited to a free preview reception from 6 to 8 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 27, 2009, at the Museum’s Mincberg Gallery in the Morgan Family Center, 5401 Caroline St., in Houston’s Museum District. Visit www.hmh.org/register.asp  to RSVP online. Admission is free.

This exhibit draws its name from the pope's 1993 appeal marking the 50th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising in which he said, "As Christians and Jews, following the example of the faith of Abraham, we are called to be a blessing to the world. This is the common task awaiting us. It is therefore necessary for us, Christians and Jews, to first be a blessing to one another."

The exhibit includes photographs, video footage, documents and artifacts recording the extraordinary contributions of the pope to relations between the Catholic and Jewish faiths. It includes about 70 artifacts on loan from 10 museums and private collections that help illustrate the pope's association with the Jewish community from the time of his childhood and how these life-long associations shaped his papacy, the church and Jewish-Catholic relations.

The first section of the exhibit centers on Wadowice, Poland. There, the future pope, Karol Wojtyla, grew up in an apartment owned by a Jewish family and established many friendships with Jewish children, including life-long friend Jerzy Kluger. Visitors can view Wojtyla’s baptismal certificate and school records, and see the world as it looked from his bedroom window.

They also will explore Jewish life in Wadowice as well as the interaction between the Catholic and Jewish communities.

In the second section, visitors can follow Wojtyla’s path to Krakow and enter the dark years of World War II through a replica of the Krakow Ghetto gate. During the Nazi occupation, the future pope was forced to take his university studies underground while working in a factory by day. It was far worse for his Jewish friends and neighbors. Displayed in this area are somber reminders of the Holocaust, including prayer shawls and shoes from the Holocaust Museum at Auschwitz.

The third section of the exhibit traces Wojtyla’s rise from priest to bishop to cardinal. During this period, he participated in the Second Vatican Council’s dramatic change in the Church’s relationship with other religions. As bishop of Krakow, he also established close and personal ties with the Jewish community. Among the artifacts in this section, visitors will find the biretta worn by Wojtyla when he became a cardinal and handwritten notes for one of his books.

The final section celebrates John Paul II’s papacy. It features a ceremonial lamp and papal vestments from the 2002 World Day of Prayer at Assisi, videos of religious and world leaders speaking with the pope and a replica of Jerusalem’s Western Wall. Visitors are encouraged to write a prayer and place it in the wall, emulating the pope during his historic visit to Israel. As they move out of the exhibit, visitors are also able to touch a bronze sculpture of the late pope’s hand.

Included among the artifacts on view will be a white Zuccheto, or skull cap, bearing the pope's initials and worn during his visit to Israel in 2000. Also included will be the walking staff used to help him approach the Western Wall.

The exhibit was created and produced by Xavier University of Cincinnati, Hillel Jewish Student Center of Cincinnati, and The Shtetl Foundation of New York. The Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati served as lead financial sponsor with major underwriting by Xavier University.

The exhibit is presented locally by the Albert and Ethel Herzstein Charitable Foundation, Leo Linbeck III/Aquinas Companies, LLC; and The Strake Foundation; with special thanks to Continental Airlines, official airline of Holocaust Museum Houston.

Holocaust Museum Houston is dedicated to educating people about the Holocaust, remembering the 6 million Jews and other innocent victims and honoring the survivors' legacy.

Using the lessons of the Holocaust and other genocides, the Museum teaches the dangers of hatred, prejudice and apathy. Holocaust Museum Houston is free and open to the public and is located in Houston’s Museum District at 5401 Caroline St., Houston, TX 77004.

For more information about the Museum, call 713-942-8000 or visit www.hmh.org. To watch a video preview of the exhibit, visit www.blessingexhibit.org.