Pope's Historic Visit to Synagogue

It was a short visit, but a warm one. Just ahead of Passover, Pope Benedict XVI became the first pope to visit an American synagogue.

He made it sound as if he were a neighbor who just dropped by, noting he was staying nearby to the Park East Synagogue.

Rabbi Arthur Schneier gave him a seder plate insribed "from slavery to freedom," the story of Passover. He was give a Haggadah, the story of the exodus from Egypt, and a box of matzoh that he said he would enjoy the next evening, the start of Passover. Applause rose up as he greeted children and shook hands as he slowly made his way to leave.

Here is the text of the pope's brief remarks.

Dear Friends,
Shalom! It is with joy that I come here, just a few hours before the celebration of your Pesah, to express my respect and esteem for the Jewish community in New York City. The proximity of this place of worship to my residence gives me the opportunity to greet some of you today. I find it moving to recall that Jesus, as a young boy, heard the words of Scripture and prayed in a place such as this. I thank Rabbi Schneier for his words of welcome and I particularly appreciate your kind gift, the spring flowers and the lovely song that the children sang for me. I know that the Jewish community make a valuable contribution to the life of the city, and I encourage all of you to continue building bridges of friendship with all the many different ethnic and religious groups present in your neighborhood. I assure you most especially of my closeness at this time, as you prepare to celebrate the great deeds of the Almighty, and to sing the praises of Him who has worked such wonders for his people. I would ask those of you who are present to pass on my greetings and good wishes to all the members of the Jewish community. Blessed be the name of the Lord!

AP Photos

Cardinal: Bishops Were Misled on Abuse

It was suggested here and by many others that Pope Benedict XVI needs to address the role of certain bishops in covering up for priests who sexually abused minors.

That looks unlikely.

Cardinal William Levada, head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, told reporters at a Manhattan lunch today that the bishops were misled by poor advice from experts. David Gibson, author of "The Rule of Benedict," a biography of the pope, reports that Levada said: "I personally do not accept that there has been a broad base of bishops guilty of aiding and abetting pedophiles...If I thought there were, I would certainly want to talk to them about that."

Levada, former archbishop of San Francisco, is the highest-ranking American at the Vatican.

Pope's Message for Christian Leaders

It was not the kind of feel-good talk usually heard at interfaith gatherings: Pope Benedict XVI urged the leaders of other Christian churches to oppose a secularized, do-your-own-thing religion. If religion is treated as a matter of personal feeling instead of a search for eternal truth, he said, it loses its force.

"Only by holding fast to sound teaching will we be able to respond to the challenges that confront us in an evolving world," the pope said in an interfaith prayer service at St. Joseph’s Church on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. "Only in this way will we give unambiguous testimony to the truth of the Gospel and its moral teaching. This is the message which the world is waiting to hear from us."

Religion, he said, should not be limited to what can be verified scientifically or restricted to "the shifting realm of personal experience."

He added: "For Christians to accept this faulty line of reasoning would lead to the notion that there is little need to emphasize objective truth in the presentation of the Christian faith, for one need but follow his or her own conscience and choose a community that best suits his or her individual tastes."

Photo: Bernice King, daughter of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., greets Pope Benedict XVI after interfaith prayer service. AP Photo/Frank Franklin II.

When a Future Pope Visited LI

Long Island has never hosted a papal visit, but the future Pius XII did stay at a North Shore estate less than three years before his election to the papacy.

Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli, then the Vatican secretary of state, had come to the United States in 1936 on what was billed as a vacation. He stayed over at Inisfada, the Manhasset estate built by wealthy entrepreneur Nicholas Brady and his wife, Genevieve.

Today, it's the St. Ignatius Jesuit Retreat House. The center's director, Don Holden, says the estate was built between 1916 and 1920. Inisfada (pronounced in-ish-fah-da) is Gaelic for Long Island, he adds.

Inisfada served as the home base for Pacelli, who was hosted by the widowed Genevieve Brady during a month-long trip. As a number of authors have written, his trip turned out to be far more than a vacation. Pacelli had come to improve Vatican relations with the United States as political turmoil in Europe grew, Newsday staffer Tom Maier wrote in his book, "The Kennedys: America's Emerald Kings." And President Franklin D. Roosevelt wanted Pacelli to silence Father Charles Coughlin, the fiery radio preacher who denounced him as a Communist.

Even Genevieve Brady, the hostess, thought it was to be a social call, James Cooney wrote in "The American Pope: The Life and Times of Francis Cardinal Spellman." She was miffed that Spellman, then an up-and-coming bishop, didn't let her in on what was happening, according to Cooney's book.

Photo: Pope Pius XII in 1951. AP File Photo.

Pope's Veiled Rebuke to Iraq War

Pope Benedict XVI at the U.N. Photo by SpencerPlatt/Getty Images.

Pope Benedict XVI's call today for the United Nations to intervene against serious human rights violations encompassed a veiled rebuke to the Bush administration's decision to go to war with Iraq without U.N. sanction.

The pope didn't mention any specific country, but he urged a collective response to international human rights violations. The "decisions of a few" nations have imperiled this, he said.

That can apply to a number of issues that have been before the U.N. - it recalls Pope John Paul II's insistence that President George W. Bush seek U.N. approval before going to war in Iraq.

Pope Benedict did not resurrect that particular debate, but instead expressed serious concern over the broader principle involved. The pope highlighted the role of the UN as the proper body to respond to international crises in human rights.

"This is all the more necessary at a time when we experience the obvious paradox of a multilateral consensus that continues to be in crisis because it is still subordinated to the decisions of a few, whereas the world's problems call for interventions in the form of collective action by the international community," he said.

This extended, in the pope's view, to many issues.

"Indeed, questions of security, development goals, reduction of local and global inequalities, protection of the environment, of resources and of the climate, require all international leaders to act jointly and to show a readiness to work in good faith, respecting the law, and promoting solidarity with the weakest regions of the planet," he said.

Pope Benedict's speech focused on universal principles rather than on specific political issues - it was a ringing affirmation of human rights as a gift from God rather than a construct of laws that can be revised by those in power.

The U.N.'s role, in the pope's view, is to help protect those rights. "The action of the international community and its institutions, provided that it respects the principles undergirding the international order, should never be interpreted as an unwarranted imposition or a limitation of sovereignty," he said. "On the contrary, it is indifference or failure to intervene that do the real damage."

That does not mean he was urging armed conflict. "What is needed is a deeper search for ways of pre-empting and managing conflicts by exploring every possible diplomatic avenue, and giving attention and encouragement to even the faintest sign of dialogue or desire for reconciliation," he said.

Pope Benedict also spoke about the importance of guaranteeing religious freedom - not just the right to worship, but also to express religiously based views in the public square. "It should never be necessary to deny God in order to enjoy one's rights," he said. The pope also spoke of the need to protect religious minorities.

Pope Arrives in NYC

Pope Benedict XVI arrives in New York. AP Photo.

Pope Benedict XVI arrived this morning at Kennedy Airport, where church and government leaders greeted him.

He's just at the midpoint in his six-day journey to America, but it's not too soon to consider what kind of public persona has developed for the pontiff. Recall that polls taken before the trip showed that while most Americans had a positive view of him, the vast majority knew little about the pope.

This is going to be a matter of perception, of course, but I find that he's established himself as a graceful presence. His English is clear and his accent pleasing. He's surprised many by publicly addressing the American Catholic Church's serious problems - not what might be expected from a pope who has spent decades working in the Vatican bureaucracy.

He's managed to be direct in his criticisms without coming across as a scold; there is a warmth that comes through his professorial demeanor. From the nation's capital, he's given Americans a devastating critique of their culture and at the same time shown his great appreciation for what makes this country and its people great. As expected, he's given some intellectually sophisticated talks that are worth re-reading. But he also has connected on an emotional level, meeting with victims of clergy sexual abuse.

Those are some initial impressions, but there is much more to come. Pope Benedict is to speak at the United Nations, visit a synagogue and then lead an interfaith prayer service at St. Joseph's Church in Manhattan's Yorkville section.