TELEGRAPH GROUP LIMITED, UK - JANUARY 21, 1999 - A BREAKTHROUGH in Jewish-Catholic relations has been achieved after private negotiations between British rabbis and the Vatican.

The two faiths came to an agreement in Rome last week to end 2,000 years of antagonism between them and forge an amicable partnership. The agreement was significant because it demonstrates that both faiths are willing to accept each other's legitimacy and work together, rather than against each other.

Until now, dialogue between the faiths has been thwarted by the old Catholic teaching that the Jewish Covenant between God and Abraham was superseded by the coming of Jesus Christ. During the talks, Vatican representatives assured the rabbis that the Church believed that Christianity was the fulfilment of the Jewish Covenant, but not its replacement.

Sir Sigmund Sternberg, president of the Reform Synagogues of Great Britain, and seven British rabbis from the World Union for Progressive Judaism spent two days in talks with the Vatican before meeting the Pope. The negotiations were led by Cardinal Edward Cassidy and Msgr Dr Remi Hoeckman of the Vatican's Commission on Religious Relations with Jews.

Cardinal Cassidy agreed that the two faiths should establish a partnership based on their "shared ethical values" and together should be a "light unto the nations". The cardinal drew on the words of the Pope who declared during a visit to Australia in 1986 that the Catholic faith is rooted in the "eternal truth of the Hebrew Scriptures and in the irrevocable Covenant made with Abraham". The Second Vatican Council document of 1964, Lumen Gentium (Light of the Nations), draws on the words of St Paul, saying that Jews are "most dear to God for God does not repent of the gifts He makes, nor of the calls He issues".

The cardinal, an Australian who is a senior figure in the Vatican, agreed to be the main speaker at a Millennium conference on "The Theology of Partnership" at the Sternberg Centre for Judaism in north London.

The rabbis had an audience with Pope John Paul inside the Vatican where they presented him with Jewish prayer books and thanked him for his work in Jewish-Christian relations.

Rabbi Tony Bayfield, who as chief executive of the Reform Synagogues in Britain was part of the delegation, said the talks indicated a "new era" in Jewish-Catholic relations. He said: "We agreed to make the third Christian Millennium one in which inter-faith relationships will be more constructive and respectful than the past two millenniums.

"In our talks we acknowledged that Judaism and Catholicism have their own theological space and legitimacy. From this point we can work together in harmony for the good of humanity." Rabbi Bayfield said the cardinal has responded with "warmth and enthusiasm" to the call for partnership in the next Millennium.

Other rabbis in the delegation were Sidney Brichto, of the Union of Liberal and Progressive Synagogues; David Goldberg, of St John's Wood Synagogue; Joanathan Romain, of Maidenhead Synagogue; Sybil Sheridan, of the Thames Valley liberal community; Jaqueline Tabick, of the North-West Surrey Synagogue; and Mark Winer, of West London Synagogue.