Since Vatican Council II, Jewish-Catholic relations have, for the most part, been moving away from the mutual animosity of the past . Sadly. some Jews and Catholics, however, have worked hard against this. Thankfully, the Israeli Ambassador to the Vatican does not show the same hostility and anger that other Jewish groups have had this week in regards to Pope Benedict’s decision to lift the excommunication from the SSPX.
Part of the problem comes from media misrepresentation of what Pope Benedict has done (since communion has not been re-established), and another part of the problem comes from the fact that this was handled poorly, because anti-Semitic statements from members of the SSPX were not properly addressed. Hopefully, as communication between the SSPX and the Vatican increase, anti-Semitism will be addressed and the SSPX will be required to make an open repudiation of anti-Semitism before full communion is established.
Cardinal Schönborn has recently pointed out that he believed mistakes were made in dealing with the SSPX. Hopefully this means that he will actively work to make sure the situation is rectified in further talks with them.
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