What Benedict XVI taught us about the people of Israel

When devout Catholic young people express concern that God has abandoned the Jews or that Jews are responsible for our social ills, it becomes clear that something has gone deeply awry in our transmission of the Faith. Pope Benedict XVI demonstrated his commitment to Israel not only through words and actions. For instance, during a landmark visit to the Tempio Maggiore (Great Synagogue of Rome), the pontiff underscored “the solidarity which binds the Church to the Jewish people” and our “spiritual fraternity,” noting that “[m]any lessons may be learnt from our common heritage.” Furthermore, Benedict forcefully renewed the Church’s irrevocable commitment to reject “the scourge of anti-Semitism.”