Pope Francis, Obama to Meet on Jewish Judgement Day

President Barack Obama bids farewell to Pope Francis following a private audience at the Vatican, March 27, 2014. (Photo: Pete Souza/ Official White House Photo)

Pope Francis, Obama to Meet on Jewish Judgement Day

By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz September 22, 2015 BREAKING ISRAEL NEWS

“This shall be a permanent statute for you: in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall humble your souls and not do any work, whether the native, or the alien who sojourns among you.” (Leviticus 16:29)

In a meeting fraught with meaning and more than a bit of controversy and tension, Pope Francis is being hosted at the White House by US President Barack Obama on Tuesday, a day which happens to be the holiest day of the Jewish Year, Yom Kippur, the Day of Judgement.

Though this is not the first meeting between Obama and the Pope, this is the first time that the president will host the Catholic leader, who has also been invited to address a special joint session of Congress.

Gathered on the South Lawn of the White House to greet Pope Francis will be Gene Robinson, the first gay Episcopal bishop in the US; Mateo Williamson, the transgender head of the LGBT Catholic group Dignity USA; and Sister Simone Campbell, a nun who runs Network. She was the focus of the Holy See’s disapproval due to her lobbying in support of Obamacare, despite the fact that it funds abortions and compels Catholic institutions to provide birth control for employees.

Though the Vatican has not objected to the guest list, a senior Vatican official told the Wall Street Journal  that they were concerned there will be an attempt to maneuver the Pope into a photo-op that would be viewed as tacit endorsement of those views which are objectionable to the Church.

Following the publication of the guest list in the Wall Street Journal last week, White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters he was unaware of the specific names on the guest list, but assured them it was not meant as a snub “because there will be 15,000 other people there too.”

The Pope’s visit to the White House comes at a time when Jewish relations with both those entities are particularly troubled. There are no indications this meeting will help the situation. The Vatican recently signed a treaty with the Palestinian Authority (PA), officially recognizing “Palestine” as a state.

Though not an official branch of the Israeli government, the nascent Sanhedrin recently held a special session addressing this grave issue and questioned his support of Mahmoud Abbas, the PA president, who the Pope has called “an angel of peace.” In their statement, the Sanhedrin said that by recognizing the PA, Pope Francis is essentially rejecting the Biblical roots of the Jewish claim to the Land of Israel.

Despite attracting more than 70 percent of the Jewish vote in both of his successful election runs, Obama’s policy towards Israel and his nuclear deal with Iran has damaged the longstanding relationship the Democratic party has had with American Jews and perhaps even with its most loyal ally, Israel. The American Jewish community has become polarized as a result.

Pope Francis praying at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. (Photo: @MickyRosenfeld/ Twitter)

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), a lobbying group that advocates pro-Israel policies, supported Obama in both elections, but ran a multi-million dollar campaign against his nuclear deal with Iran. J Street, a left-wing Washington-based Jewish lobbying group, supported the nuclear deal with a campaign of its own. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been a powerful opponent to the Obama-led agreement between Iran and the P5+1 world powers that will leave Iran’s nuclear program intact.

Of equal concern, and equally divisive, is the Pope’s address to the United Nations General Assembly two days after his reception at the White House. Upon his arrival, the Pope will be greeted by the sight of the flags of the UN member nations, including the flag of the PA. The UN recently passed by an overwhelming majority a resolution that allows states with official observer status to fly their flags. In an ironic twist, the only other nation with that status is the Vatican, and they respectfully declined that privilege.

Rather than build bridges and make connections, the upcoming visit by the Pope seems designed to further alienate the Pope and the White House from religious American Jews, none of whom will be at the White House reception because they will be in their local synagogue praying and fasting.

Read more at http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/49361/auspicious-timing-of-pope-francis-obama-meeting-on-jewish-judgement-day-jewish-world/#GpbWA1eELzHxxvJe.99

Vatican Signs Treaty with 'State of Palestine'

By John Waage

CBN News Sr. Editor

Saturday, June 27, 2015

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For the first time, the Vatican on Friday signed a treaty with the Palestinians, naming the entity the "State of Palestine" rather than the Palestinian Liberation Organization.  Israel strongly criticized the action.

The document governs the activities of the Catholic Church in areas of Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem.  The Vatican officially recognized a Palestinian state two years ago.

Israel's Foreign Ministry called the text of the treaty "one-sided" and expressed regret.

"This hasty step damages the prospects for advancing a peace agreement, and harms the international effort to convince the PA (Palestinian Authority) to return to direct negotiations with Israel," the ministry said in a statement.

"We also regret the one-sided texts in the agreement which ignore the historic rights of the Jewish people in the Land of Israel and to the places holy to Judaism in Jerusalem," it continued.  "Israel cannot accept the unilateral determinations in the agreement which do not take into account Israel's essential interests and the special historic status of the Jewish people in Jerusalem."

Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotevely warned, "Any attempt by the Palestinians, or any other actor to undermine our historic right to Jerusalem and our country will be met by staunch opposition by us."

Meeting with his Palestinian counterpart in a ceremony in Rome, Vatican Foreign Minister Paul Gallegher signed and sealed the treaty.

Vatican officials say the document signed Friday reflect's the church's support of a "two-state solution" to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. 

No mention was made about Hamas, the terror group which entered into a unity government with the Palestinian Authority and calls in its charter for Israel's destruction.

The Pope, Palestine, and the Prince of Peace - by Jonathan Feldstein

The Pope, Palestine, and the Prince of Peace

May 21, 2015 /  Jerusalem Channel  by Jonathan Feldstein

Image: Internet Screenshot via CatholicLink

By Jonathan Feldstein

Throughout my growing and deepening relationships with,
and as a bridge between Jews and Christians,
while meaningful and important to me, I am often asked by Christians why Jews are not more receptive to fellowship and dialogue with them as I am, and why so many American Jews tend to vote for and support candidates who seem to be less in concert with God, and whose support of Israel is questionable.

I am also often asked by Jews, what it is that Christians who say they love Israel really want. What’s the ulterior motive? Jews also push back because of centuries of hatred, crimes, and murder carried out and directed toward us in the name of “the church.”


Recently, one event had the unique ability to provide even greater pushback and widen a rift that, gratefully, has been narrowing in recent years. That event was the Vatican reaffirming its unhesitant recognition of “the State of Palestine” and establishing a diplomatic treaty with this state.


Jewish PTSD [Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder] is long lasting. When one sees the Catholic Church recognizing a supposed state that doesn’t recognize Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state, much less live in peace with us, we have flashbacks to times when Jews were burned, slaughtered, shot and gassed to death, all in the name of “the church.” Even among the most liberal who want a two state solution, there’s an awareness that peace is not a one way street.


As an entity that has a population less than 1000, with rights and appearances of a state, because it is the center of Catholicism the world looks to the Vatican and the Pope to be an outpost of morality and decency. It’s worse than fingernails on a blackboard to see that state cozy up to another entity that’s bigger but no more a state de facto, whose President is serving the ninth year of a four year term, in which anti-Semitism is public policy and celebrated, which denies the right of Israel to exist, fosters attacks, threats and murder of Israelis, while blaming us for all their problems rather than taking responsibility and building the infrastructure for the state they supposedly desire.


Were Jesus alive today, this state of Palestine would call him a settler, would intimidate and threaten him should he go to the Temple Mount, and might stone, fire bomb or shoot at his car traveling from Galilee to Jerusalem. Is this the state the Vatican is proud to recognize?


Other states have recognized “Palestine,” but they are not supposedly rooted in biblical values. Rather than being a follower down a diplomatic dead end paved with moral potholes, we look to the Vatican to be a beacon of light. On this, they have failed.


Even more glaring is that while the Vatican has now recognized a state that doesn’t really exist, it took the Vatican 45 years to recognize Israel as a state. This is still a bone in the throat of many, calling into question a theology that may still be rooted in replacement theology. Overlaying that with liberation theology, and turning a blind eye to the terrorism still perpetrated by the Palestinian Authority and its quasi-governmental partners, is it any wonder that Jews don’t trust Christians.


I am all for human decency and values, and pray for the well-being of all the Palestinian Arabs. I pray that their leaders’ evil ways will be transformed. I pray for peace. But one cannot whitewash the reality of a “Palestinian state” rooted in terrorism, from the birth of the PLO and continuing with Hamas. Juxtapose that to the rebirth of Israel, while maybe not perfect in every way, as a fulfilling of God’s promise to Abraham through Isaac and Jacob, and not mutually exclusive to the presence or existence of others. A full 20% of Israel’s citizens are Arab and many hold senior political, diplomatic and civic responsibilities throughout Israel.


It stretches the imagination to wonder how and why the Vatican took this approach. I suspect that they are not held hostage regarding the supply of oil, so pandering to the Arab world for that is unlikely. Do they somehow believe that by recognizing “Palestine” miraculously millions of Christians in the Middle East will be safe and not fear the sort of crimes that have befallen Christians in the name of Islam recently? Did someone sneak in overnight and erase the scripture about Israel and God’s covenant with the Jewish people from all their bibles? Or is it plain old Catholic anti-Semitism that we know too well?


Either way this diplomatic hocus pocus will not only not do anything to bring peace in the Middle East closer, but it will make the Palestinian Authority more intransigent and less likely to make peace if they think they can get recognized as a state albeit without the standards or responsibilities of statehood. I have images of Godfather 3 where mafia corruption is shown to run so deep it goes straight back to the Vatican. Did someone in Ramallah pay off someone in Vatican City for such protection?


Israel was reborn 67 years ago after centuries of dispersion, and both Israel’s independence and all that we have built are truly miraculous. The hand of God is seen throughout this historic century of the Jewish people’s return to the Land that God promised us.


I am not a theologian and no expert on Catholicism, but I understand that in order to qualify for sainthood, one has to have performed some sort of miracle. Maybe that’s the issue. Maybe Pope Francis is setting himself up for sainthood, by recognizing a state that doesn’t exist which is perverse, but perhaps could be seen as a miracle. Would making a state out of dust, as God created man, count as a miracle?


But it’s absurd to think that this announcement has any merit or value toward bringing peace closer with or without a Palestinian state, and that’s terribly sad because there’s a lot that can be done and the Vatican could play a useful role. But to make up a state where none exists, to call Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas an “angel of peace” is beyond ludicrous.


Why not just pretend that Jesus were not a Jew, that the Arabs are somehow the successor to God’s promise to and covenant with the Jewish people, and call Abbas the Prince of Peace?

What Vatican's Move May Mean for Jerusalem's Future

By Chris Mitchell

CBN News Middle East Bureau Chief

Sunday, May 17, 2015

JERUSALEM, Israel -- Critics say the Vatican's decision to recognize a Palestinian state could have profound consequences for negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and the future of Jerusalem.


In a new treaty, the Vatican switched its diplomatic recognition from the Palestinian Liberation Organization to the state of Palestine. Palestinian officials celebrated the decision.

"We are indeed extremely encouraged by the Vatican recognition of the state of Palestine. We also see this as a very positive development, not just politically but in moral terms, human terms, in legal terms, and it prepares for a whole new era in which Palestine will be seen by the whole world as a state," senior Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi said.

Israeli sources told CBN News they believe the Vatican's decision will not lead the Palestinian Authority back to the negotiating table or promote the peace process. They plan to study the agreement and decide what possible steps to take.

Other groups like the Zionist Organization of America criticized the decision.

"Because what they are instructing the Palestinians is that they can accomplish their ends by being in violation of accords by pursuing unilateral accords as opposes to bilateral negotiations," Jeff Daube, with the Zionist Organization of America, said.

Some say the historic diplomatic move puts the Vatican and Pope Francis in the position of supporting a corrupt and terrorist entity.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is in the tenth year of a four-year term and he presides over a unity government that includes Hamas in the Gaza Strip, a terror organization sworn to Israel's destruction.

The Palestinian Authority also sees Jerusalem as its future capital. That means most all of Jewish and Christian holy sites in the city would be in the hands of a Muslim Palestinian state.

The Vatican's decision also adds to the diplomatic momentum to recognize a Palestinian state. The U.N. Security Council looks to be the next forum soon when France is expected to introduce a resolution to recognize a Palestinian state.

Watch video: Vatican

Pope Francis Asked to Declare This Group the 'Most Dangerous Enemy' of Church

8/26/2014 ROB GASPER  CHARISMA NEWS

American Life League is launching a new campaign that seeks to expose a dangerous enemy of traditional families and of the Catholic Church. (http://www.dslrtravel.com/product.php?id_product=17#sthash.2SPQ1Cqt.dpuf)

In anticipation of the Vatican's October Synod on the Family, American Life League is launching a new campaign called Defend the Family. Rooted in prayer, this campaign seeks to expose Planned Parenthood as the most dangerous enemy of traditional families and of the Catholic Church.

American Life League President Judie Brown, stated, "Planned Parenthood has torn apart the family like a pack of ravenous wolves. The pro-life movement and the Church must stand together, face this threat and shield our families from Planned Parenthood's continued assaults."

The Defend the Family campaign is centered around a report entitled, "The Vatican Can Help Save Souls from Planned Parenthood in 2014. HERE'S HOW!" The report, which has been translated into Spanish, Italian and French, builds a case that an official declaration from the Vatican that Planned Parenthood is an enemy of the Church would be a powerful way to defend families. The report is available on the campaign website at DefendTheFamily.org.

"An official declaration of Planned Parenthood as an enemy of the Church will be a real game changer," stated Michael Hichborn, ALL's director of Defend the Faith. "Such a declaration will prevent Planned Parenthood employees and volunteers from serving in positions of responsibility in our parishes. Simply put, Catholics could no longer hide behind an uninformed conscience in order to assist or promote Planned Parenthood or its agenda and be able to continue calling themselves Catholics in good standing."

Jim Sedlak, vice president of ALL, added, "Some people have told us this campaign has an impossible goal. But with God, nothing is impossible. In addition to being a massive educational effort, this campaign has a large spiritual dimension."

ALL's new campaign encourages regular prayers after Mass for the conversion of individual countries from the ideologies of Planned Parenthood, offers prayers for the pope, and aims to open communication with local bishops about the dangers Planned Parenthood poses to the family. ALL's hope is that this prayer-led effort will inspire the Holy Father to officially declare Planned Parenthood an enemy of the Church.

Why Did Copeland, Robison Meet With Pope Francis? - Charisma News

Why Did Copeland, Robison Meet With Pope Francis?

 7/7/2014 RICK WILES  CHARISMA NEWS

Pope Francis with evangelicals (Life Outreach)

Two prominent Fort Worth-based Christian ministers led a delegation of Evangelical Christian leaders to Rome to meet privately with Pope Francis.

James and Betty Robison, co-hosts of the Life Today television program, and Kenneth Copeland, co-host of Believer's Voice of Victory, met the Roman Pontiff at the Vatican on Tuesday.  The meeting lasted almost three hours and included a private luncheon with Pope Francis.

Mr. Robison told the Fort Worth Star Telegram, "This meeting was a miracle.... This is something God has done. God wants his arms around the world. And he wants Christians to put his arms around the world by working together."

Mr. Robison said he was impressed by Pope Francis' humility and courtesy to the visiting delegation of Evangelical Protestant Christian leaders.

In a written statement, Mr. Robison said he believes "the prayers of earnest Christians helped lead to the choice of Pope Francis."  He described Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the Argentine Archbishop chosen as Pope, as "a humble man...filled with such love for the poor, downtrodden..."

In addition to Mrs. Betty Robison, the high-profile Protestant delegation included Kenneth Copeland, co-founder of Kenneth Copeland Ministries in Newark, TX; Reverend Geoff Tunnicliff, CEO of the World Evangelical Alliance; Rev. Brian Stiller and Rev. Thomas Schirrmacher, also from the World Evangelical Alliance; and Rev. John Arnott and his wife, Carol, co-founders of Partners for Harvest ministries in Toronto, Canada.  Gloria Copeland did not travel to Rome because of a previously scheduled commitment.

The ecumenical meeting in Rome was organized by Episcopal Bishop Tony Palmer.  Rev. Palmer is an ordained bishop in the Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches, a break-away alliance of charismatic Anglican-Episcopal churches.  Bishop Palmer is also the Director of The Ark Community, an international interdenominational Convergent Church online community, and is a member of the Roman Catholic Ecumenical Delegation for Christian Unity and Reconciliation.

Bishop Palmer developed a friendship with Pope Francis when the future Roman Pontiff was a Catholic official in Argentina.  Prior to becoming a CEEC bishop, Rev. Palmer was the director of the Kenneth Copeland Ministries' office in South Africa.  He is married to an Italian Roman Catholic woman.  He later moved to Italy and began working to reconcile Roman Catholics and Protestants.  Kenneth Copeland Ministries was one of Mr. Palmer's first financial contributors over 10 years ago in support of his ecumenical work in Italy.

Earlier this year, Pope Francis called Bishop Palmer to invite him to his residence in Vatican City.  During the meeting, Bishop Palmer suggested that the Pope record a personal greeting on Mr. Palmer's iPhone to be delivered to Kenneth Copeland.  Mr. Copeland showed the Papal video greeting to a conference of Protestant ministers who were meeting at Mr. Copeland's Eagle Mountain International Church near Fort Worth, Texas.  In the video, Pope Francis expressed his desire for Christian unity with Protestants.

Later, James Robison telecasted the video on his daily TV program, Life Today.  "The pope, in the video, expressed a desire for Protestants and Catholics to become what Jesus prayed for — that Christians would become family and not be divided," Mr. Robison said the response to the video was very positive, and that Pope Francis asked Bishop Palmer whether a meeting could be arranged with Evangelical Protestants seeking Christian unity in the world.

In his written statement released after the Papal meeting, Mr. Robison said he was "blessed to be part of perhaps an unprecedented moment between evangelicals and the Catholic Pope."  He described the Protestant delegation's private meeting with the leader of the Roman Catholic Church as "an intimate circle of prayerful discussion and lunch to discuss not only seeing Jesus' prayer answered, but that every believer would become a bold, joy-filled witnesses for Christ.

In describing the ecumenical gathering as a miracle, Mr. Robison said, "This is something God has done. God wants his arms around the world. And he wants Christians to put his arms around the world by working together."

During the luncheon on Tuesday, Mr. Robison got a high-five from Pope Francis after the Pope and Protestant guests talked about the need for all people to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  According to the Life Today host, the Roman Pontiff did not know what a high-five was until Bishop Palmer explained it to him in Italian.  Mr. Robison said, "The Pope made it very clear that he wanted every believer to become Spirit-filled, joy-filled witnesses."

Mr. Robison said Pope Francis had written recently, "Too many Catholics look like they've been to Lent with no Easter. It's a mistake for them to look like they've been to a funeral" as he challenged Catholics to witness and never try to control the Holy Spirit, but yield to Him.

Mr. Robison said he received a divine call from God to seek Christian unity while he was hospitalized several years ago with a serious staph infection following hip surgery.  Robison recalled, "[I] was so weak I could not lift a cup of water to my lips...God got my full attention...He spoke to me through Isaiah 58:6-12 and I saw the importance of living in freedom, touching the suffering, the hungry, poor, and downtrodden. I recognized the promise that our prayers would be answered quickly and we would become a free-flowing stream and a well-watered garden, restoring the foundations upon which we must build. During that time God instructed me to focus my attention on Jesus' prayer and encouraging others to begin fulfilling it through us in our day."

During that time, he said, he was impressed by a prayer of Jesus in John 17:21, pleading that all Christian believers be one.  "We've tried to focus on being an answer to Jesus' prayer," Robison said. "We want to see Jesus' prayer for unity answered in our day."

Aware that the meeting with the Pope will be troublesome among staunch Protestants, Mr. Robison said he and the other visiting Evangelical Christian leaders talked about diversity and their belief that Roman Catholics and Protestants could work together without compromising their beliefs.

"The world is suffering," said Robison. "We as Christians have too much love to share without fighting one another."

Mr. Robison said he and other "respected Evangelical leaders and Spirit-filled Catholics began meeting together to pray for God's will to be done and to bring true believers together in supernatural unity....We have been commanded to love God with all of our heart and our neighbors as ourselves. The enemy has kept many Christians from loving one another as Christ loves us and have failed to recognize the importance of supernatural unity even with all of the unique diversity."

Mr. Robison, whose ministry digs water wells and supplies food for impoverished people in third-world nations, recounted that he was christened as a fatherless boy in an Episcopal Church.  As an adult, he joined the Southern Baptist Church.  In the 1980s, he became one of the first prominent Southern Baptist ministers to openly proclaim he had received the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

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TRUNEWS © 2014. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Pope: Holy Land Pilgrimage Spiritual, Not Political - CBN News

Pope Francis

Pope: Holy Land Pilgrimage 

Spiritual, Not Political

Chris Mitchell, CBN News Middle East Bureau Chief  

CBN News 05.27.14

JERUSALEM, Israel -- Pope Francis flew back to Rome Monday after a three-day tour of Jordan, Israel and Bethlehem. He'll soon host a meeting with the Israeli and Palestinian presidents. But he left with a reminder that his efforts are what he called spiritual, not political.

Near the end of his visit, the pope said mass and greeted Christians at the Garden of Gethsemane.

"I think he is a man that's going to do much good in uniting the churches," said Colleen Doyle, a tour guide of a Christian group from New Zealand.

During his visit, Francis told the Christians living in Jerusalem he understood their difficulties and invited them to be courageous witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus.

How significant is it that Pope Francis made this pilgrimage? Arina Grossu with the Family Research Council answers this and more, on CBN Newswatch, May 27.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the pope Israel protects Christians.

"We protect the rights of Christians in Israel. That, unfortunately, does not exist in many places in the Middle East. Even in Bethlehem, where your Holiness visited, Jesus' birthplace, has become a Muslim city," he said.

Netanyahu also referred to the stop Francis made at the security barrier between Bethlehem and Jerusalem.

"When incitement and terror against Israel stops, there won't be a need for things like the security fence [the West Bank barrier], which has saved thousands of lives," he said.

On his way back to Rome, the pope clarified his invitation to Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to pray together at the Vatican.

"It will be a prayer meeting; it will not be for mediation or to look for solutions. No. We will meet together to pray only, and then each one will return home. But I believe that prayer is important. Praying together with[out] doing any sort of arguing, this helps," the pope said on Tuesday.

The gathering of Israeli and Palestinian leaders is scheduled to take place in Rome in early June.

What the Pope Said and Didn't Say - ISRAEL TODAY

What the Pope Said and Didn't Say

Monday, May 26, 2014 |  Tsvi Sadan  ISRAEL TDOAY

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In accordance with diplomatic protocol, upon arrival to Israel on Sunday, Pope Francis gave a short speech, as did his hosts, President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

There was genuine warmth and friendship, but their concise speeches also revealed the ongoing profound differences between Israel and the Vatican.

Netanyahu opened up with the words: "Welcome to our land, the Land of Israel, the Holy Land."

Pope Francis opened up with: "Thank you most heartily for your welcome to the State of Israel." 

Netanyahu's speech continued: "I welcome the good relations between the Holy See and the Jewish people and Jewish state."

The Pope's next line went: "I greet all the people of Israel with prayerful good wishes."

The Pope announced that "in the footsteps of my predecessors, I have come as a pilgrim to the Holy Land, rich in history and home to the principal events in the origin and growth of the three great monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam."

Netanyahu said of the land in question: "We regained our independence in our ancestral homeland, to be a free people in our land, the land of Zion and Jerusalem."

The Pope also informed his hosts that "during my pilgrimage to the Holy Land I will visit some of the most significant places in Jerusalem, a city of universal importance."

Regarding Jerusalem, Netanyahu told his guest that "you are leaving here for Jerusalem, our eternal capital, the heart of our faith. In Jerusalem and around our country, the prophets' vision of our people's renaissance is being fulfilled."

Sometimes nuances make little difference, but not in this case.

Those who listened carefully to the Pope couldn't miss the point that his holiness didn't once refer to Israel as a Jewish state; and by continuously calling Israel "the Holy Land" he reinforced the Vatican's traditional position that refuses to recognize Israel as a Jewish state.

This is even more disturbing in light of the Pope's speech in Bethlehem earlier in the day, in which he framed his presence not as a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, but as an official visit to "the State of Palestine."

To highlight this difference once again, Netanyahu put the "Land of Israel" first, and then "the Holy Land." The Pope chose to emphasize that the Holy Land is the birthplace of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. In doing so he erred on two accounts: As of yet there is not a Palestinian state, and Islam did not originate in the Holy Land.

Though the Vatican would like to claim the Holy Land for itself, the truth is that the only place in the Bible where the Land of Israel is referred to as the "holy land" is found in Zechariah 2, where God fulfills His promise to the people of Israel, through which all those faithful to God will be blessed as well.

In other words, if there is to be peace, Israel as a Jewish state must exist. Though no one should doubt the Pope's genuine desire for peace, it looks as if he to fails to realize that it will not come by insistently labeling this country as "the Holy Land." Peace will come when the people of the world, including the Jewish people, will submit themselves to the God of Israel, who is never once biblically referred to as the God of the Holy Land.

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In Israel, Pope Francis to Witness Oasis of Stability in Chaotic Region for Christians

Posted by: Staff Writer May 23, 2014  Breaking Israel News

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” (Psalm 133:1)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) presents Pope Francis with a menorah during their meeting at the Vatican on December 2, 2013. Pope Francis will visit Israel, Jordan, and the West Bank from May 24-26. (Photo: Amos Ben Gershom/GPO/Flash90)

By Sean Savage/JNS.org

Following in the footsteps of his two immediate predecessors, Pope Francis will embark upon a historic visit to Israel, Jordan, and the West Bank from May 24-26.

Throughout his career, Francis has shown a deep appreciation for the Jewish people and has made Jewish-Catholic relations a top priority. Yet this month, Francis will arrive in a Mideast region beset by uprisings, sectarian violence, and religious extremism, where Christians are routinely being driven from their homes and persecuted by Islamic fundamentalists.

As one of the few areas of stability and prosperity in the region, Israel has become an important ally for Christians. As such, on his trip the pope will face the dual challenge of confronting extremism, while also promoting reconciliation between the region’s Christians, Jews, and Muslim

“The Vatican is hoping this trip promotes unity among Christians, encourages Christians in the Middle East to remain committed, [while also] improving relations with Jews and Muslims,” John Allen, an associate editor for the Boston Globe who has covered the Catholic Church for nearly two decades, told JNS.org.

A major challenge Pope Francis and Vatican officials face, however, is walking the fine diplomatic line between support for Israel and staying on friendly terms with Arab-Muslim-majority countries, which are home to many Christians and important holy sites for the religion.

“The Vatican tries to take a neutral position on many of the political controversies in the region,” Rabbi Dr. Eugene Korn, the Jerusalem-based director of the Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation (CJCUC), told JNS.org.

The Vatican, said Korn, “is enormously fearful of Christians who are being persecuted and are fleeing Muslim countries in the region,” and doesn’t want to provoke more violence against them by taking sides.

Nonetheless, privately, Vatican officials are often vocal in their support for Israel and grateful for the basic protections it provides to Christians and their holy sites.

“The reality is that most Vatican diplomats are inclined to be supportive of Israel because they know whatever problems Christians in Israel face, pale in comparison to the problems they have in the rest of the Middle East,” Allen explained.

“Many native Arab Christians in Israel do complain about being second-class citizens, facing travel problems and discrimination,” he said. “But they are not getting shot like they are in Syria, Egypt or Iraq. There is a great deal of sympathy for what they see as basic security, rights and rule of law in Israel.”

Israel has one of the few Christian communities left in the Middle East that is still growing.  According to 2013 figures released by Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics, there are roughly 161,000 Christians living in Israel, up from 158,000 in 2012.

At the same time, Christian populations elsewhere in the region are rapidly declining. According to the Pew Research Center, just 0.6 percent of the world’s 2.2 billion Christians now live in the Middle East and North Africa. Christians make up only 4 percent of the region’s total inhabitants, drastically down from 20 percent a century ago.

In Israel, the Christian community largely thrives, regularly outperforming Jews and Muslims in education. But that is not the case in Palestinian-controlled areas. In Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, Christians have declined from about 70 percent of the population a few decades ago to only 15 percent today.

“Being Catholic and living in Israel and in the Holy Land is without a doubt a grace and a privilege for many reasons; it means being close to the Holy Places, to local Christians, especially those belonging to the Eastern Churches, and to the Jewish people,” Father Francesco Voltaggio—rector of the Galilee Seminary, a Catholic-Jewish dialogue center founded by Pope John Paul II—told JNS.org.

Voltaggio, who will meet Pope Francis during his visit, feels that the trip will cement Catholic-Jewish relations while also being an important opportunity to open dialogue with Muslims.

“I expect a step forward in the renewed relationship between Christians and Jews, as well as an opening of hope in the dialogue with Islam, a dialogue that is often marked by wounds, yet is necessary today more than ever, so as not to prevent tragedies, like the violence caused by fundamentalism,” Voltaggio said.

While most of Pope Francis’s itinerary in Israel will take him to the usual spots visited by heads of state—such as Yad Vashem and the Western Wall—as well as to meetings with to Israeli leaders, the most remarkable aspect of the trip may be the trend it is setting.

“This is the third consecutive pope who has visited Israel,” Korn said. “This is going to establish an informal policy for popes in the future.”

“It really strengthens the Vatican policy of coming to Israel and paying homage to the Jewish people,” he said.

But despite the goodwill developed between the Vatican and Israel, several obstacles remain. One of the largest is that the “Fundamental Accord” signed by Israel and the Vatican in 1993, which established relations between the two states, has not been finalized—leaving Church properties in Israel in a state of limbo when it comes to taxation or other administrative areas.

“You can find fault on both sides [for not finishing the agreement]. But the fact that this has been dragged out for so long has become a source of irritation in the Vatican,” Allen said.

One of the points of contention related to this area has been the status of the Cenacle—the traditional site of the Jesus’s Last Supper on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. Jews also revere the building containing the Cenacle, as the tomb of King David. Hundreds of religious Jews recently held a protest against the building’s rumored transfer to the Vatican during the pope’s visit.

Lior Haiat, an Israeli Foreign Ministry official who is handling public diplomacy for the papal visit, said rumors surrounding the impeding transfer of sovereignty over the Last Supper room, as part of finalizing the 1993 agreement with the Vatican, are “untrue.” Nevertheless, he said Israel has been in discussions with the Vatican over the status of Christian holy sites.

“We are having a very long negotiation process with the Vatican, not only on this issue, but on a lot of issues regarding the Vatican’s presence in Israel and the holy places,” Haiat told JNS.org.

Pope Francis has also sparked some controversy in Israel over the short duration of his stay. He will give almost equal time to the Palestinian Authority.

“The pope’s visit to the Palestinian Authority is being considered a state visit by the Vatican. We obviously don’t agree with that point of view,” Haiat said.

Another sensitive subject in Jewish-Christian relations in Israel is the so-called “price tag” trend, which refers to vandalism carried about by Jewish extremists targeting Christian, Muslim, and even some Jewish landmarks and symbols.

In early May, the Catholic Church in Israel issued a statement condemning the attacks after the Office of the Assembly of Bishops in Jerusalem, the Church’s central authority in Israel, was found spray-painted.

“We have had a long dialogue with the Vatican and Catholic officials in Israel over the [vandalism] issue and they understand that we are doing all that we can to stop it,” Haiat said.

The papal trip should also shed light on the Vatican’s views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Pope Francis arrives in the Jewish state following a breakdown in peace talks, with the Palestinian leadership taking unilateral steps in the international arena and forming a unity government with the terrorist group Hamas.

One of the Vatican’s biggest concerns in the region is Islamic fundamentalism, which has led to increased attacks on the region’s Christians. Vatican officials feel that solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict could indirectly reduce the persecution of Christians.

“The Vatican’s diagnosis is that the fundamental threat of Christianity in the Middle East is Islamic fundamentalism. Their view is that the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict ought to be resolved. If there is no constant reservoir of rage against Israel, it would reduce the persecution of Christians,” Allen said.

But such a linkage between the peace process and the region’s instability has been strongly disputed by Israeli leaders, who view the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as being driven by Islamic extremism.

Yet broadly speaking, two decades after Israel and the Vatican formally established diplomatic relations, the Catholic Church has come a long way in its relationship with the Jewish people.

“[There] is a sense of enormous comfort between the Church and Israel,” CJCUC’s Korn said. “In a certain sense, the relationship is the best it is has ever been, both on a formal and informal level.”

Read more at http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/15506/israel-pope-francis-witness-oasis-stability-chaotic-region-christians/#1BYwq6bvTGQZwJm7.99