October 28, 2005
Pope Benedict XVI has marked the 40th anniversary of the landmark Vatican declaration 'Nostra Aetate' on relations with Jews by calling for a renewed commitment by Catholics and Jews to deepen their bonds and work for the good of all humanity. Benedict issued a message that was read out during a commemoration on the 40th anniversary of 'Nostra Aetate', in which the Catholic Church deplored anti-Semitism and repudiated the "deicide" charge that blamed Jews for Christ's death.
Rome's chief rabbi, Riccardo Di Segni, said he had refused to attend the ceremony because of the presence of one of the keynote speakers, Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, a Jewish convert to Catholicism. "It's not a protest but an invitation to reflect on the meaning of dialogue" between religions, Di Segni said in a telephone interview with the "Associated Press" news agency. "What is dialogue? If it means losing one's identity and crossing over to the other side, then it's not dialogue," AP quotes Di Segni. Cardinal Walter Kasper, who hosted the event, said he did not want to comment on the absence of Di Segni and other European rabbis at the ceremony, saying only he had received a letter from Di Segni and "he didn't mention Cardinal Lustiger."
