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St. Peter's Square was festive, with streets cordoned off in advance of the inauguration of Pope Leo XIV. At one of the Vatican gates, we were greeted by a cleric in charge of Jewish relations. Among those present were Rome's Chief Rabbi Riccardo Di Segni, former Director General of Israel's Chief Rabbinate Oded Wiener, who chairs the interfaith dialogue committee, and Rabbi Abraham Skorka, a close friend of former Pope Francis. President Isaac Herzog also attended. I was reminded of his uncle, Rabbi Dr. Yaakov Herzog, a brilliant spokesperson for Israel and the Jewish people, who visited here several times in the state's first two decades as Israel's overseer of the holy sites.
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I considered our presence at the ceremony in terms of a historical and theological revolution. The Church ruled Rome for centuries, and Jews bore the brunt of its power. Not far from the square stands the Great Synagogue, located in the former Jewish ghetto, whose gates were once locked every evening. And here we are, representatives of the Jewish faith from which Christianity emerged, of the Jewish people from whom their messiah came, and of the Jewish state where he was born and lived, standing on our own merits, not at the mercy of the Church or foreign powers. Jesus has come down from the cross, wrapped himself in a Tallit, and returned home as a Galilean Jew in the Land of Israel, but this time, armed and unwilling to be crucified again.
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The Church certainly knows how to stage a spectacle. The procession of clergy in their distinctive garments, the colors, music, hymns, and liturgical citations from both the Old and New Testaments, all left their mark on the observers. Psalms were quoted in Latin, such as "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever," and "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it," alongside prayers for peace and mercy and countless iterations of "Hallelujah" and "Amen."
Let's be honest: the ceremony is foreign to Jews familiar with their own beliefs. The trinity - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - was repeated throughout, as was the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, a central tenet of Christian theology. Christianity's concept of salvation comes through belief in Jesus, not through practical commandments as in Judaism.
Behind me sat a cleric from Indonesia, beside me one from India, another from an African country, and an Italian academic who knew the hymns by heart. The line of cardinals passing before us was diverse, representing different continents and ethnicities, a testament to the changes within the Catholic Church.
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Yet one thing seemingly remains unchanged. The new pope preached humility, love, and unity before turning to current events: "Amid our joy in faith and unity, we must not forget our brothers and sisters suffering due to the war in Gaza, children, families, and the elderly, starving survivors."
Still, these words deserve careful attention. Pope Francis made harsh accusations against Israel on October 8, just one day after the massacre, while our brothers' and sisters' blood was still fresh and we had yet to bury our dead. The Israel Defense Forces had not even launched its military response. In previous articles, I've shown how even the religious content of Francis' sermon was drenched in venom toward the Jewish people and state. By contrast, the new pope is navigating a massive global backlash against Israel over its (justified!) campaign in Gaza to dismantle Hamas and rescue our hostages. It's hard to expect him to remain silent. Yet, he did not attack Israel or level false accusations.
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Nothing lasts forever. Sadly, Israel has forsaken a global battlefield. Since the war began, we've done little to convey our position or fight back in the global media and on social platforms. We must present accurate information about Hamas' atrocities, the hostages, and the war, both to the new pope and to the international community and media. It is absolutely doable. This responsibility is ours, and we cannot put our trust in miracles.
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Leo XIV quoted several times from Augustine, the 4th-century Church Father whose order the pope once led. It is worth recalling Augustine's doctrine of "just wars," which granted moral legitimacy to punitive military actions designed to deter future offenses: "Just wars are those that avenge wrongs, when a nation or state refuses to punish a wrongdoing by its citizens or to return what was unjustly taken." Especially when what's at stake is the survival of God's chosen people, their state, and the lives of Jews abducted from their homes.
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Israel's representatives should make it clear to the new pope that we have expectations of him. Being a shepherd to the faithful is not enough; he must also be a judge who examines the facts deeply before forming an opinion. Christianity may have abolished practical commandments, but not the pursuit of truth, and, hopefully, not of justice. We expect it to heed the words of Zechariah (8:16), the prophet of the Second Temple: "execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:." Let us hope.
