Chief Rabbi of the UK, Ephriam Mirvis met with Pope Francis at the Vatican Thursday, September 10. He was accompanied by the head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, Cardianal Vincent Nichols, to highlight the increasingly good working relationship between the two faith communities.
After the meeting with Pope Francis, the two men held talks at the Vatican’s Commission for Religious Relations with Judaism, and visited Vatican Radio to talk about their shared concerns for peace in the Middle East and for the role of faith communities in Britain.
The Rabbi brought a symbolic gift to the pope, a special set for apple and honey that Jews use during their New Year celebrations. He explained that the symbolism represents the bitterness of the past and their hopes of moving forward in a “sweet manner.”
“We are moving very much forward,” said Mirvis.
Rabbi Mirvis adds that there is a great need for increased interfaith dialogue, and “now it is of great urgency that we include dialogue with the Muslim world as well…”
Incredibly, a Sabbath keeping rabbi, meeting with the Sunday promoting pope hardly generates much interest these days.
“All the world wondered…” Revelation 13:3
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