(LifeSiteNews) — Bishop Michael Martin of Charlotte has written to congratulate Jewish professor Amy-Jill Levine on her election as president of the Catholic Biblical Association of America and to condole with her over what he called the “hateful and antisemitic messages” that he said followed the appointment.
“I was delighted to learn of your appointment as President of the Catholic Biblical Association of America. Please accept my heartfelt congratulations on this historic and well-deserved recognition,” Martin wrote in a letter posted by Levine on Sunday.
Levine, who has said she is “not a believer in Jesus” as God, will be the association’s president for 2026–2027. Announcing the election, the Catholic Biblical Association noted that she was the first Jewish scholar to teach the New Testament at Rome’s Pontifical Biblical Institute in 2019 and that her “standing with Rome is best recognized by the fact that she had three audiences with Pope Francis.”
Martin, who has made headlines for suppressing the Traditional Latin Mass, altar rails, and kneelers, continued writing, “At the same time, I was deeply saddened to learn of the hateful and antisemitic messages that have followed your appointment. Such hostility has no place in authentic Christian witness and stands contrary to the spirit of respect, friendship, and understanding that the Church seeks to foster, especially in its relationship with the Jewish people.”
While Levine has reported receiving hostile antisemitic responses due to her appointment, verified documentation of these messages, including any available records of social media accounts, or other origins from whence such vitriol came, have not been published by news outlets.
As has occurred in the past, Jewish actors have at times themselves attempted to commit anonymous antisemitic acts, even against fellow Jews. This naturally creates a broad atmosphere of sympathy for Jewish people in general making it rhetorically easier to silence legitimate criticisms over public policy concerns, or even such an appointment as Levine’s, with accusations of antisemitism.
For her part, however, Levine affirms that those “who question how a Jew who does not recognize Jesus as the Messiah can preside over an association dedicated to Catholic biblical scholarship” present a “legitimate question” and thus “are not antisemitic” for doing so.
Dr. Levine: Scripture does not condemn practice of homosexuality
More broadly, the theological author has described herself as a “Yankee Jewish feminist,” and argued against using certain Scriptural passages as evidence to condemn homosexual activity, though she admitted that other passages from Leviticus and St. Paul could be said to condemn them. But even with regards to these, she has claimed that St. Paul could not be understood as condemning “consenting” acts of homosexuality.
Attempting to reconcile her views on homosexual acts with sacred scripture, Levine has acknowledged that some passages do “speak against same-sex sexual activity,” but seeks a middle ground in appealing to Genesis 2 asking, “If it is not good for human beings to be alone, why would we condemn queer people to lives of singleness and celibacy?”
Election consistent with Modernist goal of reducing Jesus Christ to a mere man
Following her appointment, Levine said one of her goals is to confront what she regards as anti-Jewish interpretations of Christian Scripture.
She told the National Catholic Reporter that many clergy “continue to rely on commentaries acquired during their seminary education decades ago rather than newer research on the Jewish contexts of Jesus, the Pharisees and the Gospels,” and that she wants that material in “the hands of people who are speaking to people in the pews” and “people in parochial schools who are teaching biblical studies to teenagers or to little kids.”
She has described herself as “a guest in this house,” arguing that her historical approach can deepen Catholic theology by taking “with abundance seriously the humanity of this person (Jesus Christ) whom the Church proclaims to be God.”
In his own analysis of Levine’s election, LifeSiteNews’ Frank Wright charged that her elevated role is consistent with a broader attempt to reduce Jesus Christ, true God and true man, to a mere human being, “which is the central heresy of the synthesis of heresies that is Modernism itself as condemned by Pope Saint Pius X.”
“This is the most profound error of the modernists, and of course it strikes the very heart and foundation of the Catholic religion itself,” Wright warned also quoting the incredulity of his colleague John-Henry Westen who responding to Levine’s appointment simply posted, “You can’t even make this stuff up.”
In the closing of his letter to Levine, Bishop Martin assured her of his “prayers and support” saying he is “confident that the Catholic Biblical Association will be greatly enriched by your leadership.”
You can’t even make this stuff up. https://t.co/KbqCagrpjW
— John-Henry Westen (@JhWesten) August 13, 2026