Pope, Herzog discuss antisemitism, peace in phone call

ROME – During a phone call between Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Pope Leo XIV Wednesday, the pontiff condemned all forms of antisemitism and encouraged ongoing peace and humanitarian efforts in Gaza.

A Dec. 17 statement from the Vatican confirmed that the pope had received a call from Herzog, who wished to convey his congratulations on the upcoming Christmas season and the Jewish festival of Hanukkah.

Pope Leo referenced the Dec. 14 Bondi Beach terrorist attack in Australia targeting the Jewish community at an event celebrating the first night of Hanukkah in the call with Herzog, reiterating the Catholic Church’s “firm condemnation of all forms of antisemitism.”

He lamented that antisemitism “continues to sow fear in Jewish communities and in society as a whole” throughout the world.

So far 15 people, including a Holocaust survivor and a 10-year-old girl, were killed in the attack, while some 17 remain in the hospital receiving treatment for injuries, some in critical condition.

The attack, labeled by Australian authorities as a terrorist attack inspired by the Islamic State ideology, marked Australia’s deadliest shooting since 1996, and drew condemnation from around the world.

Pope Leo in a Dec. 15 telegram, signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and addressed to Sydney Archbishop Antony Fisher, said he was saddened by the “horrific attack” and assured all those affected of his spiritual closeness.

“With renewed hope that those tempted to violence will undergo conversion and seek the path of peace and solidarity,” the pope prayed for the healing of the wounded and consolation of the victims’ families.

Leo during Wednesday’s phone call also urged Herzog to persevere in the various peace processes in the region, most notably in Gaza and in Lebanon, and stressed “the urgency of intensifying and continuing efforts in the area of humanitarian aid” to suffering populations.

In Gaza, a tenuous ceasefire brokered in October remains in place, but with many international leaders describing it as unstable, including Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who recently called the agreement “fragile.”

Meanwhile, tensions remain high between Israel and Hezbollah forces in Lebanon, as a Dec. 31 deadline to disarm the militant group, a condition of a ceasefire brokered between Israel and Lebanon amid a spat of fighting last year, draws near.

With the ceasefire at risk of collapsing due to unmet demands by the Israeli military, many Lebanese fear a full-blown war could be on the horizon for 2026.

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Pope Leo during his recent trip to Turkey and Lebanon issued several appeals for peace, including a direct request for the cessation of violence in southern Lebanon on his final day in Beirut.

Herzog visited the Vatican in September, holding a private audience with Pope Leo that focused on peace strategies in the Middle East, shortly before the Gaza ceasefire was agreed on and put into place.

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