Leading Italian rabbi protests Good Friday conversion prayer, backs out of annual ‘day of dialogue’
November 21, 2008
The president of the Italian Rabbinic Assembly has announced that he would not take part in the next "day of Jewish-Christian dialogue and friendship" (giornata per il dialogo e l’amicizia ebraico-cristiana), which has taken place in Italy annual since 1990 on January 17, immediately preceding the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Emphasizing that he viewed the possible beatification of Pope Pius XII as an internal Church matter, Rabbi Giuseppe Laras said that he would not attend the dialogue in 2009 because of concerns over the Good Friday prayer for the conversion of Jews in the extraordinary form of the Roman liturgy-- a prayer modified by Pope Benedict earlier this year.
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Further information:
- Chiesa-Ebrei, sospesa collaborazione (La Stampa)
- Italian Jews Back Out of Dialogue Day, Cite Concern Over Good Friday Prayer for Extraordinary Rite (Zenit)
- Italian Jews stand up for faith in face of Pope’s prayer (The Times)
- Pope mandates change in traditional Good Friday prayer (CWN, Feb. 5)
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