Roy Schoeman

Roy H. Schoeman (born in 1951 in New York City) is a Catholic and author who has converted from Judaism to Catholicism. Due to his decision of faith, he gave up a career in the field of economics and is now devoted to the Christian mission.

Life

Roy Schoeman's Jewish parents fled from Nazi Germany to New York, where he was born and grew up. He received his Jewish education from Conservative rabbis such as Arthur Hertzberg and Arthur Green, later President of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Philadelphia. He was also a disciple and follower of the charismatic Hasidic rabbi Shlomo Carlebach for a brief period after High School.

He studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard Business School, where he received an MBA magna cum laude and joined the Marketing faculty as a Lecturer. In retrospect, he describes his childhood and youth as very religious, but he lost his belief in God while at MIT, leading to a sense of meaninglessness despite his success. He attributes his conversion to Christianity to a theophany of Christ followed a year later by a supposed direct experience of the Virgin Mary. Following several short stays at a Carthusian (Carthusians) monastery, the Carthusian priest and Prior Marcellin Theeuwes became his spiritual director. .

Today he gives lectures and appears as a conference, retreat, and Parish mission speaker, as well as on television and radio shows in Christian media.

Religious theses

In his work, Salvation is from the Jews, Schoeman has detailed his views on the role of Judaism in Christian salvation history. He sees Christianity, and specifically the Catholic Church, as the fulfillment of Judaism, and therefore inivites Jews to enter the Catholic Church, which he describes as "post-Messianic" Judaism.

He attributes the Holocaust to a diabolically inspired hatred of the Jews for their role in bringing Christianity to the world, and suggests that its suffering is expiatory in preparation for the coming return of Christ (parousia). He also traces the interaction between the anti-Semitism and activities of Islamic and Nazi National Socialist leaders leading up to, during, and after the Holocaust.

Praise and criticism

Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke praised Schoeman's book, Honey from the Rock:

Schoeman's statements on the mission to the Jews were also criticized from various sides. Though Schoeman's statements are philosemitic, he has also been criticized by Jews for his interpretation of Judaism.

Publications

Salvation Is from the Jews: The Role of Judaism in Salvation History, Ignatius Press, 2003, , German: Salvation comes from the Jews. God's plan for his people (Augsburg 2007), French:Le Salut vient des Juifs,Lethielleux, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20071029044625/http://www.christenundjuden.org///de/?item=589 Honey from the rock. Sixteen Jews Find the Sweetness of Christ, Ignatius Press, 2007. Judaism: from the Catholic perspective, London: Catholic Truth Society, 2008.