Since the publication sixty years ago of the Second Vatican Council’s “Declaration on the Relation of the Church to non-Christian Religions,” Nostra aetate, “all my predecessors have condemned anti-Semitism with clear words,” Pope Leo XIV said during the Wednesday General Audience on October 29, in St. Peter’s Square.

In his catechesis, focusing on the importance of interreligious dialogue, the Pope offered a roadmap for how different faiths can act together to build a better world, and also highlighted the critical importance of Jewish-Catholic relations.

Sixty Years of Dialogue Must Continue

The Pope also expressed his gratitude to leaders and representatives of different faiths for their presence at the General Audience, emphasizing the importance of continued interfaith solidarity.

Six Decades of Achievement

Pope Leo emphasized that “today we can look with gratitude at everything that has been achieved in Jewish-Catholic dialogue during these six decades” since the publication of Nostra aetate in 1965.

He pointed out that Nostra aetate’s “first focus” was “towards the Jewish world.” “For the first time in the history of the Church, a doctrinal treatise on the Jewish roots of Christianity was to take shape, which on a biblical and theological level would represent a point of no return,” he said.

He explained that the document underscored the Catholic Church’s Jewish roots, as “the beginnings of her faith and her election are found already among the Patriarchs, Moses and the prophets.” In fact, it already decried any form of anti-Semitism “directed against Jews at any time and by anyone” not due to “political reasons but by the Gospel’s spiritual love.”

Areas Where Religions Can Work Together

The Pope then reflected on what different faiths can do together today, sixty years after this important document. “The answer is simple: we can act together,” he said, adding that “more than ever, our world needs our unity, our friendship, and our collaboration.”

The Pope underlined how important it is today to “face the responsible development of artificial intelligence because, if conceived as an alternative to humans, it can gravely violate their infinite dignity and neutralize their fundamental responsibilities.”

He insisted that different religions have “an immense contribution to make to the humanization of technology and therefore to inspire its regulation, to protect fundamental human rights.”

The Need for Hope Today

He urged different faiths to work together. “If we are united, everything is possible. Let us ensure that nothing divides us,” in order to “transmit this spirit of friendship and collaboration to the future generation too, because it is the true pillar on which dialogue rests.”

Meeting as Travelling Companions

A Path for the Church Today

Biblical Foundation: Jesus and the Samaritan Woman

A Call to Prayer

At the conclusion of his catechesis, the Pope invited all those present to pause for a moment of silent prayer, as prayer “has the power to transform our attitudes, our thoughts, our words and our actions.”