My advice for the visiting pope

So the pope is coming to Israel. I wish I was more excited about it, but I just can't muster any enthusiasm for his guy. And before you get the idea that I am anti-pope, think again. I liked the last pope – as far as popes go in my life.

What's bugging me is that somehow the pope coming to Israel is supposed to placate the Jews who don't want to see the controversial World War II pope, Pius XII, canonized and then ultimately beatified. I don't get the connection between one visit and dismissing a very painful chapter is Jewish-Catholic history.

If the existing pope wants to visit The Holy Land, then he should come. If he wants to bless his peeps in Israel, I really don't have a problem with that. But if he thinks, for one moment, that just because he comes here Jews who care one way or the other are going to do an 180 degree about-face and be soooo happy that they won't have a problem with that creepy, awful, Hilter-loving anti-semitic Pius XII being canonized, then I think there is a major disconnect here. Someone is going to have to tell Rome that they are missing the point.

(I was going to ask for volunteers but strangely enough I have an old acquaintance/friend whose brother is a Franciscan monk and works in the Vatican. I think his thing is Canon Law. I guess I will just have to call myself!!! -- no, I am NOT really going to call the Vatican!)

Silent culpability is still culpability. And I am willing to bet that good old innocent (by Catholic Church standards) Pope Pius XII wasn't so silent, but rather, clever enough to know who to speak with and when to speak.

So Pope Benedict XVI a.k.a. Joseph Ratzinger of Barvaria, Germany (with credentials like that, we aren't exactly off to a stellar beginning), I hope you have a wonderful visit to Israel. I hope you get to visit all the places that are important to you and I hope you spend some quality time with your followers. I hope you bring your very cool Popemobile. And I hope that you take a few minutes to go to the location that Canadian/Israeli, Emmy-award winning, documentary film maker, Simcha Jacobovici says Jesus was really buried.

But don't pretend that your church does not have an abominable history with the Jews and stop denying that that history involved the likes of Pius XII who unfortunately was far from the worst. Leave the past in the past if you must but it would be much more productive to come to Israel and help your people here who really need that help now. You have bigger problems than the Jews -- just go to Nazareth or Bethlehem and see for yourself.

Welcome to Israel.