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closed meeting

The bilateral commission of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel and the Holy See is the initiative of the late Pope John Paul II who proposed this during his meeting with the Council of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel during his pilgrimage to the Holy land in the year 2000. Accordingly the Bilateral Commission represents the latest institutional stage in the historic transformation in Catholic-Jewish relations since the second Vatican Council and the promulgation of the historic document Nostra Aetate which revolutionized Catholic teaching in relation to Jews, Judaism and Israel. During Pope Benedict XVI's pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 2009 and also at his visit to the synagogue in Rome last year, he made special mention of this bilateral commission as a testimony to the great advancement of Catholic-Jewish relations. For the occasion of Benedict XVI's meeting with the Chief Rabbis and their colleagues, the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung published the concluding statements of the bilateral commission's meetings until then.

These deliberations are held in a spirit of mutual respect for the separate integrity of each of the two Faith traditions, but seek to focus on issues of mutual concern and responsibility as well as how to promote religious values in contemporary society – especially peace and reconciliation.

This, the 10th meeting of the bilateral commission, being held at the Konrad Adenauer Conference Center, Mishkenot Sha'ananim, Jerusalem, will discuss The Challenge of Faith and Religious Leadership in Secular Society.