Word: pope
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Though Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said Benedict's homily Thursday does not necessarily mean that Pius will be beatified, it does seem as though the road to sainthood has now been reopened by the unequivocal words of the Pope...
Jewish leaders, who were observing Yom Kippur on Thursday, are expected to be deeply disappointed by Benedict's latest word on the matter. Earlier this week, Shear-Yashuv Cohen, chief rabbi of the Israeli port city of Haifa, who had been invited by the Pope to speak about the Bible at the current synod of bishops in Rome, told Benedict that Jews "cannot forgive and forget" the silence during the Holocaust from world religious leaders. Later, Cohen told reporters that Pius "should not be seen as a model, and he should not be beatified...
Over the past decade, historians have stepped up debate over the Vatican's actions before and during the war. Pius' defenders say that speaking out more would have made matters worse for Jews, while critics say he was too cautious, at best. Before becoming Pope, Pius, then known by his birth name, Eugenio Pacelli, served as both the Vatican envoy to Nazi Germany and later as the Vatican's secretary of state. Indeed, even while Benedict and most of the church hierarchy stand firmly behind Pius, Italian Jesuit scholars say they have recently turned up documents showing that Pacelli...
Benedict's own German heritage and forced service in the Nazi military as a teenager have made his rapport with Jews of keen interest. Like John Paul II, the current Pope appears to have a particularly warm rapport with Jewish leaders, and repeatedly refers to the theological and historical bonds from the Old Testament. The Pope has set aside time for visits to synagogues on several foreign trips, and even extensively cited an American rabbi in his book last year about Jesus...
...undeniable that John Paul II, who referred to Jews as Christians' "older brothers" and was the first Pope to visit a synagogue, has built a bridge in Catholic-Jewish relations that remains solid. Benedict appreciates the importance of that bridge, but he has also shown a tendency to forge ahead with what he thinks is right for his church. In diplomatic terms, perhaps the cause for sainthood for a still controversial Nazi-era pontiff could use a somewhat longer "period of reflection." And maybe a Pope from another country. - With reporting by Francesco Peloso / Rome