Israel’s two Chief Rabbis today sent an impassioned cable to Pope John Paul II urging him to reverse his intention to meet with PLO chief Yasir Arafat. Sephardic Chief Rabbi Ovadia Yosef and Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi Shlomo Goren wrote, in part:
“The entire Jewish people in Israel and throughout the world were deeply shocked and profoundly hurt that the esteemed and distinguished head of the Catholic church should even entertain the thought of giving moral encouragement to this arch-butcher and shake the hand drenched in the blood of innocent Jewish men, women and children in Israel and other countries … and who must bear the entire responsibility for the mass murder of Christians in Lebanon during the past years.”
(In the U.S., leaders of major Jewish organizations today protested vehemently against the announced Pope-Arafat meeting and called upon the pontiff to reconsider the meeting. A full report will be available in tomorrow’s Bulletin.)
There will be no Bulletin dated September 20, Rosh Hashanah.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
