Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleWelcome to The Times of Israel’s newest podcast series, Friday Focus. Each Friday, join host deputy editor Amanda Borschel-Dan and diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman for a deep dive into what’s behind the news that spins the globe.
This week, amid pomp and circumstance at the Vatican, the Catholic Church marked 60 years to the Nostra Aetate, a document that — among other things — attempts to redefine the two-thousand-year-old relationship between the Catholic Church and the Jewish people.
Berman delves into the Nostra Aetate’s long-standing significance, especially as the relationship between Israel and the Vatican has frayed during the two-year war in Gaza launched by Hamas’s murderous onslaught on southern Israel.
More from Lazar Focus
September 11, 2026Yossi Abravanel: Despite sanctions, Israel must keep communication open with Europe
August 14, 2026Bjorn Lomborg: Energy, climate, and the fight for a better world
August 7, 2026Is there really progress in Trump's Gaza, Lebanon and Iran talks?
July 31, 2026Victor Davis Hanson: Trump must set up an Iranian government-in-exile
July 24, 2026Israel should worry about Saudi deal, but there is good news in Lebanon
We learn of the history behind the creation of the landmark document and the push-pull concerns from the Catholic communities in Mideast countries. We hear of the Jewish French historian Jules Isaac, who compiled Catholic anti-Jewish teachings and delivered them to Pope John XXIII, confirming the need to chart out a new path in the Church.
Friday Focus can be found on all podcast platforms. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves.
Check out last week’s Friday Focus:
The Times of Israel Community.