Simon Wiesenthal Center: Newly Sainted Popes are Heroes to the Jewish People

The Simon Wiesenthal Center joins with Catholics around the world in acknowledging the remarkable contribution of the two Popes canonized this Easter Sunday. “Jews will always remember Pope John XXIII as the animating force behind the Vatican II Council that changed the way Catholics looked at other faiths, especially Judaism.  The Nostra Aetate document that […]

The Simon Wiesenthal Center joins with Catholics around the world in acknowledging the remarkable contribution of the two Popes canonized this Easter Sunday.

“Jews will always remember Pope John XXIII as the animating force behind the Vatican II Council that changed the way Catholics looked at other faiths, especially Judaism.  The Nostra Aetate document that ensued from it pulled the plug on centuries of theological anti-Semitism and put relationships between Christians and Jews on a new footing of mutual respect”, observed Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein, the Wiesenthal Center’s Director of Interfaith Affairs.

“Pope John Paul II termed the theory of Nostra Aetate into dramatic proactive”, noted Rabbi Abraham Cooper the associate dean of the Center.”  He became the first Pope to visit a Jewish house of worship, embracing Rome’s Chief Rabbi Elio Toaff and calling Jews the ‘elder brother’ of Christians. Two other dramatic deeds– one practical, the other symbolic – forever secured him a special place in the hearts of the Jewish people.  First was his decision establishing full diplomatic relations with the Jewish State of Israel.  Later when visiting Jerusalem, he slipped a note into the Western Wall acknowledging the Jewish blood of generations that had been shed in the name of Christianity and prayed for forgiveness. It was a gesture that will never be forgotten.”


Rabbi Marvin Hier, Dean and Founder of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, who met twice with Pope John II at the Vatican, recalled his recent audience with Pope Francis and their conversation about the work of these two great predecessors, “We thanked him for his ongoing commitment to fight anti-Semitism and underscored our commitment to work with the Pope to protect the rights of religious minorities, especially embattled Christians.

Contact:

Rabbi Abraham Cooper
(310)-210-9750
Available for comment Friday, April 18 and Sunday, April 20

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