Papal Visit Draws Cheers and Calls for Change

Ben Harris
Jewish Telegraphic Agency

NEW YORK

Long on symbolism and short on substance, Pope Benedict XVI's trip to New York and Washington last week revealed a pontiff serious about strengthening Catholic-Jewish relations.

It was a visit that included substantial outreach to the Jewish community. In encounters with leaders in both cities, the pope expressed his goodwill and hopes for continued dialogue while offering greetings for the Passover holiday.

But just as significant was what he did not mention -- his decision last year to revive the Latin Mass, whose Good Friday liturgy includes a prayer for Jewish conversion. That decision has drawn fierce criticism from some Jewish organizations, along with warnings that the revival of the prayer could undo much of the progress in Jewish-Catholic relations over the past four decades. The pope also did not expressly declare the Church opposed to converting Jews, a step that some Jewish leaders have been seeking.

Pope Benedict XVI presents Rabbi Arthur Schneier of the Park East Synagogue in New York City with the gift of a manuscript.

Still, even those who've had harsh words for the Vatican lauded the symbolic value of his attention to the Jewish community.

The national director of the Anti-Defamation League, Abraham Foxman, who was among some 50 American Jewish leaders who attended a private meeting with the pontiff in Washington on April 17, said that the pope's blessing for Passover was an implicit acknowledgment of the validity of Judaism.

Last July, Foxman called the decision to reinstate the Latin Mass a "body blow to Catholic-Jewish relations" and a retreat from the spirit of Nostra Aetate, the landmark Vatican document that absolved Jews of collective responsibility for the killing of Jesus Christ and set the stage for four decades of dialogue.

The attention lavished on the Jewish community by the pope was unequaled by any other faith group during his visit. A day after his meeting in Washington with Jewish communal leaders, Benedict made a historic appearance at the Park East Synagogue in New York -- his first visit to an American shul.

Benedict spoke only briefly at both venues, conveying good wishes for the forthcoming Passover holiday and affirming his respect for the Jewish community.

Jewish leaders have been divided on the Latin Mass since the issue first arose last summer.

"I have a strong opinion that we have no business even bringing it up with them," said Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, executive vice president of the Orthodox Union, who greeted the pope at the White House on April 16 and participated in the interfaith meeting the next day. "It's their business, as long as they're not calling for hate and enmity."

Still, some Jewish leaders remain unsatisfied, and had hoped that Benedict would finally put the matter to rest. That possibility now seems extremely unlikely, given Benedict's opportunities to address Jewish concerns.

Said Seymour Reich, treasurer of the International Jewish Commission on Interreligious Consultation: u"I'm disappointed he didn't take the opportunity to clarify the Good Friday Mass, to make it clear not only to Jews but to the Catholic world that it's not intended as a prayer for the conversion of Jews."