French Jews Accuse Pope Of Siding With Muslims
The pope had condemned Israel's separation wall as "new obstacle to peace"
By Hadi Yahmid, IOL Correspondent
PARIS, April 28 (IslamOnline.net) – A leader of the Jewish community in France accused Pope John II of siding with "Muslim extremists" after the pontiff turned down an invitation to visit an Italian Jewish synagogue because of Israeli military aggressions in occupied Palestinian territories.
The Catholic Church sided with extremists in the Islamic world, a situation not much different from that of Hamas which deems every Jew a Zionist marked for death, Clement Weill-Raynal told the French Jewish community radio on Tuesday, April 27.
It is a scandal that could not be ignored, he added.
Raynal urged the French people to condemn the Pope's position, questioning the link between a Jewish synagogue or Italian Jews and the Israeli policy.
Fearing Bias
The 83-year-old pope had visited the same synagogue in 1968 – in what was then considered a historic development in Christian-Jewish relations.
However, the pontiff turned down an invitation he received on May 23 to attend celebrations marking the 100th anniversary of synagogue, the oldest in Europe.
The Vatican Press office said a participation in the celebration could fearfully have been interpreted in the Islamic world as siding with one side, in reference to Israel.
It added that the Vatican would send two senior cardinals to represent the pope instead.
Vatican officials said the current situation in the Middle East, particularly the heightened state of tension between Israelis and Palestinians and the invasion of Iraq convinced papal aides to advise against a visit to the synagogue.
On April 11, the pope has issued an Easter condemnation of terrorism and urged world leaders to bring peace to Iraq and other flashpoints.
In November, the pontiff slammed the Israeli separation wall as a "new obstacle to peace" and underlined that the Middle East "does not need walls but bridges".
A recent U.N. report underlined that the wall marked illegal annexation of Palestinian territory and must be condemned by the world community.
The pope also implicitly condemned the Israeli assassination of Hamas leader in Gaza Abdelaziz Rantissi on April 17.
"I am following with great sadness the tragic news coming from the Holy Land and Iraq. The shedding of blood by brothers must end. Such inhuman acts are contrary to the will of God," he said.
The pope did not mention Rantissi by name but authorities here said he was referring to the killing of the Palestinian leader.
In the run-up to the Iraq invasion, the Vatican warned the United States not to "irritate a billion Muslims" by launching military invasion against the Arab Muslim country.
Pope John Paul II on January 17, exhorted Christians, Muslims and Jews to burry the hatchet and work in tandem to rid the world of never-ending wars. |
