Pope Francis Calls Jews ‘Big Brothers’ of Church on Kristallnacht Anniversary
We Are Family: Pope Francis called the Jewish people the ?Big Brothers? of his Roman Catholic flock during a speech in memorial of Kristallnacht. Image by getty images
Pope Francis described the Jewish people as the “big brothers” of his Roman Catholic flock on Sunday in words of solidarity marking the 75th anniversary of the Kristallnacht attacks on Jews and their property in Nazi Germany.
Francis said the state-sponsored ransacking of Jewish homes, businesses and synagogues, on the night of Nov. 9, 1938, in which scores of Jewish people were killed, marked a step towards the Holocaust and should not be forgotten.
“We renew our closeness and solidarity to the Jewish people, our big brothers, and pray to God that the memory of the past and of the sins of the past helps us to be always vigilant against every form of hate and intolerance,” Francis told thousands in St. Peter’s Square in his Sunday mass.
The leader of the Roman Catholic Church has pledged good relations with Jews and his March election was welcomed by the world’s Jewish associations.
Francis co-authored a book on inter-faith dialogue with Argentine Rabbi Abraham Skorka while he was Archbishop of Buenos Aires.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
