POPE TO VISIT ROME SYNAGOGUE IN JANUARY

In a gesture of interfaith reconciliation, Pope Benedict XVI will visit the Rome synagogue and meet with the city’s Jewish community in January, the Vatican announced.

The pope’s visit on Jan. 17, 2010, coincides with the Roman Jewish commemoration of “Lead Mo’ed,” which marks a torrential rain in 1793 that saved Jews from a Roman mob’s attempt to attack them. Pope Benedict’s visit comes at the invitation of Rabbi Riccardo di Segni, the chief rabbi of Rome.

In a statement on the significance of the date of the visit, the Vatican said “Lead Mo’ed” recalls a historical event considered miraculous by the Roman Jewish community. In 1793, anti-Jewish tensions ran high in the Papal States because Jews were being blamed for supporting revolutionary ideas from France.

VATICAN CITY (CNS)