Israel unhappy with pope's speech at Holocaust memorial

Headline News

Tuesday, May 12, 2009 Israel Today Staff

Israeli officials and media were critical of Pope Benedict XVI over the speech he delivered at Israel's Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum on Monday.

It was hoped that Benedict would use the visit to apologize for the Vatican's silence during the Holocaust, and perhaps even for his own personal participation in Adolf Hitler's Nazi movement.

While he did condemn the attempted extermination of the Jews, Benedict failed to mention the Nazis or the Catholic Church's actions during black period.

Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin told the Associated Press that Benedict "spoke like a historian, as somebody observing from the sidelines, about things that shouldn't happen. But what can you do? He was part of them."

The Vatican later issued a statement defending the pope's speech, and insisting that he didn't have time to mention everything everyone wants him to mention every time he appears in public.

On Tuesday, the pope continued his 5-day visit to Jerusalem by touring the Temple Mount, the Western Wall and meeting with Israel's chief rabbis.

FREE daily email updates. Sign up »

Be an Ambassador

Israel

for

Learn how »

Israel Today

Print Edition
or
Electronic Edition

Get more coverage »

Post your comment »

Name:
Subject:	*
Comment:
Send comment

[21] COMMENTS:

1 .

The ObsessedBenfox (prophehet) is already half-dead?

Doctor Coroner

5/17/2009 6:26 PM

2 .

Vatican had a brain once -

it became malignant centuries ago.

5/15/2009 5:11 AM

3 .

The Vatican should get a BRAIN!

Didn''t the Catholic Church sanction the kiling of Jews in the 13 century or so? And Why would a German Pope, visit Israel in the first place? The Vatican should get a BRAIN! They are not the only religion this world knows, mind you they are the most CORRUPT!

The Messenger!

5/15/2009 2:56 AM

4 .

Yes Carol let them drink motor oil haha

but they will not drive.. Thank you for speaking out your love to our Jewish Lord, and His Land.

Bert, Holland

5/15/2009 1:13 AM

5 .

I believe many are what they are, in a holding pattern.

Noun 1. holding pattern - a state of inaction with no progress and no change"
inaction, inactiveness, inactivity - the state of being inactive .
2. holding pattern - the flight path (usually circular) maintained by an aircraft that is awaiting permission to land
- a designated route followed by airplanes in flying from one airport to another

This is the condition I see in many, many people spiritually. Moving towards the final confrontation with God.

Barbara Kay

5/14/2009 11:22 PM

6 .

Israel does, however, have the right

to dictate to this lucifarian servant, calling himself the ''(un)holy see'' that he cannot come into their country and demand control of Christian sites. The land of Israel is God''s land. It is the HOLY LAND. There is NOTHING ''Holy" about the catholic pagan church or the future false prophet, Mr Ratzinger. He couldn''t have the decency to appoligize for the catholic church''s blind eye to the slaughter of 6 million innocent men, women and children. They refused to help the Jewish people escape, they refused to take in the little innocent babies, they stood by and did NOTHING. How many appologies? One would be a start.

RITAH, your understanding of a true Christian is W A R P E D!!
Christianity is a branch of Judaisim. We are spiritual Jews and proud of it. Our Savior is and was a JEW. If you don''t love the Jewish people, you are not a Christian. You can sit in the garage and say you are a car, but can you drink gasoline or motor oil and live to tell about it?

Carol P

5/14/2009 7:30 PM

7 .

I see the rabble is out in force.......too bad.

5/14/2009 6:59 PM

8 .

Benfox, what in the world is a ''prophehet''

Only someone as smart as you could know!

Ben from Denver

5/14/2009 5:17 PM

9 .

those who raise up the false prophet are

of Satan. Satan is the jews father as any true Christian knows.

Ritah

5/14/2009 5:09 PM

10 .

those who raise up the false prophehet are

of satan, they love allah-satan and will follw him to hell to prove how blind and stupid they are, I wish the satan lovers would strap on a bomb belt and kill themseleves without hariming innocent Jews, one can only pray. ff is payed for, he gets his money from hamas to use all kinds of names and fight the God of the Bible who is also the God of the Jews, breaks it''s hard heart to hear the truth so it will respond and put me down with no name or some made up name, still the same. jhoward is just another one of those names, who does it think it is fooling? When you want to remain dumb? Then so be it.

BENFOX

5/14/2009 12:04 PM

11 .

Holocaust has become the jew''s religion!

What does the jew wants from the Pope?
A holocaust museum city next to the Vatican?
The greedy jew is never satisfied!
Cardinal Williamson and the Pope knows the jew lie, is part and parcel the benefactor, of the Axis defeat of Eastern Europe, to control the world''s resources!

5/14/2009 7:36 AM

12 .

Minding the Pope''s business

Jews, or anybody else, are in no position to dictate what message the Pope should bring to the Middle East. What arrogance! Maybe he should have asked to have his speech written out for him by Israeli representatives. How many apologies will it take from the line of Popes and the Church for looking the other way during the Holocaust before we can get on with addressing the problems of the day, which also involve human suffering on a huge scale? Victimhood wears thin after many decades, especially when it seems to serve blindness to the suffering of others within arms reach.

JHoward

5/14/2009 7:00 AM

13 .

BENFOX...Pope as false prophet

I agree with you. I was thinking the exact same thing when I read this article. I heard that he was suppose to perform "miracles" when he went to jerusalem this time. Did he??? Don''t think so. I ''ve been looking at the sky for "the sign" since I heard that he was going to Israel!

Karol

5/14/2009 6:22 AM

14 .

RAYMOND. DEFINE HATE. SHOULD BE EASY SINCE

HATE IS YOUR MIDDLE NAME.

5/14/2009 3:59 AM

15 .

The compulsory adhesion at the HJ

Dear friends,
before speaking or writing it''s necessary study the story, all the story.
Please, read this citation:

In April 2005 the media reported that Pope Benedict XVI had, as 14-year old Joseph Ratzinger, been a HJ member. The German government''s response was that compulsory membership of the HJ had little bearing on the pope''s religious convictions or on his ability to lead the Roman Catholic Church.[citation needed].

It''s clear that the membership of the HJ was compulsory. The HJ at the time of 2nd world war had over 5,000,000 of members. They were all Nazis?

Dario Bazec

5/14/2009 3:28 AM

16 .

BERT, HOLLAND. DEFINE HATE.

RAYMOND

5/14/2009 3:14 AM

17 .

Ben from Denver

THE LORD REBUKE YOU!

Esther

5/14/2009 1:32 AM

18 .

Israel unhappy

Why should the Pope apologize for a jew lie??? If it were truth the ones there when the Russians came would have went with the Russians instead of staying with the GERMANS!!
Why is it the ''survivor'' list gets longer all the time??.....

Ben from Denver

5/13/2009 11:49 PM

19 .

Amen David, your so right!!!

BENFOX

5/13/2009 6:06 PM

20 .

Replacement theology.

Replacement theology is anti-Semitic theology.

David.

5/13/2009 8:14 AM

21 .

The pope doesn''t want to offend his islamist

buddies, he will unite them with his false church someday along with the interfaith movement, the church of the end times. Lets all get along, were all the same, all going to heaven in our own way, just get along and love one another, thats what the world needs? Right!!! False prophet, false teacher and the leader of a one world religion of pure love and respect for each other, no matter who we worship or how? Can''t find that anywhere in the Bible except in Rev. during the tribulation, the false love church of the end times:

BENFOX

5/12/2009 6:35 PM