The Pope Goes to Shul
April 10, 2008
The announcement this week that Pope Benedict XVI will make a historic visit to a New York synagogue the day before Passover has been greeted with applause and a promise of protests.
The protests come from those who are still angry about the Vatican's decision to revive the saying of the Tridentine Latin Mass on Easter that contains language that speaks of praying for the conversion of the Jews. Some critics believe the German-born pontiff seeks to undo the Vatican II reforms of the 1960s that changed Catholicism's attitude toward Jews and Judaism.
But it is still vital for us to recognize that the Catholic Church has fundamentally altered the teaching of contempt for Jews that served as the foundation of anti-Semitism for many centuries. One prayer, however much we may dislike its wording, should not be allowed to undo the good work of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II whose friendship for the Jewish people did so much good. Benedict's decision to go to synagogue in New York shows that he has not abandoned their legacy.
Rather than obsessing about the various justified concerns about the Vatican, we should use this occasion to greet the pope as not only our friend, but also as our ally in the great struggle for the survival of the West against the push of Islamist intolerance.