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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Pope move ignites Holocaust row | Pope move ignites Holocaust row |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| The Pope has lifted the excommunication from the Roman Catholic Church of four bishops appointed by a breakaway archbishop more than 20 years ago. | The Pope has lifted the excommunication from the Roman Catholic Church of four bishops appointed by a breakaway archbishop more than 20 years ago. |
| One of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre's appointees, Briton Richard Williamson, outraged Jews by saying the Nazi gas chambers did not exist. | One of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre's appointees, Briton Richard Williamson, outraged Jews by saying the Nazi gas chambers did not exist. |
| Two of the other three appointees are French while the fourth is Argentinean. | Two of the other three appointees are French while the fourth is Argentinean. |
| Israel's envoy to the Vatican said the papal decision would "cast a shadow on relations with Jews". | Israel's envoy to the Vatican said the papal decision would "cast a shadow on relations with Jews". |
| "We have no intention of interfering in the internal workings of the Catholic Church, however, the eagerness to bring a Holocaust denier back into the Church will cast a shadow on relations between Jews and the Catholic Church," Mordechai Lewy told Reuters news agency. | "We have no intention of interfering in the internal workings of the Catholic Church, however, the eagerness to bring a Holocaust denier back into the Church will cast a shadow on relations between Jews and the Catholic Church," Mordechai Lewy told Reuters news agency. |
| Lefebvre, who died in 1991, rebelled against liberal reforms in the Church, such as the end of the Latin Mass. | Lefebvre, who died in 1991, rebelled against liberal reforms in the Church, such as the end of the Latin Mass. |
| He opposed replacing the traditional Mass with services in national languages. | He opposed replacing the traditional Mass with services in national languages. |
| The Vatican said the excommunications had been lifted after the bishops affirmed their willingness to accept Church teachings and papal authority. | The Vatican said the excommunications had been lifted after the bishops affirmed their willingness to accept Church teachings and papal authority. |
| 'No gas chambers' | 'No gas chambers' |
| Relations between the Vatican and representatives of the Jewish faith have been strained throughout much of the Church's recent history; Jewish groups have accused Pope Pius of turning a blind eye to the fate of the Jews in World War II. | |
| The latest move by Pope Benedict is likely to add to those strains. | The latest move by Pope Benedict is likely to add to those strains. |
| Bishop Richard Williamson recently told Swedish TV: "I believe there were no gas chambers. I think that two to three hundred thousand Jews perished in Nazi concentration camps but none of them by gas chambers." | Bishop Richard Williamson recently told Swedish TV: "I believe there were no gas chambers. I think that two to three hundred thousand Jews perished in Nazi concentration camps but none of them by gas chambers." |
| The Vatican has distanced itself from those remarks. | The Vatican has distanced itself from those remarks. |
| But its spokesman, Rev Federico Lombardi, still stood by the decision to rehabilitate Bishop Williamson and the others. | But its spokesman, Rev Federico Lombardi, still stood by the decision to rehabilitate Bishop Williamson and the others. |
| "This act regards the lifting of the excommunications, period," he told reporters. | "This act regards the lifting of the excommunications, period," he told reporters. |
| "It has nothing to do with the personal opinions of a person, which are open to criticism, but are not pertinent to this decree." | "It has nothing to do with the personal opinions of a person, which are open to criticism, but are not pertinent to this decree." |